Welcome back. Bartlesville and Dewey, Oklahoma are known by visitors as towns full of museums. The Philips and Price families saw to that and the many others who followed their example have preserved this important history. As for me, this Saturday I’ll be following in the footsteps of a Tulsa legend when I make tracks for the home of Sam Travis, the early 20th century oil tycoon who built the house which is now the Tulsa Historical Society. It was back in the so-called “Golden Age” and Tulsa was the oil capitol of the world when brothers Sam and Dave Travis built their mansions on what was then remote land out on South Peoria. The Italianate Revival style homes sit side by side and as Tulsa grew the magnificent houses changed owners several times up to the present day.
Today Dave’s home is the Tulsa Garden Center which is a great destination throughout the year and Sam’s is the Historical Society. Filled with artifacts from Tulsa’s past, they also host traveling exhibitions, all focused on the history of Tulsa and Oklahoma. This Saturday, my new friend and traveling partner, the author and lawyer Ken Frates and I will be there to talk about our books and there will also be a screening of my documentary Footprints in the Dew: The Last Ten Tapes at 11AM. I’m looking forward to hearing Kent speak about his best-selling book about the Roger Wheeler murder and friends thanks to the Historical Society it’s free. Admission to the museum, Kent’s presentation and the film, it’s all free and you history buffs should plan to attend. Call the museum at (918) 712-9484 for more information.
Now a little more Tulsa history, back in 1848 when the Perryman Cemetery was created 32nd and Utica was out in the sticks. Who were these folks you might ask? The Perrymans became one of Tulsa’s founding families when they were forced to move to “Tulsey Tulova” after an outbreak of cholera in the area where they were living.
Family members, friends and unknown Civil War soldiers were buried in the cemetery, including John Perryman who was Tulsa’s first postmaster and Hannah Hayes Alexander a survivor of the trail of tears. In all around fifty people are buried there today along with several unknown graves. The last person to be buried there was William Shirk in 1941.
might say that’s an interesting story but here’s the scoop. The old cemetery is located in what has become a very busy part of town and it is kept in beautiful shape not by the city but by dedicated volunteers from the Tulsa Historical Society. The old grave markers are something to see if you’re ever in this part of the city. It’s hard to imagine that the Perrymans once ran cattle on 60,000 acres there!
I hope to see you in Tulsa but if not, till next time I’ll see ya down the road…..
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