a look back into our archives
10 YEARS AGO
On the week of Aug 3, 2011 Logan McKee was crowned All State Homecoming Queen.
Three county post offices were named to a “hit list” of 100 Oklahoma Post offices facing closure. Rocky, Bessie, and Colony Post offices were among those listed as “low-activity” offices, suggested for closure.
The Cordell Library offered two free technology classes to the public, welcoming people of all experience levels.
The Red Cross set up their Burns Flat blood drive site for Aug 8. All donors received two tickets to the Oklahoma City Zoo and a zoo T-Shirt.
Extreme drought and unusually high heat in Washita County left brown crunchy grass and a slew of dead outdoor plants in its wake. As of press time 51 days and counting had reached over 100 degrees, making July 2011 Oklahoma’s hottest calendar month on record.
The Farmer’s COOP reported the current price of wheat as $7.68 as of noon on Tuesday, Aug. 2.
The area fishing report noted that all area lakes were lower than normal due to the extremely hot temperatures.
20 YEARS AGO
On the week of July 25, 2001, Washita County was placed under a burn ban signed by Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating at the request of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture Forestry Officials.
The City of Cordell asked citizens to voluntarily restrict their water use as a result of heat and dry weather taking a toll on the City’s water system. At the time of request, the city had been supplying an excess of 1.1 million gallons of water a day, exceeding previous records of use.
A new business opened in Cordell, known as The London House. The store was located on 115, s. Glenn English between Kwik & Eze and Cordell Total. The shop, owned by Rita London, offered the best of previously owned furniture, home decor, antiques, and collectibles.
Alan Hull, was seen already at work for his first year as New Elementary Principal. Hull kept himself busy learning his way around the school, and meeting all of the staff, coming in nearly every day to find where everything was.
Pearl Miller was named “The Beacon Paper Girl” at The Village, for delivering papers to her fellow residents every Wednesday morning.
40 YEARS AGO
On the week of July 22, 1981, a Burns Flat truck driver was killed in a fiery truck crash. The victim, Dale Theodore Whiteman, was pinned in his vehicle after completing an evasive maneuver, efforts to free him by bystanders were thwarted when the truck burst into flames only a minute or two after overturning.
Sammy Scarberry was named in one felony count of second degree burglary in connection with the attempted burglary of the red barn restaurant.
With possible rationing on the horizon, the mayor urged citizens to save water and electricity.
A car stolen in Cordell was recovered in less than a half hour by city and county officers. The vehicle, a 1949 Chevrolet owned by Henry Gregg was stolen by a man from Lakewood California.
An oilfield worker was fatally injured when a high pressure line he was working on sprayed him with mud and rocks, knocking him into a mud pit. The worker, Arthur Doyle McCurley Sr. was pronounced dead at the scene.
Housing additions being built in Cordell were set to help with the housing shortage. Homes in the Bonham Addition and the Pheasant Run Addition bost between $60 and $80 thousand dollars to construct.
Cloud Chief held their monthly community social at their community center.
1987
