Pictures of Where Grandparents & Great-Grandparents Lived

I recently took a trip to where my grandparents and great-grandparents once lived. For some reason I got the idea to try to discover how they met. On the trip I took several pictures. I wish I'd have taken more. When I return there are several more pictures I want to take. One picture might be difficult because I have to drive a gravel road to reach the place where my great-grandfather's farm was. It was beautiful with green wheat growing, rolling hills. I couldn't stop driving to take photos because of the ruts in the gravel road. I was afraid I'd wouldn't be able to start going again because of the condition and deep ruts in the road. I was worried about going off the road into the ditch.  I'm not sure which side of the road his farm was on. I plan to call the county court house and find out if they have records back that far.

I love grain elevators because my dad used to paint them when he was younger. I mean he got on scaffolding and literally painted the structure. I add these pictures to honor all the work my father did painting grain elevators.

The next few pictures are of a building in Seger, Oklahoma. Seger is where my grandmother was born. I thought it was a beautiful building and loved the old tree behind it. When I saw the date on the sign it said 'Fred Kauger 1924'. That's the year my mother was born so I thought it would be a fitting picture to honor her and her mother.

The photo below was of a nice view in Seger, Oklahoma. Beautiful rolling hills. Now I know why my great-grandfather Duerksen had his farm around this area.

"Colony One of the oldest towns in Western Oklahoma founded in 1886 by John Seger and the Cheyenne-Arapaho on the banks of Cobb Creek. Seger Indian Industrial School operated here from 1892 until 1932. Local tradition holds this was a starting point for the Land run of 1892. Dutch Reformed Misson opened here in 1895. Post Office established Jan. 8, 1896. Buildings in this block built in 1920"s by Fred Kauger and restored by Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice Yvonne Kauger. Long before the 20th Century, Native Americans occupied the surrounding land c. 904-1400 A.D. George Bent lived in the area and is buried nearby. Pow.Wows held here since late 1930's by Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribes Oklahoma Historical Society 229-1997"

In trying to find links on the Internet about Seger, Oklahoma I found one and it's about a Native American Pow-Wow that's celebrated somewhere in or near Seger. Some of the other links were broken and don't work. 

The info on the Pow-Wow is:

September 2-5, 2005: Cheyenne-Arapaho Labor Day Powwow
Location: Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribal Park, East Seger, Colony, OK 73021
Event Detail: Gourd dancing at 2 pm, Grand entry promptly at 8 pm, dance contests, volleyball, horseshoes, Leslie Sage Cheyenne Princess, Anna Helen Spottedwolf, Arapaho Princess.
Contact: Charlene, phone: 580/323-0340, email: cwassana@yahoo.com

http://www.blogoklahoma.us/place.aspx?id=108

http://www.blogoklahoma.us/place.aspx?id=102

Legislature Wants to Slaughter Horses In Oklahoma

Please join me in calling your Oklahoma Senator and Representative and Governor Mary Fallin and asking them to vote NO on Horse Slaughter Houses in Oklahoma. That is the most disgusting thing I've heard of in a long time. House bill 1999 and Senate bill 375 would make horse slaughter legal.

Rep. Skye McNiel, R-Bristow is the author of this horrific bill. It sounds utterly barbaric. Besides her families business could gain $240,000 in commission in one year from the slaughter of horses.

Such a majestic animal that has been the servant of man for time eternal and now our state wants to slaughter them? Makes me sick. Not only slaughter them for money, to make money, they will sell the meat to Mexico, Canada, Europe and who else? They say there is a provision in the bill that prohibits it being sold as meat for Oklahoman's consumption. I believe the government so much.

Rep. Skye McNiel, R-Bristow, grandparents opened Mid America Stockyards 40 years ago and she worked there. She still works there, according to the Daily Oklahoman. This is a family business and they will make thousands of dollars. If 5,000 horses are auctioned in a year, weighing an average of 1,000 pounds, Mid America could expect to collect about $75,000 in annual commissions on horse sales. f prices increase under McNiel's legislation to pre-2007 days, the company could make as much as $240,000 commission on horse sales in a year's time.

Sloan Varner, McNiel's brother and an auctioneer at Mid America, the largest horse auction in the state, estimated as many as two-thirds of the 5,000 horses sold there in a typical year are sent to slaughter houses.

Gail Vacca, who trains thoroughbred racehorses in DeKalb, Ill., and has been active in the anti-slaughter movement since 2002, called reports of an increase in abandoned horses “pure propaganda. … We’ve got a 54-page document debunking almost every single claim of abandoned horses. It’s ridiculous. “

Horses have been a passion for Jena Raymer for more than 30 years now. She hates to think Oklahoma could be a horse slaughter state.

"They are part of American history, and it's just not something that I want to be proud of as an American,” says Raymer.

Jena is one of many horse owners’ statewide urging legislators to reconsider bills that have already been approved in the House and Senate that would end Oklahoma’s 50-year ban on horse slaughtering.

Pam Smith says the fate of her spunky Arabian horse could have been much different. "He wasn't perfect and he wasn't a mare so they were going to sell him, but actually an organization came in and took him or he would have gone to slaughter,” says Smith.

One year I took my grandsons to see the world-renown Express Clydesdales. The change that came over my grandsons was nothing short of miraculous. They calmed down and were different boys. There are horses that help handicap children and people with emotional problems. I think I may need to go see the Clydesdales after hearing that my state is seriously thinking of slaughtering horses. Sick. I won't vote for my representative again if he votes for this bill.

Paul Blair vs. Clark Jolley

I keep hearing radio ads for Paul Blair who is running for Republican nomination for Senate district 41 of Oklahoma. While standing at my kitchen sink washing dishes I remembered seeing Paul Blair at the Oklahoma Republican Conventions this year and in previous years. I have no personal ax to grind with Mr. Blair but I wondered why a minister would be among those who are supporting a man for president who wants street drugs legalized.

In his latest column Ron Paul points out that the War on Drugs is unconstitutional, can’t be won, and only makes things worse for almost everyone involved. The only beneficiaries are the drug barons, smugglers and dealers who enjoy exorbitant profits, and those dark forces in government who try to further suppress our freedoms under the excuse of fighting the war against drugs. ronpaul.com/2009-03-30/ron-paul-end-the-war-on-drugs/

Mr. Blair, why would you support someone for president who wants to legalize all drugs when they cause such havoc in people's lives?

President Visits Oklahoma

President Obama visits Oklahoma with the pretext of approving and helping speed up approval of the Oklahoma portion of the pipeline that was to run from Canada to Texas. Just weeks ago he was calling senators on the phone trying to get them to vote against the pipeline.

Posted: 03/18/2012

WASHINGTON (AP) -- "Pump prices on his mind, President Barack Obama says Congress should kill tax breaks for the oil and gas industry and help develop alternative sources of energy."

"Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address that he expected Congress to consider in the next few weeks ending $4 billion in tax subsidies, a move he has failed to persuade lawmakers to make during his term."

Wednesday, January 18, 2012 Obama Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline

WASHINGTON— President Barack Obama today denied the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, finding that building the pipeline is not in the national interest.

Posted: 02/27/2012

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Canadian company says it will build an oil pipeline from Oklahoma to Texas after President Barack Obama blocked the larger Keystone XL pipeline from Canada.

Calgary-based TransCanada says the new project does not require presidential approval, since it does not cross a U.S. border. The shorter pipeline is expected to cost about $2.3 billion and be completed next year.

Washington, Mar 21 - "Today, Congressman John Sullivan, Vice Chairman of the Energy and Power Subcommittee, offered the following statement reacting to media reports that President Obama intends to announce he will expedite the permitting process for the southern portion of the Keystone pipeline during his visit to Cushing, OK on Thursday. Cushing is home to the worlds largest oil storage complex."

“President Obama claiming credit for speeding up the Keystone pipeline is like Al Gore saying he invented the internet – it is claiming credit where credit isn't due. This is clearly an attempt to deflect attention from $4 gas and his failed energy policies, and Oklahomans won't buy it. The southern portion of Keystone XL doesn’t cross international lines and doesn’t need presidential approval. In fact, this administration has done everything in their power to delay the Keystone process – just last week the President personally lobbied members of Congress to vote against it.”

“Simply put, the southern portion of keystone – from Cushing, OK to the Gulf Coast – is being built in spite of the Obama Administration, not because of them. This portion of the pipeline does require numerous permits, but those come from state authorities, army corps of engineers and fish and wildlife services, not the president.”

March 16, 2012

WASHINGTON, D.C. – "U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, today commented on President Obama's upcoming visit to Cushing, Okla. ahead of the construction of a pipeline which will run from Cushing to the Gulf. President Obama plans to travel to Oklahoma City, Okla. on March 21 and to Cushing, Okla. on March 22."

"When President Obama visits Oklahoma in preparation for a new pipeline from Cushing to the Gulf, we hope that he will learn a thing or two about the benefits of using our own domestic oil and gas resources, especially as gas prices continue to skyrocket," Inhofe said. "Unfortunately, we know his visit is little more than a campaign stop in an attempt to put a favorable spin on his dismal energy record, because current gas prices threaten his job. America has more domestic recoverable resources of oil, gas and coal than any country in the world, and developing these resources is the best way to revive our economy while bringing down prices at the pump. Yet, President Obama continues to wage an all-out attack on American fossil fuel development in his war on affordable energy. He keeps saying that oil and natural gas are the fuels of the past, but he is wrong. Oklahomans know they are very much the fuels of the present and the foreseeable future. The sooner he realizes this, the better."

Governor Mary Fallin is on vacation with her family and won't be back in Oklahoma to receive the president. The governor said she found out about his visit from the media. This only lends credit to the thought that this president has no boundaries, no limits, and no respect for others. If he had boundaries he wouldn't try to take credit for the very thing he has been working to destroy. If he knew what limits were he would know that other people have rights. If he had respect for others he would have notified Governor Fallin well in advance of his planned trip. That begs the question, "Why?" Why would he not notify a governor that he intends to visit their state? Why indeed? Is it because she would have politely told him her opinion of his policies? Why was his television audience by invitation only? Did he see the protesters in Cushing? They were wanting to tell the president that he had nothing to do with the pipeline in Cushing. Of course the media and the security that he surrounds himself with won't allow us peons close to him. Those who don't agree with his lies and suck up to him because he is president aren't allowed in him presence. The media paint a picture of a lie.

01/18/2012

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and other elected officials are blasting President Barack Obama for his decision to reject a permit to build a Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline that would cross Oklahoma.

Obama on Wednesday announced that he turned down the proposal for the 1,700-mile pipeline because Congress gave him a 60-day deadline that did not allow for a thorough review of the project.

Fallin says the rejection of the pipeline will cost the state an estimated 1,200 construction jobs and more than $1 billion in new investment in Oklahoma.

A TransCanada official said last week that if approved, the next phase of the project was to build a large pipeline from the oil storage center in Cushing, Oklahoma, to refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast.

I just heard on the local news that President Obama did get to see the people and their signs in Cushing. Signs read, "Go Home", "Keystone Yes", "Socialists not welcome here", and it was reported by local radio news that some of the protesters waved a special finger at the president.

President Visit to Oklahoma

I ask myself why would the president come to Oklahoma? He didn't visit this state when he ran for president the first time so why do it the second time. Is it because he has a rival for his job who is challenging him? His Democratic contender is Randall Terry.

http://www.terryforpresident.com/index.php

Could it be he is coming to Oklahoma because we are the reddest state in the union? Ya, we cling to our Bibles, our Babies, our Brains, our Guns, and our Freedom. We don't like socialism, communism, or any other ism. Not even Obamism.

Maybe he is coming here to try to lie to our students like he has lied to other students in the United States. Students, in order to understand Obama speeches the only rule you need is the rule of opposites. What ever he says turn it around and just the opposite is what he really means. If he says he wants to help create 2,000 jobs, then he wants to destroy 2,000 jobs. There is no mystery to understanding his speeches. It's easy. What ever he says that is positive, he means just the reverse.

Catholics please take note, you have two alternatives to Obama in the next election.

1. Republican Rick Santorum

2. Democrat Randall Terry

Maverick

Today I went to my first class of Conceal and Carry. It lasted from 8:00 am to 12:15 pm. The instructor read to us all the things we need to know from the Self Defense Act. We took a test at the end of the course today. I made 100% on the written test. Tomorrow we will go to a shooting range and shoot our guns. After that I will need to apply for a license to carry a firearm. They cost $100.00 which will be for five years. A ten year license costs $200.00.

I don't know if I want to carry a gun with me every where I go. I need to re-read all of the laws. There are laws for the state and federal laws. I also need to take shooting lessons at a gun range. The instructor told us we need to get an attorney on retainer just in case the worst happens.

I am reminded of the television show, Rockford Files staring James Garner. He is from Norman, Oklahoma, and a favorite of mine. I have watched many of his television shows for so many years. He is one of the best at what he does.





JAMES GARNER. Born James Scott Bumgarner in Norman, Oklahoma, U.S.A., 7 April 1928. Attended University of Oklahoma; studied acting at Herbert Bergof Studios, New York. Served with U.S. Merchant Marines in Korean War (awarded Purple Heart). Married: Lois Clark, 1956; children: Greta, Kimberly, and Scott. Began career with stage production The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, early 1950s; offered contract with Warner Brothers, 1956; film debut, Toward the Unknown, 1956; title role in Maverick, 1957-62; title role in The Rockford Files, NBC-TV, 1974-79. Recipient: Emmy Awards, 1977 and 1986.

TELEVISION SERIES

1957-60 Maverick
1971-72 Nichols
1974-79 Rockford Files
1981-82, 1990 Bret Maverick
1991 Man of the People

TELEVISION MINISERIES

1985 Space
1993 Barbarians at the Gate
1995 Larry McMurtry's Streets of Laredo

MADE-FOR-TELEVISION MOVIES

1974 The Rockford Files
1978 The New Maverick
1982 The Long Summer of George Adams
1984 Heartsounds
1986 Promise (also producer)
1989 My Name is Bill W. (also producer)
1990 Decorations Day
1993 Barbarians at the Gate
1994 Rockford Files: I Still Love L.A.
1994 Breathing Lessons
1995 Rockford Files: A Blessing In Disguise
1996 Rockford Files: If the Frame Fits
1996 Rockford Files: Friends and Foul Play

FILMS

Toward the Unknown, 1956; The Girl He Left Behind, 1956; Shoot-Out at Medicine Bend, 1957; Sayonara, 1957; Darby's Rangers, 1959; Up Periscope, 1959; Cash McCall, 1960; The Children's Hour, 1962; Boy's Night Out, 1962; The Great Escape, 1963; The Thrill of It All, 1963; The Wheeler Dealers, 1963; Move Over Darling, 1963; The Americanization of Emily, 1964; 36 Hours, 1965; The Art of Love, 1965; A Man Could Get Killed, 1966; Duel at Diablo, 1966; Mister Buddwing, 1966; Grand Prix, 1966; Hour of the Gun, 1967; How Sweet It Is, 1968; The Pink Jungle, 1968; Marlowe, 1969; Support Your Local Sheriff, 1969; A Man Called Sledge, 1970; Support Your Local Gunfighter, 1971; Skin Game, 1971; They Kill Their Masters, 1972; One Little Indian, 1973; The Castaway Cowboys, 1974; Health, 1979; The Fan, 1981; Victor/Victoria, 1982; Tank, 1984; Murphy's Romance, 1985; Sunset, 1988; Fire in the Sky, 1993; Maverick, 1994

Tornado Kills 8 People In Lone Grove, Oklahoma

Seven people from Lone Grove, and a truck driver from Jones, Okla., who was driving through the area at the time of the tornado, were killed by this tornado. Two people are still missing. It started about 7:20 pm, it was between 1/4 to 1/2 mile wide. The winds were about 175 miles an hour.

I feel very sad for those people there in Lone Grove. They've lost everything and some lost the most precious thing, their lives.

I don't know the names of those who died.

One previous tornado in CHICKASHA, Okla. on May 8, 1999 had carried a tiny baby away and dropped her in a field.

"A baby and her parents had been sucked out of the closet where they'd taken shelter. Both parents were injured, while 10-month-old Aleah Crago was missing."

"Deputy Sherriff Robert Jolley, 27, was in his patrol car, looking to lend a hand with his in-car video camera rolling. He says he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye near some trees on the side of the road. He went over and, under a tree, saw what appeared to be a baby."

"It looked to me like a rag doll," says Jolley. "I reached under the debris, and pulled the baby out. I think when the baby reached out for me when I sat her down to check her, that was probably when I started thinking about being a father. Yeah, I cried."

"Remarkably, little Aleah suffered only a small cut on her head, and some bruises. She was soon reunited with her mother. Her father remains hospitalized, in critical condition. Her grandmother was killed in the storm, one of more than 40 fatalities that night in Oklahoma."

Here is another version of the story about Aleah Crago being rescued by Robert Jolley.

Looking for Windows, Heating, Air Conditioning, Insulation, and Roofing

Just got back from the Oklahoma Home and Garden Show at the state fair grounds. I got there late and so only saw one building. I was looking for windows, heating, air conditioning, insulation, and roofing. I'm really glad I went because now I'm even more confused about windows. I had a company named Champion install several windows last Monday. I love the windows but they left a part of the old window which is aluminum and it plus my old windows had mold on them. I had cleaned the mold off but it kept coming back. I'm really worried that the part they left from the old windows will begin to grow mold again. In fact I am feeling very depressed and crying for no apparent reason. At the Home and Garden Show tonight I saw the man who sold us the windows and I told him the problem and he said that Monday he would have someone come out and check the installation and find out what the problem is. He called someone and I heard him say to them on the phone, "No, I won't." I wonder what it is he won't do? I thought to myself maybe he was told by the other person on the phone not to admit to any problem or they were wrong.

I have spent the last eleven years cleaning the mold and moisture off the windows in this house. I would love to have time to do other things. I have a cough that is very deep when there is mold on the windows. It gives me headaches. It's no wonder I'm feeling very depressed.

The windows that were in this house when we bought it were two sets of aluminum storm windows. There was a dead space in between them. That space would fill with moisture and then mold. I would have to leave one of the windows open in order to dry out the space in between. If it rained there would be a half to an inch of water standing in between the windows. I had to use so many towels to dry and clean these windows nearly every day it wasn't funny. I have put paper towels between the windows but that didn't help. When it is cold outside there is ice on the frames. I wanted to take off the outside set of windows but the screws holding them on were rusted. I have used bleach on the windows to clean the mold. It comes back every few months. I bought a chemical that I had to buy and use a hazard mask with a respirator on it. I had to buy expensive chemical gloves and huge plastic sheets. I put the plastic sheets up on the doorways with tape to keep the fumes out of the rest of the house. I have parrots and the fumes would kill them. I'm so sick of this mess I can't even begin to put it into words.

Now that I have expensive new windows and the installers left part of the old window I'm just sick. I went to the Home and Garden Show to find some other company to put in the rest of my windows.

I was looking for another source of heat for my house too. Last winter, 2007, we had an ice storm here and it knocked out the power to nearly all the homes in this city. We had nearly 600,000 homes and businesses without electricity Tuesday. There were 15 deaths. There were more than 100 reports of fires mostly from tree limbs crashing into live power lines. The sound of branches snapping under the weight of ice echoed through Oklahoma City neighborhoods. It was so loud that it would wake me up in the middle of the night. I was terrified that something would fall on one of the surrounding houses and they would catch on fire. Our neighborhood has trees that are 90 to 100 years old. Maybe more.

Interstate 40 west of Okemah, Okla. was ice-covered and four people died in one accident that involved 11 vehicles, including a tractor-trailer rig, said Highway Patrol Trooper Betsey Randolph. All 11 vehicles burned, she said. Eight other people also died on icy Oklahoma roads. A transient died of hypothermia in Oklahoma City.