Stories from the past
114 YEARS AGO The Checotah Times Friday, January 21, 1910
ANOTHER TRAGEDY
Lee Capps is dead, and Davis Killingsworth is in the custody of officials, charged with the crime as a result of a tragedy that was enacted near Pierce Tuesday evening.
Details of the affair are difficult to secure but it is said Capps made threats to take the life of Killingsworth who armed himself preparatory to an act of that kind.
The boys met Tuesday evening about half mile south of the Killingsworth home where the shooting occurred, the bullet from Killingsworth’s gun entering Capps right side and producing almost instant death.
There were no spectators to the affair. Capps was on his horse and was dragged for some distance before his body became released from his saddle.
Capps is a son of B.Y. Capps, a prominent citizen of Pierce and Killingsworth a son of Deputy Sheriff M.Y. Killingsworth.
The boys were brothers-in-law, having married daughters of former Justice of the Peace Newt Hicks.
PAST THE 2000 MARK
That Checotah is eligible to the rank of a city of the first class there is no longer any doubt. Two weeks ago, the city council made arrangements for taking the census of the city and appointed W.H. Allen and A. Ury as enumerators.
Their work, which was completed this week, shows a population of 2,050, of whom 1,277 reside north of Gentry Avenue and 773 south.
Moving Picture Show planned
Checotah is soon to have a moving picture show and a frame building for that purpose is being erected at the southeast corner of Gentry Avenue and First street. The proprietors hope to be ready for business in about a month.
••••• 100 YEARS AGO McIntosh County Democrat
Thursday, January 10, 1924
Feature Pictures at the Cozy Theatre this Week – Friday and Saturday, “The Hero,” featuring Gaston Glass and Barbara La Marr.
– Monday and Tuesday, “The Strangers Banquet,” with the greatest cast of stars ever assembled for one picture.
– Wednesday and Thursday, “The Bright Shawl,” featuring Richard Bathlemess, with Dorothy Gish.
EXPECTS DRY WORLD
“Pussyfoot” Johnson returns to America Full of Hope for the Future
New York, Jan. 9 – William E. (Pussyfoot) Johnson, whose ambition to dry up the earth cost him an eye in England, arrived today on the George Washington after eight months of crusading in foreign lands. He said his remaining eye was failing and his hearing was impaired.
“But I’m not going to die till the whole world’s dry,” he said.
REAL WINTER WEATHER
Mercury Drops to 2 Below Saturday morning – coldest Weather Since 1918 For several days the latter part of last week blasts compelled the mercury in the little glass thermometer to linger from the freezing point to 28 degrees above the zero mark but during Friday night “Old Man Winter” decided to give us a real taste of cold weather and when Checotahns arose Saturday morning they found that the said mercury had scampered downward until he had reached the zero mark and in some instances had taken a further dive of 1 or 2 degrees blow.
According to some who kept posted on weather conditions Saturday atmosphere, was the coldest in Checotah since 1918.
As a result of the cold spell the youngsters of the city enjoyed ice skating for several days.
TO ABOLISH STATE SCHOOLS
Legislative Survey Committee Planning to Knife Warner and Claremore Institutions Oklahoma City, Jan. 7 – The legislative survey is preparing a bill for presentation to the next legislature in special session that will abolish at least six state schools, it was learned authoritatively at the capitol today.
Among the schools slated to go under the proposal’s bill are the university preparatory school at Tonkawa; the military school at Claremore; Warner and Cameron aggie schools and the Wilburton school of mines.
••••• 80 YEARS AGO McIntosh County Democrat
Thursday, July 8, 1943
LOCAL CITIZENS USING CANNERY TO ADVANTAGE Ladies Put Up Several Hundred Quarts In First Week
Activity got underway at the public cannery in the vocational agriculture room at the local high school last week, with a number of citizens availing themselves of the opportunity to put up their own vegetables, fruits and meats.
It has again been pointed out by those in charge at the cannery that any person desiring to can food stuffs, should bring the jars, lids and materials. The ladies operating the cannery will then attend to all other details of the work.
Checotah Boy Dies In Airplane Crash
Funeral services were held in Miami, Florida, Wednesday for Sgt. John W. Lewis, who was killed in a plane crash at Orlando last Thursday when he and three other members of the crew were making a routine flight near the Orlando base. The machine went into spin and crashed, killed all four of its occupants.
The deceased, who was known as “Buddy” Lewis, was a graduate of Checotah High School and was a former resident of the Odd Fellows home here. He was 20 years old and had been in the service for nine months.
9 Children Added By Odd Fellows
Nine children have recently been accepted at the Odd Fellows home here, according to E.H. Inyart, superintendent.
The children, six girls and three boys, range in ages from eight to 17 years.
They were former occupants of the home at Carmen which has been closed for the duration of the war. They will enter school at Checotah when the regular term begin in August.
Prices Are Raised By Local Barbers
A hike in barber prices in Checotah to offset the increased cost of living has been announced by Henry Wells, owner of the Service Barber shop.
The increase, which will amount to only five cents on haircuts and shaves, has already gone into effect in the four barber shops in the city.
State laws provide that all barbers in a town charge the same price.
••••• 75 YEARS AGO McIntosh County Democrat
Thursday, January 13,1949
DRYS ORGANIZE TO BEAT REPEAL OF LIQUOR LAWS Preachers Get Heads Together On Booze Question A campaign to defeat the proposed repeal of the state liquor prohibition laws was launched in Checotah Monday by county church leaders.
SCOUT DISTRICT IS REORGANIZED AT CITY SESSION Four Troops May Be Formed In City Limits An expanded Boy Scout program in Checotah and north McIntosh County will go into effect during the new year, it was decided at the district reorganization meeting at the Peoples National Bank Monday afternoon at which L.K. Sharpe presided as chairman.
It was proposed at the meeting to reorganize the Muskogee area council into smaller districts and place an additional man in the field to assist scoutmasters in promoting their work.
Judge Higgins Commits Suicide
R.W. Higgins, 85, who served as district judge in McIntosh County for 16 years, committed suicide in the court room in McAlester Tuesday morning. The judge died two hours later in a McAlester hospital.
Higgins was defeated three years ago by W.A. Lackey in his race for re-election.
A .38 caliber pistol was found at the scene of the shooting.
Smith Is Captain In Regular Army
Captain Arthur Smith, son of Mr. and Mrs. Willie Smith of this city, is now stationed at the Waco Army Air Base, Waco, Texas, where he serves as public information officer.
Smith enlisted in the army air corps as a private during World War II and rose to the rank of captain, seeing action in the European theater before he was wounded while on a bombing mission and returned to the states for hospitalization.
Following his discharge as a captain, Smith reenlisted in the regular army air corps as a master sergeant and has since been promoted to rank of captain in the regular army.
••••• 50 YEARS AGO McIntosh County Democrat
Thursday, January 24, 1974
Vandiver Elected Chamber President
The Checotah Chamber of Commerce met Monday at noon and the newly elected officers assumed office.
Chamber officers for the 1974 are John Vandiver, president; Benny Waller, vice—president; Davie Spindle, secretary; and Cecil Thompson, treasurer.
McSpadden Visits City
Congressman Clem McSpadden visited Checotah Tuesday, Jan. 15, for a noon luncheon meeting with several businessmen from the community.
Clem’s visit was just prior to his return to Washington for this session of Congress.
He discussed, among other things, the growing concern among rural Congressmen of being unable to impress their colleagues from metropolitan areas with rural needs. He cited the institution of daylight-saving time as an example.
••••• 19 YEARS AGO McIntosh County Democrat
Thursday, September 8, 2005
Cupps family find refuge in Checotah
One Mississippi family has found refuge from Hurricane Katrina in Checotah.
Ricky and Cynthia Cupps and their twin daughters, Gabrielle and Megan, as now staying with Ricky’s mother, Marsha Ponder, in Checotah.
Ricky, who attended Checotah schools from the fifth to the ninth grades during the ‘80s, at one time served as assistant manager for the McIntosh County Democrat. After the newspaper sold to Francis Stipe in 1986 the 18-year-old lost his job and joined the Air Force. He has been in a serviceman ever since.
Okrafest Saturday
Checotah Main Street’s annual Okrafest will be held this Saturday, Sept. 10.
The special event will include an open car show, “Okra Olympics,” an okra eating contest, “Fried Okra Pot,” handmade arts and crafts, lots of vendors, children’s activities, music in Pocket Park, concessions and the annual “Okra Baby Contest” for boys and girls ages two and under.
Team Thunder, Inc., to bring motorsports to schools The Checotah school district, in cooperation with Team Thunder, Inc., is bringing motorsports into all Checotah classrooms Sept. 16.
Sam Parton, president of Team Thunder, has been a drag car racer his entire life and also recently retired from being a full-time teacher in Grove. He developed the program, in which the main focus is education, to help students understand that everything they learn in school can be related to real world activities, in this case, especially drag racing.
