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Vol 15  Issue 774  November 24, 2011

PO Box 2, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402

Email: butchbridges@oklahomahistory.net

Phone: 580-490-6823

Hope everyone’s Thanksgiving Day was a good one and all that stuffing until we’re ready to pop is behind us.  We didn’t have the traditional Thanksgiving dinner like most. Jill prepared a pot roast that was out of this world, along with green beans, candied yams, mashed potatoes and delicious brown gravy. I think I did pretty good, didn’t really stuff, but ate all on my plate followed by 2 slices of warm, store bought pecan pie!

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East of Ardmore about 30 miles is Tishomingo, Oklahoma and tucked away at the NW edge of Tish is one of the most beautiful sites of nature the eye can behold. Its known to few people since its hidden away off Highway 377 and the beaten path, but the drive north down that narrow road for three blocks is worth the time for a look-see. Right now with the Fall foliage showing its glorious colors all across this part of the state, its easy to find some beautiful sites. But I don’t know if one can find anywhere in southern Oklahoma a nature scene so beautiful as the Pennington Creek Dam on the north edge of Tishomingo, Oklahoma. This place is tied with Turner Falls north of Ardmore in beauty.

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/PenningtonDamNov2011.jpg

Here is a map showing where the above Pennington Creek Dam is located.  If your entering Tish from the west, it the first street (Ward Street) that turns north after you cross the Pennington Creek bridge.  A red X in the upper right hand corner of the map marks the spot where you park, and walk down some concrete steps to the dam. The old building in the picture is an abandoned pump station where Tish got their water years ago.

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/PenningtonDamMap.jpg

Many of you remember Ponders Restaurant north side of Ardmore and I-35 through the years.  Many will also remember it closed it doors last December and today its the new Jimmys Egg. It has been completely remodeled both inside and out. The new Jimmys Egg opened for business November 12th.

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/JimmysEgg111211a.jpg

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/JimmysEggInside111211a.jpg

1930 Green Lantern Sandwich Shop 219 W. Main. Only sandwich shop.
1930 Sprekelmeyer Printer. #8 C SW. Von Weise Building

From This and That newsletter archives of November 28, 1998:
I was looking at the Thanksgiving Day issue of The Daily Ardmoreite Thursday and a photo and caption caught my eye. Our local Moose Lodge said they would deliver Turkey Dinners to shut-ins. My aunt and uncle are both 87 years old, alone, and unable to fix turkey and all the trimmings any more. I called the number listed, gave them my aunt and uncle’s address here in town, and like angels on a mission of mercy, here came their Turkey Day dinner! I used to see ads like that, where shut-ins could get a free Thanksgiving Dinner delivered years ago in the paper….. all by churches. But the Moose Lodge was the only one Thursday. Times sure have changed.
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Last Wednesday evening I watched the Celine Dion program on TV, “These Are Special Times”. The program was beautiful and her singing was awesome. I am going to take a minute here and tell how I would have loved to tape this TV special, why I couldn’t, and how a friend I’ve never seen made a tape for me.

Around 1983 when I worked for the ambulance service here, we transported a little man who lived at the Veteran’s Center. He was able to work some…. drove a taxi here in Ardmore part-time. The Veteran’s Administration would not pay his ambulance bill to Oklahoma City. Every Friday he would drive up in that old, beat up taxi and pay a few dollars on his bill. He did this every Friday for nearly two years until he had the ambulance bill paid. During one visit he said something about VCRs and wish he had one at the Veteran’s Center so that he and other residents could see movies. He told me he could even work on VCRs. I told him my VCR at home didn’t work quite right and if he could fix it, he could have it. I knew there was not really much wrong with it, I had the problem before… since I only used it every few months, the heads needed cleaning. He came back the next Friday and I gave him my VCR. The next Friday when he returned, that little old man had this big smile on his face, told me he got it working and they were using it at the Veteran’s Center!

Since that day, I have not owned a VCR. After the Celine Dion special on TV, and you all know she is my favorite singer, a friend and ex-Ardmoreite I’ve never met in a far away state, sent me an email, saying she was sending me a tape of Wednesday night’s program! Friends, they make life worth living.

Q.  What is the official state tree of Oklahoma?
A:   Redbud

Q.   What is the official state fish of Oklahoma?
A.    (answer in next week’s newsletter)

Gas prices today in the Ardmore area……

https://oklahomahistory.net/gasprices.html

Some mail from this week’s MAILBAG…..

Linda Long via Facebook wrote: “Butch I saw the query on petrified wood and Brock, that’s where I’ve been for 20 something years and I don’t know that house by the old name but never heard of any petrified wood around here and I dig it everywhere I can find and mom before me, I did hear a tail of a huge log on Cheek Road but never found out where, the closes I do know of was when they made the road to Rubottom it was everywhere on both sides of the road, no one here at Brock has any in their yards but me, if there were any around you would think they would have some of it.”

“Butch, here is the location of the Copeland farm on Buckskin road, west of Meridian line. The farm was split by the road, half on north and half on south. 160 acres with 80 on each side of the road. It was owned by Harden Emory and Victoria Copeland. They passed away in the early fifties and are buried in the cemetery at Criner Hills. There was some “petrified wood” on the north side of Buckskin road.” -Jerry Brown in CA

https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/BuckskinRoadPetrified.jpg


“Butch, on Thursday November 10th a dear friend, Billy Sharp went missing while fishing on Lake Scott King just north of Ardmore. Teams of law enforcement personnel and volunteers searched the lake for 6 days and found him on Tuesday the 15th. I’m sure many of them and their family and friends read the This and That Newsletter. I would like to thank them for their hard work and give these fine folks a “tip of the hat”. Their efforts did not go unnoticed. Rest in Piece, Billy.”  -Kelly C. in Fort Worth


“Would anyone know where one could get a copy of the 1946 Little Rascals movie that was shot in Ardmore at Whittington Park?”


1958 or 1959

Thanksgiving and the Canvasback Duck.

My wife and and I were living in Skellytown, Texas. We had rented a little 3 room shotgun house for $35.00 a month. With three young children in the home, things were kinda lean. It was the Thanksgiving weekend coming up and we didn’t have enough money to buy a turkey. Not even a chicken. I was bound and determined that we were going to have our Thanksgiving at our house that year.

Ever since we had been married, we had gone over to her folks house for holidays. All of her Aunts, Uncles, and cousins, (she had 52 first cousins living in the area) would come and everyone would bring plenty of food. Anyway I told my wife we were going to have Thanksgiving at home. I told her I was going duck hunting and would bring one home for dinner.

There were a lot of natural lakes in the area and I had permission to hunt on a Rancher’s land. I Got out my old 20 gauge, found a few shells and took off to the lake. I was in luck. The first lake I walked up to was covered with ducks. Not wanting to take a chance on missing, I lay down and took aim across the water. With one shot, I got one duck. The lakes were not deep and I waded out to pick up my “game”. It was a pretty good sized bird. I found out later that it was a Canvasback.

I headed for home proud to think that I was bringing home dinner!  When I got home, I cleaned the bird and told my wife to find a good recipe for duck and dressing. She either called her Mother, or found one somewhere for the next day. I told her that I had heard you were supposed bake a duck real slow so that it would be tender. Well she put the duck and dressing on the night before, turned the oven down low and let it cook all night. It smelled heavenly. I could hardly wait till dinner time.

I will say this here and now. Those birds were mis-named. They should have been called Leatherbacks instead of Canvasback. That had to have been undoubtedly the toughest bird I have ever attempted to eat. You could not cut it with a knife. I found out later, that I should have skinned the duck.We had an enjoyable Thanksgiving of dressing, cranberry sauce, and deviled eggs. But no duck! At least we had Thanksgiving at home.” -Ken Updike in Wilson


“September a year ago we took the Talimena Scenic Byway. It was our first time to be on it. We had lunch at the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge. It is really beautiful. Spectacular setting. Reasonable not expensive as one would expect. Met some Choctaw Indians taking pictures, visited and enjoyed the vistas. I first heard of it when one of our sisters in law rode it on a motorcycle one Sunday and came back all blistered. This was when it first opened. Early 70’s.”


“Butch, I’m looking for any information I can find on 2 men that lived in the Ardmore area in the early 1940’s. Virgil Ray Ethridge and Edward Medford. If anyone that reads T&T know anything about these 2 men, would you please let me know. Thank you.” -Nelda nftrue@swbell.net


“Hi Butch. My great uncle Victor Hugo Cochrane helped design the The Grand Lake’s Pensacola Dam. He held the patent for it. His name is on the plaque at the visitor’s center. He was one of the first graduates of the University of Arkansas. He was a civil engineer from Tulsa.”  -Susan Whitten, Baton Rouge, LA


“Butch, So glad some one made a correction on the ownership of the Skyview Drive Inn. My very first job was for Fran and Ernie Miller at Miller’s Dairy Freeze on Broadway street and E Street NW and they did not own the Skyview. So many people thought Rose, the lady taking the money at the gate, was Fran or her sister but they were not related. Some stories just never die. Fran and Ernie were really nice people and treated their employees and customers so nice. Fran always made a point of finding something nice to say about everyone she met. She was always such a positive person. Enjoy reading your newsletter. Brings back good memories.”  -Janelle


“Pease” is an antique plural of pea, the vegetable. I’ve never heard any reference to this ancient ditty which didn’t use the old spelling “pease.” -Wes


“Hi all, These were some of our visitors in the backyard today. The picture #1 the deer on the left is a little buck, the horns have not come through and may not this year. One of the other ones is his twin sister and mother, and another mother and child. The Quail are just a few of the one’s we have here and they are Valley Quail. Once it warmed up this spring they had a good hatch. Hope you enjoy the pictures.”
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL
May God Bless
Bob Cole in Oregon
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https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/OregonQuail2011.jpg


“Butch, I also have some of the Santa Fe Timetables from different years, 1929, 1939, & 1955 like the 1943 edition that you have.

Table 69 of your 1943 edition as shown in your scan: https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos11a/SantaFeSchedule1943c.jpg

for the Ardmore and Ringling branch is a little confusing but would basically read like this:

G.C. & S.F. (Gulf Colorado and Santa Fe.)

READING DOWN THE LEFT COLUMN:

Train # 311 (Westbound)

Daily (excluding Sunday) leaves Ardmore at 8:00AM. Ardmore is milepost 0 (zero). “Mixed,” mixed passenger and freight.

# 311 leaves (or basically passes through) Long Grove at 8:34AM. The “f” indicates a “flag” stop which means the train doesn’t stop unless flagged down or if an onboard passenger is to disembark at that location.
Long Grove is milepost 10.2 (10.2 miles from Ardmore, “by track”)

Next is Wilson at 9:10AM, milepost 19.9 (19.9 miles from Ardmore)

Arrive at Healdton at 9:47AM, milepost 30.7 (30.7 miles from Ardmore)

Leave Healdton at 10:10AM, milepost 30.7 (30.7 miles from Ardmore)

Arrive at Ringling at 10:50AM, milepost 41.8 (41.8 miles by track from Ardmore)

READING UP THE RIGHT COLUMN:

Train #311 becomes Train #310 (Eastbound)

Leave Ringling at 11:10AM

Arrive at Wilson at 11:46AM

Leave or basically passes Lone Grove at 12:22PM unless “f” (flag stopped).

Arrives back at Ardmore at 12:55PM

As I mentioned, reading the timetable is a little confusing because it doesn’t mention Cobalt Junction. Cobalt Junction was a “Y” connection where the track north to Healdton branched off the West/East line. It may look as if the train went to Healdton twice but it didn’t. Here’s the actual order of events: Ardmore, west to Long Grove, Wilson, Cobalt Junction, north to Healdton, south from Healdton back to Cobalt Junction, west to Ringling, Ringling east to Cobalt Junction, Cobalt Junction to Wilson, Long Grove, Ardmore. The train actually passed through Cobalt Junction three times. There were two “Y” tracks for turning the engine around. One was at Healdton since Healdton was a dead end (northern terminus if you will) and the other was at Ringling (western terminus).

There was also an oil loading platform located about half way between Ringling and Cobalt Junction. I’ve never seen it mentioned on any of the timetables I have so I don’t know how it fit into the schedule. Perhaps it came into use after Santa Fe dropped passenger service on the line. Some of your newsletter readers may be able to shead some light on this and correct any errors in my explanation of the timetable a lot of which is from memory.” -Dwane Stevens


THE DAVIS NEWS – 100 YEARS AGO:
Progressive Club, a social club to promote fellowship and look on the bright side of things, was established in Davis.
Mat Wolf, the well known farmer, cattleman and banker, invested in an auto. His car was a five-passenger Ford.
Rev. J.E. Bell of Yukon accepted the pastorate of the Baptist church and planned to be in Davis by Jan. 1.
Fire broke out in the cotton yard and almost destroyed three bales of cotton.
Rev. W.D. Matthews, new Methodist minister, and family arrived in Davis.
City Drug Store installed a steel underground gasoline tank in front of its store. The tank was self-measuring, stopped evaporation and was a safe way of handling gas.


“Hello Butch, Greetings from the Oil Capital, I seen this clip in last weeks T&T about the train wreck south of Davis and wondered if anyone knew the name of the engineer who was scalded to death in the wreck. I had a great- granduncle who died in this kind of accident, (Charlie Long).” Screamingeagle@cimtel.net



The Prayer – Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli 1999

I pray you’ll be our eyes, and watch us where we go,
And help us to be wise in times when we don’t know,
Let this be our prayer, when we lose our way,
Lead us to a place, guide us with your grace,
To a place where we’ll be safe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5b6XuIqielQ

See everyone next week!

Butch and Jill Bridges
Ardmore Oklahoma
PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443

Save on long distance calls, just a couple cents a minute!
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Ardmore High School Criterions Online
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Oklahoma Bells: https://oklahomahistory.net/bellpage.html
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
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Mirror Site of the Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Website
https://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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