The Daily Ardmoreite
August 25, 1948
Simpson Building is Purchased by Quinton Little, City Oil Man
New Owner Plans to Add Three More Floors to Building.
Deal, Which Has Been in Making a Year, Completed. Fell and His Associates Sell Stock To Little.
Quinton Little, Ardmore oilman and capitalist, today became the owner of Ardmore’s largest and best known downtown building.
Final negotiations of a deal which has been in the process of completion for a full year ended and Little became sole owner of the city’s biggest office building, the six story Simpson Building, at A Street Southwest and West Main Street.
While the money involved was not made public, it was reliably reported the deal involved approximately $300,000.
Included in the purchase was not only the building but the lots immediately at the rear and south of the building. Little promptly announced he would develop these into some worthy use as quickly as possible.
Little completed the transactions with Harold B. Fell and others who held stock in the building. It is a landmark in Ardmore, and once one of the show places of the city.
Built in 1920 by the late Bert A. Simpson and associates, it was the city’s loan skyscraper for many years. It was finally given a companion when the Masonic lodges erected what is now known as the Gilbert Building on West Broadway and B Street NW. The only other building of public nature comparable with the Simpson Building was the Hotel Ardmore, which likewise stemmed back into the prosperous days when oil and the 1st World War gave Ardmore a sudden building boom.
Above the south entrance of the Carter County Courthouse.
Speaking of courthouse, workmen are installing new aluminum doors in brushed bronze finish at all three entrances this week. The doors will be more like the original doors in 1910 when the courthouse was built.
HAM Radio Talk
Nearly everyday I continue to make new contacts using my HAM license (KC5JVT) and the free program on my PC called Echolink. The audio quality is amazing on every single call/contact. Then there is the continued conversations days later with the newly made HAM friends. I am amazed at the friends I make worldwide and the quality of the friendships.
224. 03/30/23 8:45am DO9KC Karl in Oldenburg, Germany
https://www.qrz.com/db/DO9KC
225. 03/31/23 9:00pm W5JWK Jim in Bowie, TX
https://www.qrz.com/db/W5JWK
226. 04/01/23 9:00am IU0MBS Max in Ferentino, Italy
https://www.qrz.com/db/IU0MBS
227. 04/01/23 9:15pm N5EDF Ed in Wichita Falls, TX
https://www.qrz.com/db/N5EDF
228. 04/02/23 4:05pm PU3AGG GUINTHER in Brazil
https://www.qrz.com/db/PU3AGG
229. 04/02/23 9:40pm K7YJH Marcial in Nevada
https://www.qrz.com/db/K7YJH
230. 04/04/23 6:45pm AF4VM Bob in Phoenix, AZ
https://www.qrz.com/db/AF4VM
231. 04/05/23 8:00pm KC3VWA Anton in Cheyney, PA
https://www.qrz.com/db/KC3VWA
Some mail from this week’s MAILBAG….
Your remembrance of the high school folk art act of banging out a silver ring from a silver coin brought back memories of old AHS on Washington street. I remember this form of silversmithing being performed by talented school mates, and then offering them up for sale in order to buy stuff for their cars & girlfriends.
Another memory of old AHS was the infamous Mulkey Hotel alley. That’s where the phrase ”meet me in the alley” came from. The Mulkey Hotel alley was used to settle differences that occurred in the halls or gym of AHS. I have a photo that my brother Tom took of one such pugilistic event between John Paul Johnson and adversary. I will text it to you when I find it. This was a daily occurrence which al ways drew a crowd. ”Meet Me In The Alley” was a common catchphrase of old AHS.
Ah yes, the Mulkey Hotel. You did not want your parents to ever know you hung out in the lobby for any reason. There were a multitude of vending machines in the lobby selling items of great interest to teenagers. Cigarettes being number one > another reason for the manufacture of the popular ”coin ring”.
I never manufactured the ”coin ring” as you did. Myself and a buddy were responsible for the manufacture & distribution of the infamous ”ballpoint pen stink bomb”. Quite a gadget > the main components were a plastic ballpoint pen, a bobby pin, and a kitchen match. One could empty a classroom without being discovered, as the ballpoint pen was immediately clipped back into a shirt pocket. The stink of a sulphur match burning inside plastic rivaled that of rotten eggs.
Ah, the memories of High School. Thanks Butch for bringing them back to the surface ! See you in the funny papers, -Steve
Hey there Butch. I remember “Whiskers” very well. His last name was Hodges. His main base was a shed about 1/4 mile south of Dundee School. He would head out and be gone weeks and at time a month. He’d come walking back with a string of horses. Remember, there were no fences back then, all open range. The way Whiskers was there’s no telling what happened to him. He’d just disappear, then come wondering in. We could see him from Dundee School with that slow walk followed by horses. Someone would say “here comes whiskers”. -Vince in Healdton
Followup on above: One source said this is probably Oscar Camp who was always behind a team of mules or horses as he traveled the roads around here. Oscar Camp was seen on the roads in the 50s.
Butch, A few days ago I was browsing the map near the Tishomingo Wildlife Refuge and stumbled upon a satellite image of Randolph School. I didn’t remember hearing of a school in that area before. I found very little online about Randolph school. The only things I found online were a few mentions in a couple issues of T&T. This afternoon I decided to see if I could make my way over there and have a look at the old school. I got in there, but it’s no easy feat. I rode in as far as I could then walked the remaining half mile or so. Not an easy walk as it’s rough country and in some places pretty wet right now. Anyhow, I grabbed a few photos you can share if you like. -David Cathey
Mac McGalliard was Ardmore’s historian, named Mr. Ardmore and he worked at the Daily Ardmoreite where he had a weekly column called the Reporter’s Notebook. He shared a lot of Ardmore and surrounding area’s history in his column. I visited Mac many times at his office and home to talk about Ardmore and loan him my Ardmore finds so he could publish them in his column. His former home at 1209 Wolverton NW Ardmore, Ok will be demolished soon to make room for an office building . I decided to take a photo of his home so it will be remembered in the future about a great man of our city. -Robert Hensley
Below is from my Vol 4, Issue 155 April 8, 2000 newsletter:
This week I received a call from the sister, Ms. Margie Edwards, of one of the victims in the 1966 plane crash north of Ardmore. Her brother lived in Pencil Bluff, Arkansas. She said she was very close to him. She broke down crying twice during our conversation. She said they have waited all these years for a memorial out there. A few days passed, and a letter arrived postmarked Hot Springs, Arkansas. It was from Ms. Margie Edwards. In that letter was a photo of her brother, and a copy of a letter written one year after that 1966 crash. The letter was written by Peter Scaramuzzo, a survivor of the crash. I want to share that letter from Peter to Ms. Edwards with everyone. Keep in mind this letter was written in 1967.
By the way, Margie Edwards told me they had just built a new funeral home in Pencil Bluff, Arkansas and her brother, James Edwards, was the frist body broght in for services.
__________________________________________________________
April 20, 1967
Dear Mrs and Mrs H.W. Edwards, Pencil Bluff, Arkansas,
I would like to say thank you very much for your very thoughtful
card. I’m practically out of the hospital now. I should be going
home next month for sure. Its a welcome relief to be getting out
of here for good.
I’m sorry to say I didn’t know your son. I knew a Teddy Edwards
from Wyoming only. I’m very sorry to hear about your son. I
consider myself one of the luckiest people in the world.
My physical status isn’t what it used to be. I still have some
grafted skin that hasn’t cleared up, but it will be in a matter
of time. I also have lost part of my leg which I don’t think
hinders me as much as I thought it would. Other than this I
feel great. I hope you don’t get the impression I’m feeling
sorry for myself. This is the last thing I want.
Well, I guess that’s about all I can say now. I’d like to say
again thank you for your thoughtfulness.
Sincerely,
Peter Scaramuzzo
Long Island, NY
Below is a photo of Ms Edwards brother, Pvt James D. Edwards of Pencil Bluff, Arkansas who died in that 1966 air crash at Gene Autry.
Note: I found the phone number for Peter Scaramuzzo on Long Island, NY and called to let them know about the memorial service being planned (1996) at the Airpark. His wife answered. She said she appreciated that a memorial is being erected at the airpark and she would let her husband Peter know. But he does not like to talk about the accident, and they never bring it up after all those years, just terrible memories for her husband.
About 20 miles north of Ardmore in the Arbuckle Mountains is Dougherty, Oklahoma. It’s a small town, population 224….. but at one time long ago, they did have a jail. Here is a pic sent to me by a reader of that little jail.
This week I had a special visitor to my office. Mr. Alfred Miller came by, he is the driving force behind keeping the tower clock in the dome of the Washita county Courthouse at Cordell, Oklahoma working everyday. Alfred is a retired county commissioner from Washita county after serving the people there over 30 years. All three courthouses in Oklahoma that have tower clocks in them are now working. Ours here in Ardmore, the one at Cordell and the one in the dome of the Marietta, Oklahoma courthouse in Love county. The tower clock in Cordell is no longer in the dome but in the lobby on display.
Submitted by Melinda Taylor:
The Daily Ardmoreite
1-21-1898
Healdton I. T. – Jan. 20.
The Wheeler school building at Graham, nine miles north of this place was burned last night. It was a two-story structure, the upper story being used by the A. F. and A. M. and I.O.O.F. fraternities. It was the best building of its kind in this country. The loss is estimated at $1500.
The Daily Ardmoreite
1-25-1898
Several members of the Graham community are in town today. J. A. Drury and Prof. G. A. Nutt were two who called at the Ardmoteite office. In speaking of the burning of the school house at that place on the 18th inst., an account of which appeared in the Ardmoreite at the time, they said the building was used as a church house and schoolroom below. The upper story being used by the Masonic fraternity and the Odd Fellows, both of which orders lost all of their paraphernalia. These gentlemen stated that while the house was yet burning a subscription list was opened and in a few minutes $240 was raised, and by Friday following this was increased $100 more. A number of wagons were at once started to town for lumber, and each man was an authorized committee to solicit funds for rebuilding. In this way the sum or $67.50 was raised. The people of that community propose to erect a larger and more comfortable building than the one recently destroyed.
“Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterward.” –Vernon Law
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
Ardmore, OK
580-490-6823