Dobson Museum

Can you identify the people in the photos from the collection of the Ottawa County Historical Society? Do you know someone who can? Check out this weeks photo and share this post with your friends!

Friday Find at the Dobson Museum March 5, 2021 Our Friday Find this week is about the Mitchell-Fleming Funeral Home. The Mitchell-Fleming Funeral Home started in Tulsa and had several funeral homes throughout NE Oklahoma including Miami. They operated here from 1918-1921. They had bought out the Millner-Fribley Funeral Home in 1918 and then sold their interest in May 1921 to C.H. Richardville, who served as manager of the Mithcell-Fleming Funeral Home for a few years and then... operated the Richardville Funeral Home in Miami. He had been a funeral director in Webb City, MO prior to coming back to Miami. Mr. Richardville was related to the Richardville's of early Miami. We have some photographs and newspaper articles from our archive about the Mitchell-Fleming Funeral Home. There have been several funeral homes in the history of Miami and Ottawa County. We have photographs and information on several museums in Ottawa County including Cooper Funeral Home, Brown-Winters Funeral Home, Paul Thomas Funeral Home, Jim Thomas and Sons Funeral Home, Hutchens Funeral Home, Morton-Lundy Funeral Home, Fisk Funeral Home, Millner-Fribley Funeral Home, Sill Funeral Home, Adcock Funeral Home, Guilford-Thomas Funeral Home, Painter Funeral Home, Birks Funeral Home, Todd Funeral Home, Durnil Funeral Home, and Richardville Funeral Home. I'm sure there are funeral homes in Ottawa County's history, that we don't have on the list. If you have information or photographs about former Ottawa County Funeral Homes. We would love to hear from you. We continue to make additions and acquisitions to our collection and archive. Our "Friday Find" series is items or photographs we have found in and around the museum in our research, collections cataloging, etc. that we would like to share with our friends on Facebook. If you have information to share about the artifacts or stories we share please let us know by the comments section, email - [email protected], or phone - (918)-542-5388. We miss seeing our visitors from being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we care about the safety and well being of our community, volunteers, and visitors. We want to bring the museum to you through our Friday Find Series

Friday Find at the Dobson Museum February 26, 2021 Our Friday Find this week is about Fairland. The community sprang up along the railroads, that ran through the early days prior to statehood in Indian Territory. People were coming into this part of Indian Territory during the 1870s and 1880s. The railroad and farming have been a major part of this community through its early days and into the present. ... The community began to bloom around 1889 when people from nearby Prairie City began to move businesses and structures to Fairland. The community was incorporated around 1900. We have some photographs from various collections in our archive, that show the early days of Fairland. You or someone you may know has photographs, information, or stories to share about Fairland? We would love to hear from you. Our "Friday Find" series is items or photographs we have found in and around the museum in our research, collections cataloging, etc. that we would like to share with our friends on Facebook. If you have information to share about the artifacts or stories we share please let us know by the comments section, email - [email protected], or phone - (918)-542-5388. We miss seeing our visitors from being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we care about the safety and well being of our community, volunteers, and visitors. We want to bring the museum to you through our Friday Find Series

Friday Find at the Dobson Museum February 19, 2021 Our Friday Find this week is about early Miami, Indian Territory. It was through the advocacy and attempts of Thomas Richardville, Manford Pooler, and Col. W.C. Lykins, who are the Fathers of Miami, that the town company and plans were developed and carefully thought out for the future of the townsite. This year marks 130 years since an Act was passed in Congress for the Miami Town Company to plat and divide lands to be deede...d and sold in Indian Territory for the townsite of Miami. The act passed in Congress on March 2, 1891 and by the summer land had already been sold with the first lot of land being sold to Dr. W.L. McWilliams for $30. The Incorporation of the town of Miami occurred in 1895. Some of these photographs of Miami depict the early days of the community. These photographs show the first school building built here, group of men gathering in 1891 with the Miami Town Company, the trolley that ventured down Main Street in the early days of town, one of the artesian wells that was near what is "D Street" or the Truck Route today, and another showing an early scene with the muddy streets before the days when it was paved. Many people moved to this area and populated the lands of Ottawa County in Indian Territory for multiple reasons. Do you have stories or information to share about your family or an early family in Miami or Ottawa County's history? Our "Friday Find" series is items or photographs we have found in and around the museum in our research, collections cataloging, etc. that we would like to share with our friends on Facebook. If you have information to share about the artifacts or stories we share please let us know by the comments section, email - [email protected], or phone - (918)-542-5388. We miss seeing our visitors from being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we care about the safety and well being of our community, volunteers, and visitors. We want to bring the museum to you through our Friday Find Series.

Friday Find at the Dobson Museum February 12, 2021 Our Friday Find this week is about Ethel (Walker) Mann. She was born June 29, 1891 in Indian Territory and passed away on December 1, 1986 in Vinita, Oklahoma. She was the daughter of Alonzo and Ella (Barnett) Walker. She contributed greatly to the collection of our museum and worked with the Ottawa County Historical Society during her lifetime. She was the granddaughter of Sophia (Green) McCoonse. ... We have an oval framed photograph of Sophia McCoonse as part of our collection today, that was donated by Ethel's sister Ida Layton. The photograph of Ethel Mann holding up the framed photograph of her grandmother is the one that hangs in the gallery of the Dobson Museum today. Sophia was married to Chief of the Ottawa Tribe, David Barnett (1828-1878) and her second husband was Joseph McCoonse (1849-1913). We have many photographs and information particularly of Joseph and Sophia McCoonse. Did you know the Barnett, Walker, or McCoonse families? You may know someone who is a descendant or may be a descendant yourself? We would love to add more information about these families as well as other families that have a history and connection to Ottawa County, Oklahoma. Our "Friday Find" series is items or photographs we have found in and around the museum in our research, collections cataloging, etc. that we would like to share with our friends on Facebook. If you have information to share about the artifacts or stories we share please let us know by the comments section, email - [email protected], or phone - (918)-542-5388. We miss seeing our visitors from being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we care about the safety and well being of our community, volunteers, and visitors. We want to bring the museum to you through our Friday Find Series.

Friday Find at the Dobson Museum February 5, 2021 Our Friday Find this week is from one of Nellie Dobson's many personal photograph albums. Nellie was preserving Ottawa County History long before there was a museum in Ottawa County. She had such a vast appreciation and passion for the history of our country, state, county, community, and wanting future generations to know about our area. ... We have some photographs from a major winter storm, that hit Miami on January 8, 1937. There were many trees damaged around the Dobson property as a result of this storm. This images give some perspective what the property looked like in the 1930s long before we had a museum on the property. You may have photographs, stories, or documents to share about other winter storms that have happened in our area? We look forward to hearing from you. Our "Friday Find" series is items or photographs we have found in and around the museum in our research, collections cataloging, etc. that we would like to share with our friends on Facebook. If you have information to share about the artifacts or stories we share please let us know by the comments section, email - [email protected], or phone - (918)-542-5388. We miss seeing our visitors from being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we care about the safety and well being of our community, volunteers, and visitors. We want to bring the museum to you through our Friday Find Series.