The new year is here. Wishing all my friends peace and health in 2026. Like I mentioned in past newsletters, in this new year I may not publish a newsletter EVERY Thursday, but I will still be sharing history and photos from time to time on a regular basis.

Below is a great photo from Ardmore’s bygone days showing a trolley car at the intersection of Main and Washington.

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Another picture of Main and Washington with trolley car in Ardmore in 1906

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Below is a lime kiln operation near Wapanuka, Oklahoma. A lime kiln works by heating limestone (calcium carbonate) to high temperatures (around 900°C) in a contained structure, causing it to chemically decompose, releasing carbon dioxide and producing quicklime (calcium oxide). This is done by layering limestone with fuel (wood, coal) in traditional kilns or by feeding lime mud into rotating, inclined steel cylinders in modern continuous systems, with heat and rotation ensuring the reaction converts the material into usable lime for agriculture, construction, and industry. I remember an Ardmoreite stopped by my grandfather’s lumber yard at 801 3rd NE in the 1960s to buy a sack of lime one night at midnight. He was going to put the lime on his mule’s cuts from a barbed wire fence injury from coon hunting.

My grandpa Stanley Carmon may have very well bought his bags of lime from Vermont back in the 1960s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e7_eSA65gQ

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HAM Radio Talk By Butch Bridges KC5JVT
Allstar node # 58735 – Echolink # 101960 – HamsOverIP # 103010

In my Christmas Eve newsletter I spoke about the record number of check-ins at noon on the Boredom Breaker Net. Below is a listing of those nearly 100 HAMs who checked in from all over the U.S. through the HAM radio repeater in Claremore, Oklahoma.

Below is the HAM check-ins on the Boredom Breaker Net for Dec 24th

	Call Sign	St	City	Name	Misc
1	KD8EPC	OH	Medina	Dustin R Pearson	Net Control
2	KD8SLG	OH	Orrville	Nick D Traweek
3	AB8MO	OH	Burton	Andrew S Juchnowski
4	KI5WDM	OK	Barnsdall	Donald W Head
5	KC5FM	KS	Arkansas City	Lloyd A Colston
6	AI5HV	OK	Broken Arrow	Gregory C Meador
7	KI5VVE	OK	Broken Arrow	Judith D Meador
8	KE8OWX	OH	CUYAHOGA FALLS	Thomas A Weiss Iii
9	AI5Q	OK	Tulsa	Jerus Barnett
10	K5CFY	OK	TULSA	Raymond L Young
11	K6KJV	CA	Valley Springs	Kevin A Morrow
12	KI5TAQ	OK	Tulsa	Timothy G Zehner
13	KC5RBG	OK	Tulsa	Shannon K Swatzell
14	KD4YVV	VA	COLONIAL HEIGHTS	Jeffrey C Seymour
15	KA5OWI	OK	OWASSO	David P Romere
16	K4ITQ	VA	North Chesterfield	Benjamin P Richardson
17	N5SNW	OK	OWASSO	Edward J Wagner Jr
18	WB9CSP	TX	PARIS	Richard C Simble
19	KC8FQV	OH	Aurora	Mark E Studer
20	W4DPE	NC	KERNESVILLE	David P Eisenhardt Jr
21	N5CEL	OK	TULSA	Curtis Looper
22	KI5OZZ	OK	HULBERT	Nancy Hohler
23	WA8KOC	OH	AKRON	Frederick B Howe
24	N5GLO	TX	Oakhurst	William B Turner Jr
25	KD5AFS	OK	OWASSO	Grant C Bourland
26	WB8CXO	OH	MUNROE FALLS	Michael E Young
27	WD8MIU	FL	Seminole	Wade H Huthmacher
28	KI5SSR	TX	GRAPEVINE	Janet B Begert
29	N5VLZ	AR	Little Rock	Daryl J D Stout
30	KC8MRC	OH	Oakwood Village	Robert D Ozog
31	W3JCH	MS	Hernando	Justin C Hamilton
32	KJ5DIT	AR	ARKADELPHIA	Matthew Lazenby
33	KJ5GWN	OK	Oklahoma City	Wil T Wilson
34	KR4FTV	NC	Welcome	Timothy R Jones Ii
35	W3ETB	MD	Annapolis	Eddie T Bryant
36	KC8GW	OH	WADSWORTH	Greg Williams
37	K4OG	KY	OWENSBORO	Mark V Hayden
38	N8QXE	OH	CLEVELAND	John R Parks
39	KE8UIB	OH	Massillon	John Sayre
40	KF8DTP	OH	Massillon	Laurie A Sayre
41	K5AVF	OK	Glenpool	Alex V Ferguson
42	KE8QFT	OH	Medina	Frederick Jones
43	W7STT	AR	Hot Springs	James C Harris
44	KE8VOX	OH	Vermilion	Scott Emery
45	KE8ARB	OH	Mantua	Brandon R Mercer
46	KF8FAA	OH	CLEVELAND	Jonah Lorenzo
47	W8JAX	FL	Jacksonville	Rodney D Kaufman
48	K8JAX	FL	Jacksonville	Wendy K Kaufman
49	K8PMI	OH	Northfield	Phil M Isaac
50	W5JFA	AR	MALVERN	Roger A Clemons
51	W8HRF	OH	Akron	Josue M Van Dyke
52	KE8SFS	OH	Wadsworth	Mark B Wallyn
53	KN4SCU	SC	Summerville	Daniel G Maddock
54	KE8TLB	OH	Rittman	Randy S Hall
55	KC8NOV	OH	Streetsboro	Martin G Copfer
56	KC5JVT	OK	ARDMORE	Butch Bridges
57	N5KBD	OK	COWETA	Peter F Ferris
58	KI5OZZ	OK	HULBERT	Nancy Hohler	Net Control
59	W5IAM	OK	Muskogee	William W Brady
60	N5UUA	OK	Wagoner	Jon M Edwards
61	KE8HNK	OH	Akron	Elmer R Thomas
62	KD2HCE	OH	Medina	Chris C Trifari
63	KE8QFT	OH	Medina	Frederick Jones
64	KC8FQV	OH	Aurora	Mark E Studer
65	K4OG	KY	OWENSBORO	Mark V Hayden
66	K8PMI	OH	Northfield	Phil M Isaac
67	AB8MO	OH	Burton	Andrew S Juchnowski
68	WA8KOC	OH	AKRON	Frederick B Howe
69	KE8ZIN	OH	Willowick	Joseph R English
70	KI5WDM	OK	Barnsdall	Donald W Head
71	KI7AY	OK	Panama	James E Darrough
72	KA5OWI	OK	OWASSO	David P Romere
73	AI5HV	OK	Broken Arrow	Gregory C Meador
74	KD4YVV	VA	COLONIAL HEIGHTS	Jeffrey C Seymour
75	W7STT	AR	Hot Springs	James C Harris
76	W3ETB	MD	Annapolis	Eddie T Bryant
77	KD5AFS	OK	OWASSO	Grant C Bourland
79	KE8ARB	OH	Mantua	Brandon R Mercer
80	KI5TAQ	OK	Tulsa	Timothy G Zehner
81	K5AVF	OK	Glenpool	Alex V Ferguson
82	KI5UWC	OK	Chelsea	Denny L Grigg
83	KD8SLG	OH	Orrville	Nick D Traweek
84	KE8SFS	OH	Wadsworth	Mark B Wallyn
85	N7VAN	OH	Akron	Brian Vandersall
86	KR4COH	NC	Jacksonville	Hector E Velilla Sr
87	KE8TQR	OH	UNIONTOWN	Keith M Rutherford
88	KE8CHP	OH	Clinton	Michael C Kure
89	KE8UIB	OH	Massillon	John Sayre
90	KF8DTP	OH	Massillon	Laurie A Sayre
91	KC8NOV	OH	Streetsboro	Martin G Copfer
92	K5JSP	OK	BROKEN ARROW	Jeffrey S Parks
93	KC5FM	KS	Arkansas City	Lloyd A Colston
94	KD8SYE	OH	Middlefield	Chad J McMillin
95	AE5ME	OK	Broken Arrow	Jeffrey C Scoville
96	KE8VOX	OH	Vermilion	Scott Emery
97	AI5Q	OK	Tulsa	Jerus Barnett
98	KF8EOG	OH	Painesville	Peter M Brugmann

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April 2000 newletter:
“Bryan County Courthouse with Confederate soldier showing. He’s been there a long time, since the 1930s, I think. At one time had a bayonet on his gun but it got broken off. The Bryan Courthouse photo you have is fairly old, but those things don’t change. There’s now a four or five-year-old concert-in-the-park type gazebo on the lawn.”

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Q. “Butch: I have an uncle who was born in Augusta, Oklahoma. I can’t find it any where on the map. He was born in 1903. I would be so thankful to know where it is located.”

A. Augusta, OK, refers to a historical ghost town in Alfalfa County, established in 1895 one mile west of Carmen but defunct by the 1910s. The town was at Eagle Chief Creek (Cleo Springs, OK).

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“Dear Butch, I spoke to my husband Peter about our phone conversation a few weeks ago. The accident is not something we think about that often after all these years but it definitely was a life altering experience for us. Peter’s dad and I flew to Ardmore immediately upon hearing of the crash only to find he was already moved to the burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas. He spent the next year recuperating there. We met other survivors and their families and many wonderful people during this time. We actually were married in the hospital chapel that August (survivor Nick Leone’s mother stood up for me). You can imagine how excited we were to finally go home and start our new life together. We really never looked back although we often wondered about various people we had met along the way. Our life has been blessed – we have three grown children and five grandchildren. Our children gave us a 30th wedding anniversary celebration in 1996 where we renewed our vows in front of all our friends and family who were not present the first time. It really meant alot to us. We support your kind efforts and have sent a donation in remembrance of those who were not as fortunate as Peter.” -Best regards, Gail Scaramuzzo, New York

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“I love your web page – one of the best I have visited. I am particularly interested in the history of Ardmore since my husband’s mother grew up there and I am currently researching her side of the family. Her mother was Zella Orr who was killed in the tornado of 1946. Of particular interest to me is Zella Orr’s father – John Williamson. He apparently owned a saddle and harness shop in the early days of Ardmore – do you have any idea of where I might obtain a picture of John Williamson or if anything has been written about him?”
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/68645591/zella-orr

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“I thought you might like to know about another airplane crash involving soldiers that was in the area. I remember being told years ago about an airplane that was also carrying troops, that crashed in Love County between Enville and Lebanon. As I recall, the crashsite was located on the Boog Lemons farm between Highway 32 and Lake Texhoma. I was told that Boog occasionally found items while farming at the crashsite and that many years later, an older couple came to visit the site because their son had died in the crash. And, that’s when Boog showed the couple the things that he had found, they discovered their son’s class ring was in the box of things found. Sheriff Clyde McGill told me that very touching story during one of our many fishing trips together in the area.”

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Ardmore Leader website by Michael D. Smith, News Director KE8JCU
https://www.ardmoreleader.com

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The new year is here and the old one is gone. I appreciate and thankful to all of you who have allowed me to come into your house every Thursday the past year (some the past 30 years). I am looking forward to 2026 and whatever it brings. I pray it brings a healthy and prosperous year for us all.

See everyone next week!

Butch and Jill Bridges
Ardmore Oklahoma
580-490-6823
https://oklahomahistory.net