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Archive for the ‘Oklahoma history’ Category

Edmond History Museum

I love history museums, I love learning about the past of an area and seeing how that area has developed over time. The Edmond History Museum is a great place to learn about the early days of Edmond Oklahoma. This is a wonderful place to spend an hour, there are exhibits that change regularly as well as permanent displays.

Sitting next to historic Stephenson Park on south Boulevard, the sandstone building which was built as an armory houses a small library for research along with a large exhibit space. Here you can learn about the history of Edmond. Originally a coal and watering stop along the Atcheson, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, mile marker 103 became Summit but was officially named Edmond in 1887. The town grew on April 22, 1889, when about 150 decided to make it their home after the land run.

Several displays show the growth of Edmond over the years. Edmond became home to the Territorial Normal School in 1891, this helped grow the population of the small town. There are also plenty of artifacts for Route 66 lovers as well. Route 66 came right through town, coming in from the east on Second Street then turning south at Broadway heading to Oklahoma City. The small reproduction of Bradbury Station, which sat at the northwest corner of Route 66 and US 77, has many pictures of historic Route 66 buildings located in Edmond. The museum also has plenty of places for children to learn about the early days of living in Oklahoma, including a reproduction of a farmhouse.

The building it’s housed in is historical as well, the Edmond Armory was built in 1936-37 on the southeast corner of Stepheson Park by the WPA (Works Progress Administration). It was home to the Headquarters Company of the 179th Infantry Unit of the 45th Infantry Division and consisted of 65 men. It was in this building that troops trained to go war in Europe during World War II. The building was used consistently by the Edmond unit of the Oklahoma National Guard until 1968 and was turned over to the city of Edmond in 1972. The historical museum didn’t occupy the space until 1983, when community members collected enough artifacts from Edmond’s past to be displayed. The armory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Address: 431 S. Boulevard, Edmond.

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Edmond Oklahoma, National Register of Historic Places, Oklahoma, Oklahoma history, Route 66

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Dr Slaughter House

A few weekends ago, I got the pleasure of touring the 1937 mansion of Dr WH Slaughter in northeast Oklahoma City. Situated on a 7 acre piece of land on NE 50th Street, just to the east of I-35, this home is a hidden gem and home to a vital member of Oklahoma City history.

Wyatt Hardy Slaughter was born in Alabama in 1872 and attended Walden University, then later Meharry Medical College, both in Nashville, TN, graduating around 1892. He arrived in Oklahoma City in 1903and became the first African American doctor in the new city. He worked with Dr WL Haywood to build the Utopia Hospital on NE 1st and later they established the Great Western Hospital in NE Oklahoma City. He practiced medicine in his own personal office in the Deep Deuce area of Oklahoma City, placing his Slaughter Buidling at 327 NE 2nd. This 3-story building was used for retail, housing his wife’s family’s pharmacy as well as the home of the Dunbar Library. Side note, none of these buildings are extant any longer, most succumbing to the wrecking ball in the 1960’s and 1970’s. He was also active in real estate, banking, as well as oil and gas. A public servant for many years, he was on many boards and committees. After retirement in 1949, he dedicated himself to building a YMCA on the NE side as well as a new school (current Frederick Douglass High School). He passed away in 1952, buried in Trice Hill Cemetery along side family. In 1907, he married Edna Randolph, the daughter of Jefferson Davis Randolph, the first African American Teacher in in Oklahoma City who founded the first black school at California and Harvey (what is now right in the middle of the Myriad Gardens).

Dr Slaughter purchased a 40 acre plot on NE 50th Street near Bryant Avenue in 1916 and built this home in 1937. The drive to the house is a old meandering paved trail that gives you a beautiful view of the mansion before leading you to a parking area next to the home. Being perched on a hill, the home dominates the landscape. The large stones that have been used in the construction also draw your eye to the home. Massive arches frame the east side of the house, these also provide a beautiful view of the countryside from the porch as well.

I wasn’t able to take pictures inside, but the home has been restored. After entering the home, you are in a foyer that to the left leads to the living area and to the right, a den or office, plus a hall to a bedroom suite. The dining is off the living area and also leads to a small kitchen. Upstairs are bedrooms, bathrooms, and storage areas. The two bedrooms that were open both had spacious bathrooms attached to them. One bathroom also led to an open air porch that is right above the front doors. There is a third floor but there was no access for guests. On the grounds are the remains of a well house and windmill. A functioning garage and small storage building are also original to the home and have been updated.

Over the years, parcels from the original 40 acres have been sold off. The house was empty for a time and vandals did hit the property. The home is in private ownership now and used for various events also rented out as an Airbnb. The property has also been listed on the National Register of Historic Places as of 2018. If you see a chance to visit this beautiful home, I highly recommend it.

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National Register of Historic Places, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma history

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Food Friday: Neptune Submarine Sandwiches

To start out the new year we wanted to eat a bit healthier, so we tried a place that we always pass but have never stopped, Neptune Subs. Normally I see the parking lot packed but on this nice Saturday afternoon there was no one. The drive thru lane was packed, so we went up the steps and ordered from the window quickly. They have a more traditional sub menu, variations of different meats, 1 type of cheese, and veggies. You can get half or whole sandwich made on bread baked fresh in house.

I decided to try the supreme sub- salami, pepperoni, ham, cheese, lettuce, tomato, banana peppers, and mayo. Didn’t take too long for it to be ready. I got a whole sandwich and it’s fully a footlong. All of the meat tasted good, the veggies were fresh and crisp, and the bread was so good, light and fluffy, with a soft texture. Big K got the same thing and liked it as well. Miss Mae got a half salami sandwich, she liked it and said it was enough food for her.

The unique architecture of the building makes it stand out on Classen Blvd., the mid-mod design was built in 1961 to house a hamburger place called Quicks. They were gone by 1974 when Neptune moved into this location. Neptune Subs were a popular sandwich chain in the 1970’s and 1980’s with 17 stores around the state. Bankruptcy in the 1980’s killed the chain but this one location remained. The original building was just a walk up but the dining room was added in 1974.

I will definitely be returning, mad at myself for waiting so long to try this place out. Really good food and atmosphere. I’m looking forward to trying more items from their menu. They get 5 strips of bacon, hopefully on their BLT.

Address: 3301 N Classen Blvd., Oklahoma City.

Historic photos of Neptune Subs, then Quicks. Being built in 1961, and later in the 1960’s. Current building now has a dining room, 2022.

Category:

Food, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma food, Oklahoma history

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First Christian Church

When I woke up this morning and checked my phone, I had several texts from friends and family who know I love Oklahoma history. Concerned I read the one from Big K first, “The egg church has been torn down”. I hoped that what he said wasn’t true but a quick look at my Facebook feed confirmed it. The iconic First Christian Church, the “Egg Church”, was a pile of rubble.

The First Christian Chruch was one of the first churches organized in Oklahoma City. Historical records show that their first baptismal was in June 1889. By 1910, the congregation had built a new home for their church at 1104 N Robinson after occupying a few other buildings. This would be their home for many years until the completion of the new sanctuary (this building does still stand and is on the National Register of Historic Places). In 1946, the minister of the church, Bill Alexander, helped the church buy land that had previously been part of the Edgemere Golf Club for a new location. By 1947, an outdoor auditorium had been built. The Sunday evening services were held here, “Edgemere Under the Stars”. On Christmas Day in 1953, the church announced its “Christmas present to Oklahoma City”, a new modern building that was a landmark to all who could see it, the “church of tomorrow”. The church was designed by architects R. Duane Conner and Fred Pojezny. They used concrete to make the large dome by pouring the concrete on steel mesh that was laid on a wooden form. After the concrete cured, the form was removed.

Sunday, December 23rd, 1956, the new church welcomed its first worshipers. It is said that over 2000 people attended that first service in the new sanctuary. The architecture for the time was so spectacular that the church was featured in Life magazine in 1957. This church was a center for the community for many years. It hosted events from weddings to funerals, from school concerts to the Miss Oklahoma Pageant. But most importantly it served as “The Center” during the time shortly after the Murrah Building bombing in 1995. Set up by the church, the medical examiner, and a group of funeral directors, the American Red Cross also set up in the building. It served as a safe haven from the media for those who lost loved ones in the attack. It’s rumored that Oprah Winfrey herself even went to the church to help the victims and their families. For 16 days after the bombing, it was a place of solace for those closely affected. In 2016, the First Christian Chruch put the property up for sale. The size of the congregation had shrunk and the building was becoming expensive to repair. By 2018, the first whispers of demolition started. Many tried to fight back, even trying to get the city council involved. Even though it had been placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011, it was at risk. A couple of other churches stepped forward to buy it but in the long run the property just needed to many repairs.

I never got to go in the building. I only got a few pictures back in 2019, never thought to go back and take more. A sad day for Oklahoma history and for those who love mid-century designs.

Category:

National Register of Historic Places, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma history

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Richardson Building

Sad to say but Oklahoma has a problem with tearing down and ignoring history. On Friday July 22, 2022, Union City lost one of the oldest buildings in town- the Richardson Building. I loved driving through Union City just to see this 112-year-old building standing quietly on the corner.

Founded in 1900, Dr. David Richardson bought the bank in 1906. The bank got its new building in 1910 at the northeast corner of Division St and Main St. (now Kate Boevers Ave.). Built across from the school, this building not only housed the bank on the corner but to the east was a hardware store that later became a grocery. The building suffered a fire in the interior in 1928 and was rebuilt. It was used as a bank until 1977 when a new building was constructed on Highway 81. The old building then sat vacant for many years. It was added to the National Register of Historic Properties in 1983.

The town on Union City was founded on April 10, 1894. Dr. David Richardson moved to town not long after to establish his medical practice. He not only was the town doctor, and later banker, but served as postmaster for Union City. He was appointed as State Bank Commissioner by Governor E.W. Marland in 1938 and served 1 year.

As I stated, this building has been abandoned since at least 1977, it was a cool building but also old and falling apart. I had heard rumors on July 22, 2022, that it would be demolished that day, I waited for a few days before I drove to Union City. There was just a dusty concrete pad where the 112-year-old Richardson Building had sat, another historical building gone.

These pics I took in Aug 2016. As time went on, more things were missing such as the arrow sign.

These pics were taken July 2022. You can see the brick footing for the building.

Category:

National Register of Historic Places, Oklahoma, Oklahoma history

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Center of the Universe

So I like to visit silly places and tourist attractions. Some live up to the hype, some don’t. The Center of the Universe in Tulsa sounds silly and a waste of time but in reality, it was cool.

First up is to find parking near the attraction, looks like parking is free on weekends and at night. You can park near the Union Depot, in one of the parking garages or just on the street. You then walk up onto the bridge that goes over the railroad tracks. When you get to the brick circle you are there, no signs or anything to point it out. Just go and stand in the center of the brick circle and speak. Sounds like you’re in a tunnel or in a pipe with the echo. I was skeptical at first but it really is strange. Just stand there and start talking, you will hear yourself. You can still hear those outside the circle and they can hear you.

No one is really sure why this happens, the bridge was reconstructed in 1983 after a fire damaged the original bridge. It wasn’t designed to be an “acoustic anomaly” but for some reason it is. Many people have theories, nothing scientifically proven. On the south side of the circle is a statue called The Artificial Cloud by Robert Haozous, it was placed there in 1991. It just seems to help with the eeriness of the location. If you’re in Tulsa this is a good place for a short side trip. Also it’s free unless you have to pay to park. Shouldn’t take any longer than 15 minutes unless there’s a crowd.

Address: 1 S Boston Ave., Tulsa.

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Oklahoma, Oklahoma history, Tulsa

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Food Friday: The Bookmark Cafe

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you would know that my contributing writer Mae has been absent. Well, she had to get through a rigorous high school schedule and now that she has graduated (PC Pirate class of ’21) she is studying at the great University of Oklahoma (proud 3rd generation Sooner). To help pay for this new adventure in education, she is working for food services as a barista. Her first semester she spent at The Hive, a coffee shop on south campus (more on it in another post) but now she is at The Bookmark Cafe in the first lower level of Bizzell Memorial Library.

This is just a small coffee shop, very similar to the ones you see in bookstores, where they have coffee, lattes, frappuccinos, along with light sandwiches and pastries. Last Sunday was my first visit and I was impressed, the space that had once been where the newspapers and magazines were kept was transformed into a study lounge with separate rooms for groups. Bookmark Cafe has a large area with tables and booths for group or individual study. They are part of Starbucks “We Proudly Serve” program, where they do serve up the same drinks that you can find at a Starbucks. Many of the pastries are cooked on site with the salads and sandwiches coming from Cow On the Fly. I didn’t get a chance to try any of the food yet, because of the snowstorm the previous week, the food delivery hadn’t come in yet. The double chocolate chip frappuccino that I had was awesome though. The staff is all students, they were all friendly and happy to be at Bookmark.

Now for some history- there was nothing like this when I was a student at OU in the early 1990’s (BA in Journalism, ’94). The coffee shop craze hadn’t hit Oklahoma yet. I guess there were some around but to me, coffee was just something that my grandparents drank. I had never heard of a frappuchino, latte, or macchiato. Bizzell Memorial Library was built in 1928 for the growing university and expanded, first in 1958, then again in 1982. Lower level 1 is part of the 1982 addition. Like I mentioned earlier, it held the periodicals. I used to sit at the microfilm readers and journey through the past with their newspaper collection. The Bookmark Cafe officially opened for the spring semester 1998 to give students a quiet place to study. The official grand opening was held on February 11, 1998 (I didn’t know this information until Wednesday of this week as I was researching, so the fact I’m publishing this on the same date 24 years later is just a coincidence). In August of 2013 construction began to transform the space into the study area it is now, Bookmark Cafe was temporarily moved but returned to its now larger location in September 2014 with a ceremony held on November 7, 2014, to mark the reopening of the lower level. In March 2020, it closed, not to reopen until January 2022.

Overall I will give them 5 strips of bacon, just for the fact that my child works there, but I would like to try more of their menu items. Project for the rest of the semester. So if you find yourself in Norman and near campus, stop into the historic library and grab a treat.

Advertisement in the OU Daily February 11, 1998.

Category:

Food, National Register of Historic Places, Norman, Oklahoma, Oklahoma food, Oklahoma history, University of Oklahoma

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Food Friday: Eskimo Joe’s

There are a lot of places I’ve gone that are tourist traps, many fall flat and don’t live up to the hype. Being the good Sooner, I always felt that way about Eskimo Joe’s. Just a place for OSU fans to go, and it can’t be that good or it wouldn’t be in Stillwater. I started to change my mind about it in 2018, when Mae’s band stopped there for lunch before contest. Since we were both nervous, we just got Little Joe burgers with no sides. No, we didn’t try the cheese fries or anything else but we did come home with a couple cups to remind us of the trip. For the years since that trip I think about making a real visit but never had the chance. Last weekend I had research to do in Stillwater, so lunch at Eskimo Joe’s became a priority.

I’m lucky we decided to go earlier than noon, at 11:22a that place was already packed with a 40-minute wait time. This is probably why they have a store next door, so you can shop while waiting for a table. So while we wandered through the colorful shirts, we patiently waited for a text telling me they were ready. After a little over 30 minutes, I got the text and upstairs to our table we went. This time I was getting the world-famous cheese fries, topped with sweet peppered bacon of course. I now understand why this is one of their most popular items, they were so good. The fries were perfect, covered with a generous amount of cheese, topped with a mound of bacon. This is a must order if you go. I might try them other ways on a next visit but even if you get just the plain, it’s worth it.

Next up were our burgers, I chose to order the sweet peppered bacon and cheddar while my husband got a fire burger. This burger was one of the best I’ve eaten in many years. Juicy, well flavored meat, soft bun, and that bacon. If you are a bacon connoisseur like me, I highly recommend the sweet peppered bacon. It is the true definition of meat candy. Cooked perfectly, not too crisp or limp, covered in brown sugar with just a touch of pepper. This was true culinary heaven. My husband loved his fire burger, said it had good heat to it without being overpowered. He did add the sweet peppered bacon to his burger as well and totally agreed that this was the best bacon. We were too stuffed for dessert, so back down to the store to actually buy some shirts (once again being the good Sooner I couldn’t have one that said Stillwater or OSU, so I got one with the dog).

Eskimo Joe’s really lived up to the hype and then some. Even though it’s in Stillwater (and I could see the campus for little brother), I’m ready to go again. Full warning, give yourself plenty of time since there will be a wait. The service was excellent, even with me in my finest crimson and cream, everyone was nice and friendly. Didn’t wait long for any of the food to come out, so that’s a big plus. Overall I will definitely give them 5 strips of bacon, especially if its the sweet peppered bacon. Their food is worth the drive and wait, trust me.

A bit of the history, Eskimo Joe’s opened in 1975 as a bar. That’s the old stone building at the east end of the complex. They added food to the menu in 1984 when the drinking age was raised in Oklahoma, including the famous cheese fries, which got an endorsement from President George Bush, Sr. The building has been added onto and remodeled several times, adding a huge store to the west end.

Address: 507 W. Elm St., Stillwater.

Category:

Food, Oklahoma, Oklahoma food, Oklahoma history, Stillwater OK

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Quartz Mountain Flyer

Back in 2019, I got to experience this train excursion through a part of southwestern Oklahoma. I got lucky getting the tickets after trying for years. Only a few months later I realized how lucky I was when the Quartz Mountain Flyer shut down.

This trip started at the intersection of State Highway 44 and 44A, right at the turn to go to Quartz Mountain State Park. Just a gravel parking lot next to the railroad track, just a simple sign and loading ramp to mark the location. Once on board the passenger car, you are taken through the Quartz Mountains, south of Lake Altus-Lugert, then north past the beautiful wheat fields until you reach the small town of Lone Wolf. There the volunteers of the town would treat you to a light lunch. Back onto the train to go past the fields again, then the lake, and through the deep valley to the parking lot.

Sounds like fun but unfortunately after about 20 years of service, the Flyer shut down, seemingly for good, at the end of 2019. The excursion line was run by volunteers in Lone Wolf, they would rent the engines and passenger cars from Farmrail. Being the only excursion train left in the state of Oklahoma, it was extremely hard to get tickets. Trust me when I say I got lucky to get the 3 tickets I needed for our trip. After serious flooding earlier in 2019, one of the passenger cars had been damaged. So after a few runs during the year, it was decided by Farmrail to sell the cars to the Oklahoma Railway Museum in Oklahoma City. Because of this decision, the volunteer group had to shut down. That leaves the state of Oklahoma with no true excursion rail trips.

The line was originally part of the Kansas City, Mexico, and Orient (KCM&O or The Orient) railway founded in 1900. This line was sold to the Atcheson, Topeka, and Santa Fe in 1928 and is now run by the Farmrail System.

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Oklahoma, Oklahoma history

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2021 Goals

So if you’ve been reading me for a while, I try to support local restaurants whenever I’m out. I really prefer them to the big national chains. If 2020 has shown us anything, it’s that the small local businesses are what makes our economy thrive. I’m not going to get into the politics and debate over what has occurred over the past few months, what I am going to do is focus more on these small restaurants who need our help. I’m going to spend 2021 going to as many locally owned restaurants as possible and get the word out about all- the good and the bad. If you have any suggestions, just comment on my Facebook page and I’ll check them out. Also go back through my previous posts, you’ll find some great suggestions and I do update each restaurants status. So get your taste buds ready as I go out and test the waters to see if a restaurant is worth your time and money. Let’s eat our way through 2021 and help keep our small businesses afloat.

Category:

Oklahoma, Oklahoma food, Oklahoma history

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