This and That
Newsletter
A Weekly Publication
Vol 16 Issue 827 Circulation 5,000 November 29, 2012
PO Box 2
Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402
email address: butchbridges@oklahomahistory.net
580-657-8616
Week ago last Saturday we stopped by Browns Springs south of Thackerville, Oklahoma next to the Red River to see how the drought has affected the area. I can report to you, its bad compared to a few years ago.
First is an overview of the springs in 1999
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/bsmain.jpg
And this is the way it looked two weeks ago.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownSpringsOverview11171.jpg
This shows where the springs bubbled up out of the ground back in 1999
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/brown2.jpg
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/bsbegin.jpg
And this pic is showing the springs today, running out of a 'overhang' in the north edge of the pond.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownSprings111712c.jpg
Pic in 1999 of me standing beside a lagoon of full of water to the south of the springs
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/bsbutch1.jpg
Then this same view shows a dry lagoon and how bad the drought is today.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownsSpringsLagoon111712b.jpg
There is a small body of water just across the road from the springs where water is coming out of the springs accumulates.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownsSpringsLagoon111712a.jpg
This is a view of the springs, and how the water run around to the east a few feet, then back to the stop it runs under the road.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownSprings111712a.jpg
And this is a closer view how the water makes a zigzag before return to where it has always exited the small pond before going under the dirt road.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownSprings11171f.jpg
This is the trail next to the springs that leads up the hill south to the old cemetery as it looked in 1999.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/bspath.jpg
And this is that same trail up the hill today.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/BrownSprings11171e.jpg
My Webshot Album of Browns Springs
http://news.webshots.com/album/25380889dVIcjKVxwG
Back in October 1999 I took a group of over 30 people on a tour of Brown Springs and the cemetery. Very interesting group to say the least and we had a lot of fun.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr.html
Just a few hundred yards north of the springs on the north side of a barbed wire fence is the old Brown Springs Cemetery. This is a listing compiled by Bill Hamm about 15 years ago of the people buried there at that time identified by their markers.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/brownspr/bscemlst.txt
My cousin, Don Bridges, in Virginia even made a song about Brown Springs called "Brown Springs At Night" and is on his album "An Ardmore Afternoon".
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/donbridges
The Daily Ardmoreite, November 1952 -
H. G. Hankins, Negro County Agent, reported Carter county 4H boys and girls made
a good showing at the statewide junior livestock show in Guthrie.
The Daily Ardmoreite, November 1928 - A hearing will be held Friday morning to
determine if Jesse Kirby, Marion Pierce, O.K. Darden, and Ed Clendenin, county
officials under accusations and facing ouster action, will be suspended pending
trial of the charges against them. Judge Ogden will consider an order for
removal of Arch Clark, and employee of the commissioners, who has been adding a
personal charge to the practice of selling county property.
I bought a sack of pecans at Bob
Ledbetter's Antiques Emporium (old Daubes Department Store) on East Main this
week. His pecans came from north of Ardmore in that rich Caddo Creek bottomland,
perfect pecan country. So after buying the pecans I ordered The Texan
sheller from Amazon.com and trying to get the hang of it, seems to work really
well. You clip each end off a little bit, then crack the length of the shell,
and the nut pretty much comes out whole.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos12a/TexanSheller.jpg
I can see the end of another iconic
product and the way its packaged going the way of progress. I'm talking about
sardines in a can that's been made that way before any of us were born. I'm sure
in the not too distant future we will see sardines in a can no more. I'm going
to miss opening that sardine can every day or two, but I guess the new plastic
packaging is ok too. At least the net weight is the same. And the price has
dropped from a $1 a can to 82 cents for the pouch.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/paleo/TwoSardines.jpg
My grandfather, Stanley Carmon, loved a can of sardines at least once or twice a week back in the 60s. I wasn't that crazy about it when I was young, but you know, I like it now, especially after reading the nutritional content (plenty of omega 3 oil too).
I've been eating a can every other day since starting the Paleo Diet over a month ago, but only in mustard sauce. No soybean oil allowed on the Paleo Diet. I've tried the tomato sauce varitiey and I didn't like it, so I'll stick with the mustard sauce, even adding a few squirts of fresh mustard to make it even tastier.
If you haven't tried out Google Drive, your missing out on a great service with 5 Gigs of free storage in the cloud. Things happen. Your phone goes for a swim. Your laptop takes an infinite snooze. No matter what happens to your devices, your files are safely stored in Google Drive. Google Drive gives you instant access to Google Docs, a suite of editing tools that makes working together better?even when your teammates are miles away. In Google Drive, you can create new documents, spreadsheets and presentations instantly. Also neat stock templates ready to use. Work together at the same time, on the same doc, and see changes as they appear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H12teRzulW0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7lU9mKxygQ
Just some food for thought, if you're a dyed-in-the-wool Internet Explorer addict like me, you should install Google Chrome on your computer too. If your Internet Explorer get so messed up you can't get on the internet, click on the Google Chrome icon and hopefully you will be online. Could be a lifesaver until you get Internet Explorer back up and running.
Oklahoma History Revisited by Larry Guthrie, Sulphur
Q. Which plains Indian tribe was likely the deadliest for the white man?
From This and That newsletter archives of November 15, 1998:
View of the Lazy S Ranch written in the
side of the Arbuckle Mountains north of Springer
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/photos/lazys3.jpg
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"When I was growing up, 1940's early
1950's . the sign on the side of the mountain read Moss Patterson ---- Lazy S
Ranch. I think the S was laying down tho."
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"Hi Butch, OK, you've got my full
attention now. I want to know what it is all about.....those Milburn, Oklahoma
lights? I am doing a lot of family research in the Milburn/Emet/Tishomingo area.
Can you tell me where to look for info on the Milburn Lights? Some kind of
strange phenomenon? Anxiously waiting for reply."
----------------------------------------------------
"Talk about memorable times. And the
big train wreck in Wapanucka. I was a freshman at Murray A&M (now Murray State)
at the time 1961 or 1962. A friend of mine (now my brother-in-law) and I went
over there. Beat the authorities, loaded up his 55 chevy with cases and cases of
Texas Schlitz beer. Hid most of it in the woods on my dad's farm northwest of
Milburn, carried some of it back to the dorm, and PARTY time. A couple of weeks
later, we went back to our hiding place to get more beer, and found a couple of
squirrel hunters sitting on our stash, having a good and drunken time. So, this
weeks column has brought back some memories, and a couple of chuckles. Thanks
Butch."
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"Say whoa!!!!! I loved the map on the
Love County area you had up, but for some reason I was not able to download it (print) it
out. Sure brought back some fond memories. In fact I could have added a small
road or lane in the Meadowbrook area of Love county that was not on that map.
Also my father took us down to "Blue Lake" which I remember being south or so of Thackerville. Had the national guard down killing water moccasin (snakes) in the
lake as they were so bad they would get into the house of the family that lived
there. Had thought about buying that place until we heard of the snakes being so
terrible. I first began reading your site when my brothers ,who still live in
Okla were forwarding it to me and have enjoyed it ever since."
http://www.OklahomaHistory.net/ttphotos/lovemap.jpg
----------------------------------------------------
"howdy butch , hope lifes treatin' you
well. i can remember when i was a kid (probably around 7-10) my parents and my
aunt and uncle took us kids and we all camped on red river right at the tucks
ferry for a couple of weeks. it was kinda hard to get to then but i still
remember the dugout for the ferry guy . i always thought it was a very
interesting place. thinkin' about people crossing on them in the old days."
----------------------------------------------------
"A black panther has been spotted in
the Indianola, Oklahoma area, (Pittsburg Co.) by deer hunters. A couple of
horses were killed sometime ago and a possibility by the panther."
----------------------------------------------------
"I would like to see the Milburn,
Oklahoma lights. They sound very interesting and eerie like the Hornet, Oklahoma
lights."
----------------------------------------------------
"Hello Butch: Adam Jimmy or Adam's
Jimmy was a horse and mule trader during the late middle and later part of the
1800's. He traded mostly with the Army and was kind of a hermit. He was not
married and lived in a small log cabin that was small and had a pole in the
center holding up the roof. He lived first in a dugout until his cabin was
finished. The dugout is about ten feet from the north side of his cabin. The
open prairie area north of Overbrook, Oklahoma was known as Adam's Jimmy
prairie. His cabin was on the west side of that prairie on the ridge that runs
along the west side. The cabin is gone and nothing remains that shows one was
ever there. However, I know the exact spot where the cabin and dugout were
located. Adam's Jimmy did not retire to the Hot Springs, Arkansas area as most
people believe. He died in a drunken brawl when his skull was split with a brass
stirrup and was buried in the Oil Springs Cemetery there in Love County."
----------------------------------------------------
There was a dedication ceremony last
Wednesday of the new cupola on top of the courthouse here. The Honorable Judge
Tom Walker was Master of Ceremonies.
http://www.oklahomahistory.net/cartercounty/cupola.html
----------------------------------------------------
Gas prices today in the Ardmore area......
http://www.oklahomagasprices.com/index.aspx?mss=152754
Check gas prices by town or zip code anywhere in U.S.
http://www.kmov.com/traffic/gas-buddy
Some mail from this week's MAILBAG.....
"Butch, I happened upon your website while trying to show my 94-year-old father some photos of the Arbuckles on my iPad. I'd like to add my account of what happened at Torture Cave in 1933 and 1965.In 1933 my dad, Dean London, and his brother Ray, who were from Ringling, attended Camp Chapman, a long since abandoned Boy Scout camp on Deel Creek, about a mile upstream from where it empties into the Washita near Dougherty, OK. That year, the Scoutmaster took the troop into Torture Cave, located just off a side creek about a quarter mile from Camp. It may go by other names, but Dad said it was called Torture due to the cold water which had to be waded or swum. After what seemed like a mile in the cave, it apparently ended at a circular pool surrounded by rock. The Scoutmaster dove into the pool, returning within a minute, saying that there was more cave on the other side, but he would not let the Scouts try it due to the danger. My Dad always wondered about that other side. When I was 12, he took me on an Arbuckle hike which included Torture, but we only went in a few feet because we had no lights.
In 1965, when I was 19, I took a college buddy from OU to explore Torture. READERS---DO NOT DO WHAT WE DID!!! We told no one where we were going, and our spelunking equipment was 2 el-cheapo flashlights with plastic wrap held with rubber bands. We followed the cave, which fortunately had no side passages, for about a mile, then reached the circular pool. We found carvings on the rock there, including R.N.L. 1933. My uncle was Ray Neal London, so we figured we were at the right place. After much debating, I lost at rock-paper-scissors and so went first. After 20 to 30 seconds, I was about to turn around when I felt an air pocket. I came up in a huge cavern which went as far as my light would shine. I forgot to signal my friend, so suddenly he appeared, not too happy with me. We started into the new passage, and after about 50 yards my light started flickering. We made a hasty retreat, and about halfway back to the entrance, my friend's light started flickering. We made record time from that point, and the faint light from the entrance was a welcome sight indeed. We made it out with one light out and the other flickering. I still thank the Lord for protecting us from our folly.
I'd like to hear from anyone who has been to this cave, by whatever name, especially regarding how far the cave went on past the circular pool. Also, please say if you remember old Camp Chapman, which I think was abandoned in the 1940s. Thanks for the stories and for letting me share mine." -Bruce London bruceleelondon@yahoo.com
"Put on your dancin' shoes and come join us for our annual Western Swing Christmas Ball in Winfield, Kansas, on December 8, 2012. My Silver Lake Band and I will do our best to show you a good time. The dance starts at 7pm and concludes at 10pm. Admission is $20 each. Light hors d'oevres included. The dance will be held at the Baden Square Community Center, 7th and Gary, in Winfield. In order to have enough food, we need for you to make a reservation by calling 620-222-2154." -Les Gilliam
Community Choral Christmas Concert has been a tradition on the first weekend of December for over 20 years now. Performances will be this Saturday Dec 1st at 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm at NW Baptist Church, 1609 Robison Street in Ardmore. There will be harp, strings, flute, brass and percussion, over 50 singers from all over southern Oklahoma, and should prove to be very festive and GUARANTEED to get everyone in the Christmas spirit!
These guys know how to have "real" fun while riding a train!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6Qr3j3USqA&feature=endscreen&NR=1
"Butch, This is from the mouth of Charles Dibrell so I know it's true:
He did talks mostly to school kids about Ham Radio and always took his QSL cards along and used them for illustration. He had some cards from some very impressive people. One that he was particularly proud of was a card from the expedition of Roald Amundsen to the south pole. The card was signed by Amundsen himself. One night when unlocking his house door he laid the bundle of cards down (about 3 in. thick he said). He forget to retrieve the cards until the next day. Unfortunately the garbage collectors did their job well. They took the cards off the top of the garbage can when they emptied the cans. The Amundsen card was not the only historic card he lost."
This is spectacular live footage of the 3,000 mile round trip mile air assault upon the Japanese main land, with 3 bomber wings and a host of P-51's. This is the real way to end a war. No matter what war footage you ever saw before, this is the real deal and will keep your undivided attention. The P-51 & B29 footage is remarkable. The strafing runs by the P-51 pilots were incredible. There are several ?breaks? as the film canisters are changed, just wait for the count down (View Full Screen/Sound On).
B-29/P-51 Actual WWII Footage:
http://archive.org/details/TheLastBomb1945
"RE: Crystal Radios: I have no way of knowing whether the original correspondent is still reading "This and That" but as a former ham, I'll answer anyway. The crystal he used was "galena" which is a lead ore. The "cat whisker" was actually a thin copper or spring steel wire, mounted on the end of a rod attached via a ball joint to a stand. One moved the cat whisker around on the face of the crystal until finding a good spot.
Other things could be used. For instance, during WW2 some folk used Gillette blued-steel razor blades instead of galena crystals. A few experimenters used very sharp pencil leads in place of the cat whisker. The simplest of which I ever heard involved a Gillette blade and a safety pin!
All of them worked because the junction between suitably dissimilar materials caused current to flow in only one direction through the junction. With a strong enough radio signal, that unidirectional flow converted the signal back to a range our ears can handle. When solid-state diodes (not cathodes) came along, they did the same thing without the need for fussing to find the sweet spot of the crystal.
This only works with AM signals, not with FM. However the same phenomenon has been known to cause rusty steel fences near broadcast transmitters to "talk" (by detecting the broadcast signal)!" -Jim Kyle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqdcU9ULAlA
Springer Christmas Parade ? Saturday ? December 8, 2012
Open to antique cars, bikes, ATV, floats, walkers and horse groups. Entry fee is one new unwrapped toy. If you want to participate in the parade, please meet in the Springer School parking lot on the South side at 12:30 PM and the parade will start at 1:00 PM. Volunteers are welcome and greatly appreciated. Come and enjoy the parade and join everyone at the Community Center for refreshments after the parade.
"Dear Friends, I am asking folks to go to our Washington Theatre Facebook and comment and ?like? our new page. Apparently this helps get the word out about The Peking Acrobats and other shows. I sincerely appreciate your help. Still Kinda NEW at this ?Hi-Tech? stuff." -Rosemary Fisher
https://www.facebook.com/washingtontheatre
"So far so good with this new unlimited plan for only $19 a month. The phone will cost $250 plus tax but I am impressed with it so far. Get the dual band phone if possible for better reception. I had to wait for over 6 months on the waiting list for the beta period but I don't think the wait is long anymore."
http://republicwireless.com
Friday Night Blues by John
Conlee 1980
Oh there once was a time she was top of the line her nights like teenage dreams
Now it's operas at noon, dancing round with her broom talking to the washing
machine
Oh, the girl down the street says her old man is neat and she makes it sound so
true
Now she's feeling lonely thinks she's the only one with the Friday night blues
And the Friday night blues they get in your shoes and they work to get you down
Oh and there ain't a lady that I ever knew who didn't need her a night on the
town
But the hills and the bills and a week's worth of deals has got him feeling more
than used
Oh, he's kicking his shoes off she's putting hers on she's got the Friday night
blues
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sfG6eSfDR8
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443
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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