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Vol 22  Issue 1,141  December 6, 2018

PO Box 2, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402

Email: butchbridges@oklahomahistory.net, Phone: 580-490-6823

The weather experts are predicting snow this Saturday for nearly all of Oklahoma. Only an 1 inch of snow or less is expected on the sunny side of the Arbuckle Mountains here in southern Oklahoma. Personally, I’m not a snow person, so glad an inch is all we might get here. But yes, a blanket of snow everywhere is beautiful.

I’m back amongst the unemployed this week. I sure enjoyed working at Carrell Trucking in their IT department. I pretty much finished the Ethernet cabling (50+ cables), Server moving and networking tasks they needed me to do the last 4 months, so I thought it was time to move on to a new page in my life. I worked with some great co-workers while at Carrell Trucking and I’ll miss every one of them. But life goes on. So if anyone out there knows of a job for a senior citizen, let me know. Just keep in mind I can’t dig ditches with a shovel anymore. lol

When C. A. Sammons came to Ardmore about one year after the town sprung into existence, there were not a half dozen stores in the whole place, and they were most primitive in both stock and structure. Mr. Sammons identified himself with F.M. Richardson Lumber Company and later became the general manager and a member of the firm as well, remaining in that capacity until 1894, when he bought out the entire business. Since that time he has had no partners, conducting his extensive lumber trade alone. The picture shows only a portion of the entire yards, which covered fully an acre of ground, and on which have been erected numerous substantial sheds to protect the stock from the elements. Business has been steady increasing, and Mr. Sammons has kept abreast of the times, always being prepared to fill all orders for every description of building material. He also carries a large stock of lime and cement. -“Good Times” edition of The Daily Ardmoreite – 1899. C.A. Simmons died December 16, 1911 at the age of 43. His wife Mary Georgie Sammons was born February 11, 1870 to January 26, 1910.

C. A. Sammons Lumber Yard in Ardmore, Oklahoma

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/SammonsLumberYard.jpg

Charles A. Sammons Jr., learned at an early age that he disliked toil and preferred to be a thinker. Born in Ardmore, Oklahoma – Indian Territory, he was orphaned at age 11. From humble beginnings and without benefit of college training, his unique management style led him through various endeavors, and eventually to the insurance industry. With two associates, Sammons formed Postal Indemnity Co., which grew rapidly, acquiring other insurance concerns as it grew. In 1938, he began Reserve Life Insurance Co., which became the basis for his future success. He made generous donations toward health care and medical research. The “Charles A. Sammons Tumor Institute and Radiation Center” at Baylor University Medical Center, opened in 1977, was made possible by his $1 million challenge. In 1962, Sammons formed Sammons Enterprises, a holding company to facilitate ownership of his various companies. -From Indian Territory and Carter County Pioneers book 1983

Sammons Enterprises with assets of over 26 billion dollars is headquartered in Dallas.

Below is a photo of Mr. Charles Sammons. Born June 5, 1898 and died November 12, 1988. Mr. Sammons is buried at 10th and Manoah Streets in Rose Hill Cemetery here in Ardmore in the family plot. Manoah was the father of Sampson in Biblical times. Manoah lived 8 miles west of Jerusalem. Manoah means quiet or rest.

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/CharlesSammons.jpg

Circa 1900 photo of the Sulphur depot.

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos18b/SulphurOKdepot1900.jpg

1901 photo of the Campbell gold mining operation near Mt Scott, Oklahoma

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos18b/CampbellGoldMine1901MtScott.jpg

More info on the gold mines on Page 75 of the book Oklahoma: The Land and Its People by Arthur Franks CLICK HERE

November 1934
George Evans of Newport who operated a gin in that place for many years said a ginner had to be assured of as many as 400 bales of cotton before he could hope to break even. He is not operating this year and doubts that many bales will be produced.

November 1958
Paul Heartsell resigned Saturday as a Carter County Commissioner and will begin serving a one-year term for tax evasion on Monday. He asked the other two Commissioners to appoint Huss Standifer to his spot on the board. Heartsell said he is turning over to the board more than $100,000 worth of county equipment in his district.

November 1983
$2.9 Million dollars worth of building bonds to be used to construct a new county jail. Doug Vernon of the Vernon Company and the county bonding company, recommended an interest rate of 8.36% at the cost of $1,463,361 dollars. The county has contract to purchase the property on South Washington for a construction site for the new jail. Construction should begin about January 1st 1985.

Q.  Where in Oklahoma can Cimmy the dinosaur be found?
A.  Cimmy, the iron clad dinosaur, is on display at the Cimarron Heritage Center at Boise City, Oklahoma
http://www.chcmuseumok.com/chc.html

Q.  Where in Oklahoma can one enjoy the company of camels and see them interact in their own habitat?”
A.  Answer in next week’s newsletter

Here’s a couple of pavers I sandblasted the other day.

https://oklahomahistory.net/bricks/SadieElliePavers.jpg

Below is from This and That newsletter archives of December 7, 2006

In 1988 a man, reported to be the wealthiest man in the U.S. by the Dallas Morning News, died in Dallas. Probably only a handful of people in Ardmore knew of his passing and most probably never even recognized the last name and its connection to Ardmore. This man was born right here in Ardmore, and his parents were one of the first to settle in Ardmore in the 1890s. His dad started in the lumber business. Ardmore was just starting to build homes and businesses downtown, and it was the Sammons Lumber Yard that would provide much of the materials needed in the construction. This is a photo of the C.A. Sammons Lumber Yard, it was located across the street from where the Federal Building is located today (N. Washington and Broadway).
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/SammonsLumberYard.jpg

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In last week’s T&T when I told about taking pics of snow at Central Park, I forgot to add the links to the pictures. Here’s the pics I snapped at 7pm Thursday evening November 30, 2006 at Central Park.
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/CentralParkSnow.jpg

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/CentralParkTree.jpg
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“1967: Gene Bridges, owner and pilot of Gebco Airlines, is offering commercial flights to and from Oklahoma City, based out of the Idabel, Oklahoma Airport. A round trip ticket is $23.50 and air freight service is also being offered.”
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“There used to be a family-owned monument company at the south-east corner of B and 4th S.W. It was run by the Ritters. I grew up a couple of houses to the west on 4th. My younger brother was the same age as the oldest Ritter boy, Joe Bob. I used to play in the sand piles around the shop. I got to watch the way they made stone monuments. They cut a mask out of a flexible rubber mat, about an 1/8th of an inch thick. The letters were cut out with a special knife, and the mat was glued onto the stone. Sandblasting was very tricky because each letter had to be the same depth. I learned the masking technique I mentioned previously from my experiments with airbrushing. It’s all similar except that with sandblasting you’re removing material, and with airbrushing you’re adding it on.”
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“Butch, The Ellis Dry Goods building in this photo is in Sulphur- I have an old photo showing the same building with City Drug Store on the it. The building is still standing on the southwest corner of 11th and Broadway in Sulphur. Note the roof line of the Pagoda top building behind and attached to the main building. The pagoda roof top building is still there and Sulphur water is still running out of a pipe at the back of the pagoda building.” -George Peveto
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/EllisDryGoodsStoreSulphur.jpg
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“Butch-The Oklahoma Centennial Year begins in a few weeks. This one lane bridge over the railroad along Hwy 69-75 south of Durant was completed in 1907. It is an example of what could be accomplished by manual labor of dedicated workers. The big, ready-mix delivery trucks or modern day finishing machines were not around or even imagined 100-years ago. I doubt if the old bridge will see many more birthdays and will soon go the way of other area landmarks. -Gary Simmons
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos6a/BridgeDurant111606a.jpg
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Some mail from this week’s MAILBAG…..

I would appreciate receiving the interactive Carter County Schools map by Charles Stallcup for use in my Google Earth program. Look forward to seeing it. -Richard
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos7a/doc.kml
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The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. -unknown

See everyone next week!

Butch and Jill Bridges

“Friends Make Life Worth Living”PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443

https://oklahomahistory.net

Vicious Dog Attacks in Oklahoma
https://oklahomahistory.net/viciousdogs.html
Oklahoma Bells: https://oklahomahistory.net/bellpage.html
Bill Hamm’s Cemetery Database
http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/carter/cartercm.htm
American Flyers Memorial Fund – Administration Webpage
https://oklahomahistory.net/crash66.html
Official American Flyers Memorial Website
http://www.brightok.net/~wwwafm
Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Base Website
http://www.brightok.net/~gsimmons
Mirror Site of the Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Website
https://oklahomahistory.net/airbase/
Carter County Government Website
http://cartercountyok.us