PO Box 2, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402 Email: butchbridges@oklahomahistory.net Phone: 580-490-6823
I received the following email this week:
Butch, I found your article about Bill Dalton Phillips and his relation to the DALTON family.
https://oklahomahistory.net/newsletters/ttnewsOCT05.html
You and I have been a victim of what I have named “The Bea Elizabeth Dalton Hoax”
http://mykindred.com/cloud/TX/Documents/BeaElizabethDaltonHoax/
There is no one named Bill Dalton Phillips who lives in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. For proof, see:
http://mykindred.com/cloud/TX/Documents/BeaElizabethDaltonHoax/DaltonHoaxGang.php
The Bea Elizabeth Dalton Hoax expose will show that Bea Elizabeth Phillips’ maiden name was not DALTON — it was most likely HARRISON — and she has no relation to the Dalton family.
I have referenced your article in the Dalton Hoax Gang article (link above). -Tom Cloud
Additional notes by Butch Bridges: I had met him a couple times, and never dreamed his story of being kin to Bill Dalton the outlaw was made up. I first met Bill Phillips in October 2002 near Pooleville, Oklahoma when a group of us met at the site where the cabin was located and the shootout between U.S. Deputy Marshal Seldon Lindsey and Bill Dalton took place leaving Bill Dalton dead. N34?25.194′ W97?23.977′
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/DaltonHistoricalMarker5a.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/DaltonHistoricalMarker5b.jpg
In this picture wearing dark blue shirt is Bill Dalton Phillips when I met him near Pooleville.
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/OKOLHAmeet5e.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/DaltonMarker5b.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos5a/OKOLHAmeet5g.jpg
12 years has passed since the group of us met at Pooleville, and for the life of me, I could not find my way back to that spot of ground. Maybe someone here remembers the directions?
Lugert, Oklahoma… the town beneath the lake.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKsv7yxhgdM
I sandblasted a couple of bricks recently, this first one for John and Marlys Bowman of Lone Grove. Their golden wedding anniversary, 50 years!
https://oklahomahistory.net/bricks/BowmanBrick.jpg
This second brick was a memorial brick. I’m always proud to make bricks like this in memory of someone’s loved one.
https://oklahomahistory.net/bricks/PerkinsBrick.jpg
Q. What does the color blue on our state flag represent?
A. The blue in the Oklahoma flag stands for freedom.
Q. This town is a county seat in northeast Oklahoma. In February 2011, the town gained fame as the site of the coldest temperature in Oklahoma recorded history, as the thermometer bottomed out at a frigid -31 degrees Fahrenheit. Name this town.
A. (answer in next week’s T&T)
From This and That newsletter archives of January 27, 2001:
A GLIMPSE INTO THE PAST
The Daily Ardmoreite, Ardmore, Oklahoma, Friday, October 31, 1930
Seminole Deputy Sheriff Injured
Oklahoma City- E.W. Collins, 40, Seminole county deputy sheriff, stationed at Konawa, was reported in a “very serious” condition today at a local hospital and four women were held in county jail for investigation, as the result of a fight here last night.
Stanley Rogers, Oklahoma county sheriff, said Collins and J.E. Kennedy, Konawa chief of Police, came to Oklahoma City last night to arrest a man. Officers were informed the fight occurred after Collins stopped at a house to call on Miss Edith Clifton, about 26 years old, who, with three other women, was held for questioning.A search was being made for three unidentified men said to have been at the place when Collins was stabbed in the abdomen. At the hospital, Collins refused to identify himself or any of his companions when questioned by county officers, and issued orders that no reports on his condition be given.
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“Butch, does anyone remember “Skips Potato Chip”. It was located in the back of a house that must have been on C or B S.E. I can remember when I was a kid and I believe we lived on D S.E. in the afternoon smelling them cooking. We could take our own sack and going over and for a nickel you could get a “peck” sack full right out of the cooker. Probably why my cholesterol is always too high. But you have never eaten chips unless you tasted those hot for the cooker.”
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“Butch, I drove a delivery truck for Morton’s foods there in Ardmore in ’58 and part of ’59 for C.B Hunt. Morton’s went out of business several years later. Just couldnt compete any longer with Frito Lay.”
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“Butch; I have been looking for the gravesite of my gg-grandmother, Mary Ann WILLIAMS VREDENBURG COURTNEY, who died June 13, 1911 in Davis. Her obituary says she is buried in Walnut Cemetery, but no one has ever heard of Walnut Cemetery. I had expected her to show up in Greenhill, thinking that Greenhill had been renamed, but she isn’t there.”
“A long time ago when I asked my dad where she was buried, he thought she might have been in a cemetery that was moved when the lake went in. So lately I have been checking to see if anyone remembered a cemetery being relocated when Lake Arbuckle was made. I have had a couple of folks tell me that there was a cemetery in the flood plain that they think was moved, but where, is the question. Does anyone remember what this cemetery was called?”
“Mary Ann lived around Hennepin, old Fort Arbuckle, then Davis in her later years. Her husband, Henry C. DECOURTNEY aka Henry D. COURTNEY lived in Courtney, Love Co after they split the sheets, though never divorced. According to his pension papers, this was “on account of him associating with other women”, but that is another story. . . She may have been part Chickasaw, although I have no proof. I have searched all of the cemeteries around these parts and still haven’t found her. This family is known for somewhat lavish tombstones, so I can’t imagine her being buried without one. Thanks for any insight that can be given on this.” Candace Gregory firegrl@sierratel.com
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“Butch – Your reminiscence regarding Roy Rogers made me think about my friend Ray Jacoby in Oklahoma City, whom I met in the late 1970s in my first job after college as an advertising director for LSB Industries. Ray had a long career as a commercial photographer with his studio, at least in the latter years, on Shartel just north of NW 5th. He seemed to know EVERYBODY – and I can’t even recall how many famous or near-famous folks I met while at his studio.”
“His great love was aerial photography, and he kept a specially fitted Cessna 172 in a hangar at Oklahoma City Downtown Airport for use in that pursuit. I was privileged to fly with him on several occasions. He no longer flies, but left that great love as one of the oldest active pilots in the country.”
“Ray’s son, Randy, was a highway patrol trooper before he went to work for CLEET, but also served awhile as a lake patrolman on Lake Murray. Ray once told of a job evidently flying daily movie footage back to Oklahoma City to put on the trains to California during the time when Roy and Dale were married on the Healy Ranch (I assume they must also have been making a movie at that time.) When he found out about the wedding, he asked if they would allow him to take photographs along with their Hollywood photographers and they agreed. Apparently they were so pleased with his work that they bought all the photos he shot.”
“As a young fellow, Ray also knew Wiley Post, who, as I recall the story, helped him get a job as a mechanic with Tom Braniff’s Braniff Airways at old Oklahoma City municipal airport. He once showed me a photo of himself and Wiley during that time standing together in front of one of the hangars at the airport. I also recall his being asked to fly up to Point Barrow on an Air Force transport with a group of family and friends of Will and Wiley’s for a memorial service on the 50th anniversary of their deaths.”
“Ray is one of those vigorous, seemingly ageless fellows you sometimes meet. He’s now retired and lives “where he’s always lived” in Oklahoma City with his wonderful wife Winnie – except when they’re out in Ruidoso. If memory serves me correctly he’ll be 92 this February 20th. Hopefully we’ll meet for lunch sometime around then and visit over a burger or two.”
“By the way – I seem to recall a 2-story stone building several blocks south of the old Pak-a-Sak on Lake Murray Drive where my folks bought big 5-gallon metal cans of Morton Potato Chips. Boy, were they good. For a while they also made a sort of seasoned potato crisp that came in a potato chip-like bag which was just out of this world. Tom Elmore Moore, Oklahoma.”
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“Hi Butch! Thanks for sending This n That! This picture I’m attaching was taken from the Ardmoreite on Nov.22, l983. I thought with all the discussion on Ferrys you or some of the readers might find it interesting. Courtesy of Bud Boyer, Herculeaneum, MO.”
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos14a/WashitaFerry.jpg
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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
Non-ethanol gas (pure gas) stations in the Ardmore area.
https://oklahomahistory.net/puregas.html
Some mail from this week’s MAILBAG…..Butch: In the last T&T Dwane Stevens said, “Remember when we used to get good rains and the water would run over the spillway at Lake Murray?” That reminded me when Bert Paschall, my father-in-law and owner of Paschall’s Village at the southeast corner of Lake Murray State Park, told me about a civil engineer involved in the construction of Lake Murray dam and spillway. I don’t recall the man’s name, but he made a $100 bet with one of the construction workers that water would never run over the spillway. I think that was probably about 1937. I’m not sure when water first ran over the spillway, but I think it probably was about 1948. The man came all the way from Kansas to see for himself before he would pay off on the bet. In later years I saw water run over the spillway about knee deep. – Don Davidson, Brenham, Texas
Butch: About 1970 Bert Paschall bought a new pickup truck. A pack rat soon made its home underneath. It packed all manner of things into the crooks and crannies of the frame and engine. It often gnawed insulation from the ignition wires necessitating replacement. Bert tried every thing to get rid of that rat to no avail. It would ride all the way to town and back. Bert would throw on the brakes and then give it the gas trying to dislodge it. One weekend when my wife and I came to visit I told Bert water was running across the spillway about four inches deep when we came across. Bert had an idea. He said he would take the truck to the edge of the spillway which is about sixty yards across. His plan was to give the truck the gas across the spillway splashing up plenty of water to dislodge the rat so it would fall into the running water in the spillway and be swept away. He took me and a friend with him. We got out and kneeled down on the dry pavement at the edge of the water to watch under the pickup to see if the rat fell into the running water. Bert gave it the gas. Water splashed everywhere. We watched. About seven-eights of the way across we saw the rat fall from under the truck into the running water. It swam frantically toward the truck which went about ten yards up the hill from the spillway and stopped. The engine had quit. It drowned out from all the water splashing up onto it. The rat made it to shore, ran the short distance to the truck, and jumped back up underneath. It was several months before Bert got rid of that rat. He scattered a little corn around the truck every time he parked it over night. He would go out first thing each morning with a shotgun. Finally, one morning he saw the rat eating corn. End of rat. – Don Davidson, Brenham, Texas
“One of the most interesting and horrifying cases I ever worked on as police officer centered around Lehigh, Oklahoma. A lady actually wrote a book about it. Not for the faint of heart!” http://www.amazon.com/Suffer-Little-Children-Barbara-Davis/dp/0786022655
“Butch, Do you know what is going to be the result of the old Park theater do-over? You may or may not recall most of my younger years during the 50’s and 60’s were spent working for the theaters. When the Tivoli burned in 1958, the offices of the company were in the front of the second floor (exposed in the windows of the photo) of the Park theater. We had to create completely new files for everything. That’s why there are no pictures of the remodel of the Tivoli or the Ritz in the 40’s and 50’s, they burned.” -George
“There are hundreds of fantastic photos that are being digitized and posted on Flickr by the John Barriger III National Library. Look through them, I know you will really enjoy seeing them. Some of the railroad folks I know are trying to figure out the exact location of the photos and when known they are writing in the comments area underneath each photo.” -C. Dwane Stevens
http://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/sets/
“Butch, I hadn?t remembered but back in 1962, while serving as Lieutenant Governor, George Nigh pulled my unconscious dad from behind the wheel of his car. My dad was coming home from work east of Norman on highway 9 on a very rainy day. While passing a long line of vehicles, the one he was passing changed lanes into him. My dad swerved to miss the car hitting the Little River Bridge head on. That part of Little River is now flooded as part of Thunderbird Lake. My dad survived as did everyone involved in the wreck. But it was Lieutenant Governor George Nigh that pulled my dad from his car.” -Mike Taylor
Somewhere along the Red River? “My name is Sam Summers, and I found your website while searching for the Lee Gang. I saw in your newsletter from December 2011, someone named Brad Patrick had written in about attempting to find the location of the cabin where the shootout occurred. I do not know where the cabin is, but I am interested in finding out more about the Lee’s brother-in-law, Ed Steen, who owned the saloon/store. He was my great-great grandfather. I have seen the wanted poster write-ups for the Lee brothers, but have been unable to locate the one for Ed Steen. I have read that there was one. Any idea where I might find this or any other information about him or the Lees? Any help appreciated. -Sam Summers ssummers1247@yahoo.com
“I saw you email address on Oklahoma history search. I am searching for a picture of the Dundee Oklahoma School House. Would you by any chance have such a picture that you would email to me. I am making a scrapbook page for my mother who went to school there in the 40’s. I would very much appreciate your help in this matter.”
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos14a/DundeeSchool.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos14a/DundeeSchoolBell.jpg
“A spectacular historical atlas refashioned for the 21st century… Here you will find one of the greatest historical atlases: Charles O. Paullin and John K. Wright’s Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States, first published in 1932. This digital edition reproduces all of the atlas’s nearly 700 maps. Many of these beautiful maps are enhanced here in ways impossible in print, animated to show change over time or made clickable to view the underlying data-remarkable maps produced eight decades ago with the functionality of the twenty-first century.”
Find it and browse to your heart’s content, here:
http://dsl.richmond.edu/historicalatlas/
“Dwane Stevens’ great Photo’s of Lake Murray. I had the privilege of living at lake Murray for 17 years where my father worked as a plumber. During those years I worked for my first pay check at the TEE-PEE-House Caf? age 11. and also at the Lodge. In those years I never saw the lake as low as it currently is. Seems as if someone took large rail cars and dumped large boulders into the beach area where I use to swim. I know that didn’t happen but the rocks are there and visible and it’s unbelievable. Beautiful Lake Murray.” -Donald
“Hi Butch, My name is Sam Summers, and I found your website while searching for the Lee Gang. I saw in your newsletter from December 2011, someone named Brad Patrick had written in about attempting to find the location of the cabin where the shootout occurred. I do not know where the cabin is, but I am interested in finding out more about the Lee’s brother-in-law, Ed Steen, who owned the saloon/store (along the Red Red?). He was my great-great grandfather. I have seen the wanted poster write-ups for the Lee brothers, but have been unable to locate the one for Ed Steen. I have read that there was one. Anyone have an idea where I might find this or any other information about Ed Steen or the Lees?” -Sam Summers
“I attended Caddo Oklahoma High School in the early to mid-fifties. We made two outing trips to Ballard Park which was a large dirty water swimming pool with bath houses or changing/restroom facilities. Not clear at all. It had a bathhouse or changing/restrooms on the hillside just above the pool. I don?t remember if there were any rides or amusement park like facilities. I think it was in the Tishomingo area, maybe close to Devil?s Den. I have looked extensively on the Internet and cannot find any reference to a Ballard Park in Oklahoma. I will appreciate any information any one can provide.” -Benny Horn
Old Rivers by Walter Brennan 1962
How long has it been since I first seen old Rivers?
Why, I can’t remember when he weren’t around.
Well, that old man did a heap of work,
Spend his whole life walking plowed ground.
He had a one-room shack not far from us,
And we was about as poor as him.
He had one old mule he called “Midnight”,
And I’d tag along after them.
He’d plow them rows straight and deep and I’d tag along behind,
Bustin’ up clods with my own bare feet, old Rivers was a friend of mine.
That sun would get high and that mule would work til old Rivers’d say,
“Whoa!” then he’d wipe his brow, lean back in the rains,
And talk about a place he was gonna go.
Say, one of these days I’m gonna climb that mountain,
Walk up there among them clouds,
Where the cotton’s high and the corn’s a-growin’,
And there ain’t no fields to plow.
I got a letter from back home the other day, they’re all fine,
And the crops is high, and down at the end my mama said,
“You know, old Rivers died”.
I’m just sitting here on this new plowed earth,
trying to find me a little shade,
And with the sun beating down,
‘cross the field I see that mule, old Rivers, and me.
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
Ardmore Oklahoma
PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443
Bells of Oklahoma
https://oklahomahistory.net/bellpage.html
Carter County Courthouse Paver Project
http://www.brightok.net/cartercounty/pavers
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: 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
http://www.brightok.net/~gsimmons
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/
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