Don't miss this. There are some really impressive pictures of Oklahoma City in one of the threads at SkyscraperPage.com (http://www.skyscraperpage.com). Included are shots of Bricktown, central business district, the arts district, and Heritage Hills. All very impressive!
The thread is under the section called "City Photos."

Doug, do you care if I linked to your City page on this Skyscraper site? People were asking about history... so who better to send them to?

Doug, do you care if I linked to your City page on this Skyscraper site? People were asking about history... so who better to send them to?

Thanks for asking, Karrie, but, to asuage your kindly concerns, my FIRM policy is to make/render/whatever you want to call it the stuff/images/whatever I post in my blog or web pages "freely avaliable" to anyone who wants it as long as it is not for "commercial" purposes.

My goal, in all my Okc posts, is to promote my town. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm more than glad for whatever I post (images, whatever) to be freely avalaible/usable by any who wants to use them for non-commercial purposes.

So, put simply, sure. Any link/post/copying of images that I post is fine by me, as long as it is not copied "for profit." I don't want anyone "selling" my stuff which I intend to make freely available to anyone that wants it, but as long as it involves "giving it away," I'm good. Credit would be nice but it's not necessary.

Hey Doug!

I can not even begin to tell you what an absolute thrill it is to view the Springlake photos!

Many blessing to Norman Thompson for his generosity in sharing them! They are truly amazing. Many blessing to you for all your efforts in recording the rich history of Oklahoma.

Oh my gosh - Foreman Scotty ......<grin> and the pic of the elderly couple with the skillet.....the parking lot full of vintage cars............the big dipper......through the 40's into the civil rights era......60's , 70's and etc.....I took a very long journey through each and every photo, I laughed (outloud) at some of them and shed tears over others. (April 11, 1971) Just that site, alone, depicted generations of life in Oklahoma. Actually, it depicts Life in America.

Growing up in rural OK, a once-a- year class trip to Springlake was really something to look forward to, and I can recall when the racial issue happened and we were no longer allowed to go there.

Amazing sitting here, today, laughing and crying over those photos and feeling equally proud and heartbroken over what foolishness people are compelled to exhibit, is stunning.

Thank you for the pictorial trip down memory lane. I am one very proud and honored Okie. O K I E ! it is, indeed, one of the greatest roads I ever had the privilege of traveling.

Thanks for the Memories!

--Kathy Spivey
Chickasha, OK

*OkieKAS






Doug Dawgz Blog: Springlake (http://dougdawg.blogspot.com/2007/04/springlake.html)

Thanks so much, Kathy Spivey! What a nice post!

You are, I guess, from Chickasha. I had 2 great-aunts that lived there. I was once "jailed" there ...when 5, my mom thought I needed more control than she could give, I guess, and I was "locked up" to live with my great-aunts in Chickasha for a few months ... but they did have a TV, so it wasn't so bad!

Earlier, on a visit, I once set my grand-aunt's kitchen on fire there (in Chickasha when I was 4-5) -- short version: trash was burned out back in barrels in those days; I wasn't allowed to participate; on a Sunday siesta when most were napping past noon, I wasn't and I saw the kitchen matches and accompaning kitchen trash ... and ... one thing led to another ...

And, like you, I'm a proud Okie, too! Ain't it all so grand?

Norman has been a great benefactor to me, and to us all ... he's sent me some "new" (non-Springlake) pics that I've not yet had time to post, but will soon. Several of them are VERY cool!

Don't miss this. There are some really impressive pictures of Oklahoma City in one of the threads at SkyscraperPage.com (http://www.skyscraperpage.com). Included are shots of Bricktown, central business district, the arts district, and Heritage Hills. All very impressive!
The thread is under the section called "City Photos."
Thanks big time, redland! That's a great thread ... BG918 did it up right!

Here's a direct link to the thread: Downtown OKLAHOMA CITY - SkyscraperPage Forum (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=131024)

You are entirely welcome! I always appreciate all of your efforts, Doug.

Your love for Oklahoma is obvious. In that, we share a kindred spirit.

You have a super-great sense of humor, as well.

Yep, I do live in Chickasha. We lived in the Alex community for 16 years. I grew up in the Blanchard/Dibble areas. Graduated from Dibble High School ( in a class of 17). :::GO DEMONS:::Lived for a partial period in Hinton while growing up.

We just found out yesterday that our loan approval came through and the land we chose actually appraised higher than the buying price. We are elated. Now I will live between Amber and Tuttle just off Hwy 92. Still in Grady County. Just ten wooded acres with a bit of the wa****a river fork!

OKLAHOMA PARADISE!

I can not wait to dig in the dirt! To taste well water, AGAIN! To get to know every tree and blade of grass. I will, you know. <GRIN>. I will eagerly await the moment when I get my first cut and I see my blood soak into that OKie dirt! I am not such a rebel that I would ever say they will have to pry the gun from my cold - dead fingers.....they will only have to wash off the red dirt beneath my nails!

I love Oklahoma and everything I can, still, grasp regarding it's severalmany diversities.

Growing up in a dysfunctional alcoholic induced family, where domestic violence was rampant, so much so that it took the life of my sister, as a child I quickly found my peace in the red dirt of Oklahoma, exploring every aspect of it's culture, as far as my legs could travel. I would sit for hours in awesome silence in the fields of wildflowers, climbing the tall cottonwoods was my solace.

My place. My family. My Oklahoma.

Where it was always peaceful with all the multi-variety of birds that knew a freedom that I did not.

The birds, the flowers, the trees, the sky above became my freedom. My fingers digging in the red dirt was my gravity. They were my only structure and consistency. I could always depend on them and they continually fostered my belief in goodness, peace and prosperity.

The cottony seeds of the cottonwood, the song within the rustle of it's leaves, the songs of the birds, all of the beauty that even the magical dandelion held, the renewal of hope and a brighter tomorrow throughout the various seasons, the wind as it whispered through the grassland, they were my shelter. They hushed the roar of the voices of anger and I not only survived, I gained the ability to overcome the pain all around me.

My home was the open outdoors, my window into reality, my belief and faith in God's marvelous creations.

When I begin to feel the pressures of the world, I still 'escape to Oklahoma'. All I ever have to do is walk outside and find a dandelion or dig under the snow to see that awesome red dirt. My senses are restored, my faith renewed.

Fortunately, my children learned about their Oklahoma through a more peaceful exploration. The rocks, the mountains, the waters, the flora and fauna. They have a wonderland right here at home. They have been raised to appreciate their land, their heritage. Their Oklahoma.

No matter how far they travel they will always know Oklahoma as seen through the eyes of a little girl. As will I.

As their Mother, they often gifted me with small turtles, ladybugs, a twig off a redbud tree and a variety of other joyous wonders as their little hands proffered me their gifts, my heart always marveled at the red dirt beneath their nails and on their faces and hands, their knees encrusted with it.

I always told my children...."get dirty, God made you washable". They played in the mud, the streams, climbed the rocks and dug in the dirt as children, they still do it today, the MudBog with vehicles that cost more than the one's they drive, the build vehicles that will crawl over the Oklahoma rocks and they are still just as muddy, today, as when they were little boys.

When my son asked me about the land we were looking out, he asked me how I liked it......and I told him.....We can have our OWN MudBog! His eyes lit up as he laughed, and I, once again, was gifted with his 5 year old eyes. What blessings, I have!

Because of my illness, I am not able to travel as much as I used to. As my disease progresses, I am forced, once again, to remain at home, but those lessons learned as a child are still there.

I created my own Oklahoma right in my own backyard. And of all the severalmany blessing I have been gifted with, my own precious Oklahoma that I so desperately sought, as a child, always comes right back to me. It is eternal.

With a variety of native plants, all of the wonders returned. The honeysuckle of my Grandma's house, the variety of birds, even 3 snakes (of which I also love). As long as I can get outside, I am at peace with my self, my God and my life.

If the time comes, and I am made aware that it will, when I am unable to go there on my own then I know that the sons I have raised to the height of 6'4" for each of them to my 5'3", they will tote their ole Mom out there.

I hope that the last gift I ever receive before I leave this Earth are the faces of my beloved sons and the smell of the Oklahoma red dirt. Then I know I will be in HEAVEN.

It is my wish to be cremated and returned back into my beloved Oklahoma. My sons are to scatter my ashes all over OKLAHOMA!

::::::::bursting in a verse of O K L A H O M A ::::::::::::

ps: thanks again for your great gift <smile>

Wow OkieKas, that was an amazing read...very inspiring & beautiful ..well done.

Thanks, I enjoyed my walk around downtown. I wanted to see some of the new projects under construction.

I like what I see happening downtown, and midtown absolutely seems like it's about to boom. I wish Banta would hurry up rehabbing those buildings though, I only saw a couple that construction had actually already started. And once more of those older buildings are fixed up into offices, apartments, and ground floor retail (along NW 10th, the 'midtown retail corridor') it would be nice to see more new construction filling in the gaps.

Auto Alley/Broadway really needs the light rail line and is the BEST north-south corridor. Forget Oklahoma or Robinson, Broadway is wide enough and has tons of potential as well. Plus when the line splits off at E.K. Gaylord to service Bricktown it's also wide enough and the massive Santa Fe garage could be renovated to have street level retail space. Also the triangular plaza in front of the old Oklahoman building would make a good park with fountain, and there are two large parking lots on Broadway that need new buildings. Just some things I noticed.

Love the potential of the Arts District, especially if somehow they can get the Photography Hall of Fame to move there and build a new building, possibly at the parking lot at Main and Walker? It would be awesome to see more residential development westward down Main and both southward and northward along Walker. Walker could be a light rail corridor someday too so new development should be required to have street level retail space, and it's good the Legacy project did that. They need to fix that fountain in front of city hall, that would be a nice touch to that plaza that fronts the museum.

That's all for now, more later.

SkyscraperPage.com (http://skyscraperpage.com/)

Also, look for the "diagrams" search box. You can type in any city and see illustrations of that city's skyscrapers. Awesome!

I just wish OKC would build another tower soon. Almost every other city has a tower going up, and they're getting bigger and bigger.

This was so awesome. And I was quite impressed with the feedback from the other posters. Thanks for getting us out there with such positive pictures!

Did anyone notice no photos of Lower Bricktown were uploaded? I wonder what people from around the country would say if they saw a strip mall and parking lot next to a canal. I bet their first question would be, "Why is that called Bricktown"?

Great pics BG. The response over there is great.

What time of the day was this? It seems like there was more people on the street in the CBD than there was in Bricktown.

The pics were taken around 1 pm last Wednesday, and I avoided Lower Bricktown for a reason. Actually it's just a few properties down there that I dislike, mainly Toby Keith's, Bass Pro, and the design of the Centennial just because it's not all brick and has more surface parking than it should. And HSE Architects (Centennial architect) did a great job with Block 42, wonder why they dropped the ball here?

Anyways I wish I would've made it over by St. Anthony's, there is some good stuff down there. Maybe I'll have to take another walk, however I'm in Tulsa this week so I might do a photo tour up here.

Sometimes the passion in me just flows....(reads like a chapter in a book) ......and I have a great passion for Oklahoma. It's people. Those who suffer from Abuse. The Elderly. disAbilities...... I am so impressed with all of the people on here and the sacred entrustment through sharing their opinions, thoughts and photographs with others. Thanks for the opportunity to be here. --Kathy