This and That
Newsletter
A Weekly Publication
Vol 14 Issue 693 Circulation 5,000 May 6, 2010
PO Box 11
Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402
email address: [email protected]
580-657-8616
On a foggy rainy evening April 22,
1966 the worst plane crash in Oklahoma's history took place 15 miles NE of
Ardmore in the Arbuckle Mountains killing 83 people. On board were 92 GIs and 4
crew members. A couple years before that day in 65 an American Flyers Lockheed
L-188C plane (probably the same one that crash NE of Ardmore) was landing at
Midway Airport in Chicago. The plane had been leased to carry the Beatles on
their first U.S. tour. American Flyers Airlines had headquarters at the Gene
Autry, Oklahoma airport NE of Ardmore.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8o0ZA4494o&feature=related
http://www3.gendisasters.com/oklahoma/12413/gene-autry-ok-airliner-carrying-troops-apr-1966
http://usa-memorial-blog.blogspot.com/2009/02/ralph-d-johnson-april-22-1966-crash.html
http://www.ntsb.gov/NTSB/brief.asp?ev_id=70624&key=0&rpt=fa
http://www.brightok.net/~wwwafm/
List of Oklahoma plane crashes
http://www.planecrashmap.com/list/ok
If your into Oklahoma history and haven't subscribed to the free daily video OK Moments, you are missing out!
Jill has been working to make a
garden. She has small plot of ground the east side of our house brokeen up with
the garden tiller, but nothing planted yet. And all by herself, she built a make
shift fence around it from wood pallets, to try and keep some of the critters
out.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/GardenFence2010.jpg
The other day a new business which may be of interest to women started operating just across the street north of the courthouse on Hinkle Street. Its called the Got Lashes Lash Bar. Their website is http://www.GotLashesLashbar.com
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/Lashbar.jpg
Rick Feiler brought be a reminder of early Ardmore this week, a tag from A.D. Chase Wagon Yard. Before 1900 the Chase Wagon Yard was on East Main where the old city garage used to be in the 60s (East Main and E Street).
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/ADChaseTag.jpg
Back in 2002 a Reader sent in a pic of his Chase Wagon Yard tag
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos/chasewagonyard.jpg
Last Sunday afternoon we had some really dirty water come through our water line from the road to the house. Since we are only 1/2 mile from the SOWC water tower, I assume it came from there. I turned on an outside water hose (nearest the road) and let it run. It lasted about an hour and cleared up.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/DirtyWater050210.jpg
I find that most of my generation and older are not into rap, most can't stand to listen to even one minute of it. But this lady's rap is ok.
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=WUQYJ77qa50
Q. Who is known as "The
first lady of Oklahoma History?"
A. Angie
Debo
Q. What river was once
blocked by a huge log raft?
A.
(answer in next week's issue)
Gas prices today in the Ardmore area......
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/gasprices.html
Some mail from this week's MAILBAG.....
"butch, just thought i would let you know that the coreopsis are in full bloom in the arbuckles. whole hills are covered in yellow blooms along old hiway 77 near turner falls. pretty sight for those into such things." -alan"Open this attachment to read about a supper close friend, Bob Fay. We worked together in the drilling of two wells in Atoka County and lost the drill pipe about 17,500 feet deep. We were going to about 35,000 to 37, 000 feet deep. With our partners the costs for the twin wells came to about 30 million dollars. We would meet in Norman and eat at Bob's favorite eating place which was the Red Lobster just west of I-35." -Joe Hock
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos/BobFay.pdf
http://www.mininghalloffame.org/inductee.asp?i=24&b=inductees.asp&t=y&p=1988&s=
And we thought all we had to worry about was hackers getting hold of our confidential info on the internet? Think again.
http://www.wimp.com/copymachines/
"Here's the confirmation, Butch. This is a picture of the Vendome Plunge in Sulphur, OK. Wish we still had it and the Belleview Plunge, too. The Belleview had a water wheel to slide into the water, a cold plunge, and picnic grounds with fountains and a bridge. Also included is a picture of the miniature train in Joyland Amusement Park right across the street from the Vendome pool." -Mary Lou Heltzel
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/VendomePlungeArial.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/JoylandTrainSulphur.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/MysterySwimmingPool.jpg
"Butch. the question on this weeks T&T regarding the location of the swimming pool Is I think the Vendome Plunge in Sulphur - I don't know the year but look at the attached photo that I received from Bill Thomas a while back. The water goes right up to the building and it looks like the columns on the right go into the water." -George Peveto
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/VendomePlunge.jpg
"BUTCH, I LIVE IN GRANDFIELD, OK. THERE IS A ROAD WHERE HIWAY 70 AND HIWAY 36 MEET GOING NORTH. TAKE THE ROAD SOUTH THERE AND YOU ARE ON BRIDGE ROAD. IT GOES SOUTH TO RED RIVER WHERE THE OLD TOLL BRIDGE ONCE WAS. I UNDERSTAND THE RIVER FLOODED AND WASHED IT AWAY. YOU CAN'T CROSS THERE ANYMORE ." -Minnie Lou Whittington
"Several mentioned the use of The Works in their dishwasher which I have only used it as a toilet bowl cleaner. Has any one tried it in their stainless steel kitchen sink? If it works in a dishwasher I do wonder how it would do on my sink. Thanks for any info that can be provided."
"For Ritta Holbrook: John K. Holbrook was my school bus driver in the fifties at Overbrook, Ok. and at that time he said, Elmer Holbrook was one of the singers that sang the Meads Fine Bread commercial. The song skit was, "That's what I said, Meads Fine Bread" -Don Greenaway
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vanishing_america/4475519662/
"The Armed Forces Day event in Lawton, OK on May 15, 2010 has been cancelled. If I am able to arrange for a different public engagement on that date, I will let you know." -Les Gilliam
http://www.lesgilliam.com/
"Butch, I read the request for information about the Red River Bridge in your last newsletter. I have in my possession three volumes of the Memoirs of Governor Murray and a book of his speeches. He was quite a character. My dad was a State representative from Greer County in 1935. He was well acquainted with Bill Murray. Times were extremely hard then and I must say that I am thankful that we did not end up in South America with Gov. Murray. Since my mother had never been out of Oklahoma, I assume that South Texas
was the limit of her migration." -Roberta
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/WmMurray,TheTrueHistoryofOklahoma027a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs007a.gif
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs008a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs009a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs010a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs011a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs012a.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/BillMurrayMemoirs013a.jpg
"Hello Butch, I read somewhere about a man in Ardmore who refurbishes old bicycles for kids. I would really appreciate the opportunity to donate a couple of bikes. They need cleaning and new tires, but that's about it. Does anyone remember his name or how to contact him?"
The Daily Ardmoreite
October 12, 1944
George Norris Story on KVSO
Sheriff Willis Tennyson will act as narrator by proxy on the Gang Buster broadcast of the career of Floyd Bynum, over KVSO and the Blue Network Friday, 8 p.m. Floyd Bynum was an inmate of the prison camp north of Ardmore when U. S. highway 77 was being built through the Arbuckle mountains during 1925 - 26. He made frequent trips to Ardmore as a truck driver, hauling supplies to the camp. He was known in Ardmore under the cognomen of "Spark Plug." Once when Walter Stroud, the guard, told Spark Plug to hurry and load the truck he drawled, "I ain't in no hurry. I got 99 years to do this." He was serving a 99-year term for the murder of a 16-year-old boy by the name of Pugh at Bartlesville. He escaped from the Ardmore prison camp and was caught in Kansas. A guard from the Oklahoma penitentiary was starting back with him, handcuffed and with leg irons on his legs. In some manner he worked the leg irons loose and as the train entered Muskogee he suddenly struck his guard over the head with them and then ran and dived through the car window, head first. He made good his escape but later was killed in a battle with the New Orleans, La., police. The script was written by Geo. R. Norris and is his 24th broadcast.
Note: Does anyone know where any of these radio broadcast from KVSO back in 1944 might be found?
You don't have to be great to do something, but you have to do something to be great.
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
Nashobish Ikana
PO Box 11
Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402
Save on long distance calls, just a couple cents a
minute!
http://www.CheapLongDistance.org
Ardmore High School Criterions Online
http://www.ardmorecriterion.com/
Oklahoma Bells:
http://www.OklahomaHistory.net/bellpage.html
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 schools, past and present
http://community.webshots.com/user/oklahomahistory
Carter County Government Website
http://www.brightok.net/cartercounty/
Ardmore School Criterions
http://www.ArdmoreCriterion.com
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