This and That Newsletter
Vol 21 Issue 1,065 Circulation 5,000 June 29, 2017
Ardmore, Oklahoma
My permanent email address: butch[email protected]
580-490-6823
A GLIMPSE INTO THE PAST
Before the construction of Highway 77, a trip from Ardmore to Oklahoma City was quite an undertaking, even with the new automobiles that had come into vogue. A Model T could make the trip in about two and a half days with luck and a minimum of flat tires over the route that was little more than a winding trail. The new highway built by prison labor in 1925 to 1926 was a wonderful new road that motorists hailed as the ultimate convenience - until after World War II when automobiles became more plentiful, trucking began to overtake railroads as a means of transporting goods in the rush toward destinations became a national obsession. In 1956 the state highway department proposed a fast safe feasible route connecting the North and the South border of the state it was called I-35.
But wait as with any government project this sounds too simple, and it was. The Arbuckle connection was held up for years by routing disputes, legislative action and slashes in Federal Road phones. In the beginning the legality of the expense was questioned and it was thought that perhaps a toll road was the answer. Then, the controversy over routing erupted. The shortest way was a straight line from Purcell to Springer that would bypass Wayne, Paoli, Pauls Valley, Wynnewood and Davis. Finally after problem after problem sprang up, compromises were made and the four-lane highway was constructed. Dedication of I-35 was delayed when Governor Dewey Bartlett, who was to do the honors, was taken by mistake to the rest area instead of the dedication site but the four-lane highway was officially opened to the public on August 17th 1970. -Sally Gray, Territory Town, The Ardmore Story published 2006
May 1933 - M. R. Troop says last week's sandstorm didn't do much damage in his section of Lone Grove, but it did in other parts of the county.
You can find current gas prices for a particular Oklahoma town by entering the name or zip code in the GasBuddy search box.
http://www.oklahomagasprices.com/Q. Where in Oklahoma is the world's largest bottle of hair tonic (advertisement)?
A. Tulsa, Oklahoma
http://www.worldslargestthings.com/oklahoma/hairtonic.htmQ. Where in Oklahoma is an impressive, eight-story performing arts venue that attracts prestigious international tours such as the Russian National Ballet and the Vienna Boys Choir and it's interior is extravagantly decorated with Swarovski Strass crystal chandeliers, a royal purple carpet, and a crystal candelabra that was used by the Shah of Iran to celebrate the Persian Empire's 2,500th anniversary?
A. Answer in next week's newsletterBelow is from This and That newsletter archives of June 23, 2005
Eric Fields is an Ardmoreite and most of you probably never heard the name before? I know I had not, but then I'm not really in to sports that much, especially boxing. Eric made headlines in the sports section of The Daily Ardmoreite on May 29th after defeating the top amateur 201-pound heavyweight fighter in the nation in the 2005 National Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions in Little Rock, Arkansas May 24th. We need to watch for this name in the the news, I bet we're going to be seeing the name a lot more in the future.
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Soap Box: Two Oklahoma children mauled this week by pit bull dogs, one now armless. And then lets not forget the postman this week attacked by a pit bull.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/viciousdogs.html
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"Butch- This is the Chalk Hills, east of Baum, Oklahoma on which Lone Cedar Cemetery is located.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/ChalkHillLoneCedarArdSW.jpghttp://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/ChalkHillLoneCedarEast.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/ChalkHillLoneCedarNear.jpg
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"I just wanted to tell you how very much I enjoy your Rambling Reporter notes. I knew this gentlemen back in the late 1940s and 1950s. George Norris was his name, and he and his lovely wife lived on 8th Street Northwest, just off B Street, if my memory serves me right. He was a kind fellow and loved chatting with folks all around the neighborhood and all around town. Many a time he would holler at us to ask what had been going on. The next thing we knew, our names were in his column. Sort of like a gossip column. Neat guy and neat reporting -- A delight to see his efforts reprinted here!" -Mae Cox, Norman, OK
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The Daily Ardmoreite July 14, 1947
Fort Worth is known as the Panther City. E.B. PUGH says when Fort Worth was a little western trading point that a panther was killed on the main thoroughfare of the city and since that time it has been called Panther city.
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----------------------------------------------------Some mail from this week's MAILBAG.....
Rubber stamp from Seagrove Grocery store on E Street NW by Franklin School.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/SeagroveGroceryArdmoreOk.jpgArdmore Main Street 1943
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/ArdmoreStreetScene1943.jpgRoy Johnson check 1913
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/RoyJohnsonCheck1913.jpgDr. VonKeller check 1913
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/VonkellerCheck1913.jpgDr. Walter check 1913
J. J. Stolfa check 1913
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/WalterHardyCheck1913.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos17a/JJStolfaCheck1913.jpg
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"The BNSF had me in Tulsa for 9 years; 1978-1987. I was employed by the railroad for 42 years in six states; always behind a desk. Started with CB&Q in KCMO in 1956 as a stenographer taking dictation in shorthand and typing up letters to mail to customers. They sent me to New Orleans for two years as assistant chief clerk in sales office 1962-64. When they moved me back to K.C. I got upset with them and walked across the hall at the old Board Of Trade Building and started working for the Northern Pacific.
Then in 1970 the merger of 4 railroads took place, the CB&Q and NP were two of them, the other two the Great Northern and Seattle, Portland & Spokane and new name was Burlington Northern. With the merger they moved me to Little Rock, AR as Chief Clerk in the Sales Office for 8 years (1970-1978), they closed that office and moved me to Tulsa, OK as chief clerk in sales office there from 1978 to 1987 when they closed that office. Then they moved me to Ft. Worth where I was employed in the Marketing Department from 1987 to 1995. When the Santa Fe merged into the BN in 1995 and name changed to BNSF they moved me to Topeka, KS as Asst. Mgr. Facilities Service for 5 years when I retired in 2000. So, railroads mean a lot to me of course." -Harry Gates
"You say Tomatos ..and I say TomatoEs"
A song by George and Ira Gershwin, from 1937. "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off."http://gershwin.com/the-gershwin-brothers/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ3fjQa5Hls
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
http://www.OklahomaHistory.net
"Friends Make Life Worth Living"
PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443Vicious Dog Attacks in Oklahoma
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/viciousdogs.html
Oklahoma Bells: http://www.OklahomaHistory.net/bellpage.html
Bill Hamm's Cemetery Database
http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/carter/cartercm.htm
American Flyers Memorial Fund - Administration Webpage
http://www.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
http://www.OklahomaHistory.net/airbase/
Carter County Government Website
http://cartercountyok.us
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