In a way, this month we played catch-up a bit. We had written about Caldwell, Wellington and several of the towns around there and on the way. But we had read some stuff about Hunnewell being one of the cattletowns that had a rip-roaring history but one town we hadn’t visited. Our original plan was to continue on east of Wellington to Oxford and Geuda Springs but we decided to take a longer way there just to check out Hunnewell.

We traveled south through Pratt and then east on Highway 42 to Rago and then Highway 14 down to pick up Highway 160 and just before Wellington went south on Highway 49 to Caldwell and then east on 81 to South Haven. We stopped to check out that town, but there is little left of it. We got a photo of an old deteriorating building that could well have been a hotel located on the highway. However, there are a few nice houses that stand out among the trailers. We were impressed with the one with a tower room that was well kept and a reminder of what the town once was.

One building had the name South Haven Service that evidently sold tires and did tire repair out of the back of the building. The front had some lettering but we couldn’t make out what it once said. We did find the former city hall and fire department building that has been converted to a library. It’s a neat little brick building that has the fire department door sealed shut and it probably is just the right size library for South Haven.

As we headed out of town we had to stop to get a photo of the old wooden motel that surely must date back to the 1930s or 40s. While the sign read vacancy, which was a sure bet, it appears some one is living in part of the motel. I haven’t a clue why the motel was built at this location, but I suppose at the time Highway 81 was the main road from Enid Oklahoma to Wichita, jogging through Caldwell and South Haven and then north. I-35 put the kibosh on that route.

Anyway, we picked up Highway 177 and traveled south to Hunnewell, expecting great things. What we found was pretty much a ghost town with the city hall located is a small frame building just east of a similar building that serves as an office for the Hunnewell elevator. There are a lot of mobile homes and that’s about it. But at one time it was a town rivaling the wildest of cowtowns. I think the town’s population was never more that 300 permanent residents, but there were hundreds of intenerate guests. Today it’s less than a hundred.

There were lots of stories from the heyday of Hunnewell. General rowdiness was the fare of the day, with the mix of cowboys, liquor and women being the cause of most of the problems. One story, to make it short, involved the town marshal who lost his dance hall girl to a visiting cowboy. That created a problem that simmered for over a year and resulted in a gunfight between two lawmen and two cowboys. Both the marshal and his deputy were shot with the deputy eventually dying. The two cowboys, both wounded and fearing the town people, left town on foot and made their way to their cattle camp, Both took horses and fled, riding over 100 hours non stop to get away from the following posse. They thought they had killed both lawmen and were running for their life. One died as he reached his home and the other hid out for some time before having his brother negotiate his surrender. Because of the politics of the day, he was acquitted.

I think my favorite story is of the singing cowboy named Bill Cox who called himself Darling Dan. He made the rounds of the rodeos, participating in them as well as performing. He was also a welcome performer at churches and other social events. He met Maggie and to the consternation of her parents, they were married and they continued performing their songs in duet. Reportedly, they captured many hearts.

But Darling Dan liked to drink and one drunken night he began shooting at Maggie and actually shot of her ear lobe. Apologies ensued and things went well once again, until the next time. Drunk once more eye carefully watched Maggie who had her hair tied back. He thought she looked a little lopsided with the one ear shorter than the other. In his drunken logic, he decided to make them even and cut off the other ear to match. Needless to say, Maggie left for good, remarried and settled down in Hunnewell to a quieter life.

The opening of the Cherokee Outlet was the last high point in the life of Hunnewell. Hundreds gathered to make the run and when it was over Hunnewell was done as well.

We returned to South Haven and continued east on Highway 166 and jogged north to Geuda Springs. Geuda Springs gained a good deal of popularity in the late 1800s for its mineral water that was billed as a cure-all for just about any ailment.

The earliest report regarding the springs came from a Spaniard and his daughter living with the Cherokee near Bartlesville in 1857. According to his story, related to Jacob Klepper, a Dunkard minister, the Spaniard’s daughter, Mona Lona, was the intended of Grey Eagle, the best hunter in the group. Grey Eagle was gored by a really ticked off bull buffalo and lay at death’s door while the Mona stayed by his side praying the rosary. Grey Eagle was getting worse and it was decided to take him to the fountain of life, "Auawa Geuda" (healing waters) to get him well. The trip alone had to be rough, swinging between two horses on a litter for all those miles.

According to the Spaniard, Grey Eagle drank the waters for 20 days and was cured and wed Mona Lona at the springs. The various tribes gathered at the springs to heal the sick and it was a place of peace between all the tribes. The springs were common knowledge among the tribes who believed the water could cure nearly everything.

It was C.R. Mitchell, a lawyer from Indiana, who recognized the money making possibilities of the springs. He cleaned them up and made them more appealing and built a hotel and bath house and even started a newspaper. The latter was undoubtedly for the purpose of spreading the word about Geuda Springs. In fact, the advertising worked with people coming from around the nation and even from Europe. During the 1880s and 1890s the Springs boomed. In 1904 the town entered competition at the World’s Fair in St. Louis and their elixir won second place for its curative possibilities.

Fire took a toll on the town, destroying many of the hotels and bath houses. There was an effort to rebuild the springs in 1947, but the largest financier of the group died and with him the project as well. Today it’s difficult to find the springs and the lake they built is long gone. Today the town is pretty much off the beaten path with no major highway passing through. One of the churches has been converted to a private residence and what I assume was a school building was converted to a residence but seems abandoned. It was a great location with a great product that people believed in, but times changed. We’ve been to several of these so-called healing springs and while most people no longer believe, there is no shortage of people who do believe. And there’s no shortage of people to take their money.

Our next stop was a short drive to Arkansas City and the Cherokee Strip Land Rush Museum located at the south side of town. At the entrance there was an interesting counter that looked like it came from a bank. We were told that it actually came from a mercantile business. The first display was from World War II with photos from that era that showed what the soldiers went through in that war. It was impressive and at the same time sad, if that makes sense. Every time I see these displays I remember an old novel by Norman Mailer, The Naked and the Dead. I always thought it should be required reading for everyone, especially our politicians who seem to think war is glorious.

Under construction was a grass lodge reflecting the native Americans that first inhabited this land. Also on display was the different tools used by the Indians to perform their daily chores. They made use of everything, from bones to stones for their tools. It was a reminder that the movies gloss over, or forget entirely, the daily routines these people went through.

The big event for towns like Arkansas City was the opening of the Cherokee Strip. Thousands gathered all along the Kansas border awaiting the opening where the last of government land was up for grabs. The rush began at High Noon on April 22, 1889 and most estimates claim 50,000 people lined up to make the run to claim a quarter section of land out of the two million acres.

I always wondered why Oklahomans were called "Sooners." Evidently, some people entered the land prior to the official time and hid out, waiting for the beginning shot. They were able to pick the best spots and then claim them at the appropriate time. People called them Sooners and the name stuck.

On display is a small portable organ called the Bilborn Baby Organ that originally belonged to the Pilgrim Congregational Church. It was transported all over the area, bringing tunes wherever needed. One story claims Dr. DeLong and the organ stopped a brawl among angry men awaiting the opening shot to claim land. Supposedly, as the fighting broke out, DeLong began playing "Wonderful Words of Life" and the men decided to sing along rather than fight. Probably that was a good choice. This organ was made by Mason-Hamlin in New York but there were many like this. I remember going to the sunrise Easter service at Pawnee Rock in the 1950s and they played a similar organ so they were not uncommon.

The museum has a display of small figures showing the rush, with people in wagons, on horseback and running to claim their land. It was an interesting three dimensional display. Some of the wagons and even a sulky are on display at the museum. The sulky was interesting since there are no springs on the axles. Instead, the springs are on the seat, but I can’t imagine what it must have felt like going over rough ground. The sulky was made for smooth ground.

Indian artifacts are also a big part of the museum and the Indian dress on display was impressive. There was beadwork but mostly the dress was adorned with small sea shells. Moving on to the white folks, we spotted an alligator purse that was indeed unusual since it included the head and front feet of a small alligator. I suppose that was to stop people from asking if it was a real alligator purse.

There was a poster that caught our interest about the Miller Brother 101 Ranch Wild West Show. The poster featured Tom Mix and various other folks. We checked it out and found that the 101 Ranch was started in northern Oklahoma in 1893 by Colonel George Miller. They also had the wild west show and toured the U.S. and the world between 1905 and 1931. Movies were made there and rich and famous visited the 110,000 acre ranch.

Eventually, the depression drove the ranch into bankruptcy after nearly half a century of operation and it was sold off piece by piece.

In their firearms room a couple of shotguns were indeed exceptional. One was an American brand 1891 single shot 8 gauge shotgun. I don’t know if they even make the 8 gauge any longer. I can’t imagine the hurt that 8 gauge would do to one’s shoulder. They used a lot of these as well as permanently mounted larger shotguns in commercial hunting of ducks and geese. That practice has long been outlawed.

I was also impressed with the weather vane that sat atop the Santa Fe Depot and is the only thing remaining of that structure. It is about ten feet long and has a rail car as part of the device. I suspect there were more cars and an engine there originally. The size of the depot in the photo makes the weather vane seem miniscule.

We picked up a brochure for a walking tour of downtown Arkansas City as we left the museum and decided to take the tour. It was indeed interesting and they did a nice job on the brochure except it should have included what the buildings were originally built for.

The tour started at Summit and Chestnut so that’s where we parked the car and began our walk. Just south of that corner is a huge mural showing a couple of Indians on horseback watching as the land rushers moved in to forever change their world. And indeed, it did.

Across the street, on the east side south of Chestnut, is the huge five story Osage Hotel. Built from 1918 to 1920 the hotel was paid for by community contributions. It seems the town folk decided they needed a fine hotel for the town and offered up their cash to make it happen. Today, it is the Osage Apartments and still fully utilized.

Across the street to the south is another large two story building, built in 1920, that is also well maintained that appears to utilize the second floor today. Housed in that building is Bryant Hardware and Gambino’s Pizza. Bryant Hardware started when the building was constructed in 1920. The Buford Theatre, built in 1923, is currently undergoing renovation with a grant from the Kansas Heritage Trust Fund. It’s interesting that the theatre building has a business located at each side of the theatre entrance. I suppose the builder wanted to make sure he had some rental income as well as movie revenue. Besides, why waste space streetside which was much more valuable than simply extending the theatre further toward the ally for additional space. Makes sense to me.

Home National Bank was founded in 1888 and the massive pillared building of today was constructed in 1918 as a replacement for the original. At the early part of the 20th century banks had taken on the role of community leader and their solid image was projected in their buildings. They oozed with confidence and reliability with these massive buildings.

In the next block is another building that is relatively new compared to most of the other buildings. Built in 1931 it was called the Howard Block and is half a block in length. Very possibly there was a bank at the Summit entrance and there were several businesses located at the rear of the building as well as offices on the second and third floor. It was unclear whether or not the top two floors are currently being used, but there are still windows there. H&R Block has the front office and the Marine recruiting station is located at the rear of the building.

Next to the Howard building is the Beckman building that has an unusual roof line and building front. Like the Howard building, this one is rather late, built in 1930 in what they call the French Eclectic style. Certainly it raised more than a few eyebrows when first completed. The Mansard roof even has slate tile for the roofing material. Even in 1930, slate was an expensive roofing material, but it lasts a long time.

Sally’s Palace is in a three-story 1920 stone building that was constructed in 1920 and is now a teen center. According to the information we had the building once sported bay windows and more moldings. Today, the building is plainer with the bay windows probably removed for safety and to reduce maintenance costs. It appears there were three sets of offices or apartments on the second and third floors with the narrow windows most likely opening into the hallways.

While there are many other old buildings, there are some that are really outstanding. The Summit Block is truly impressive. It’s a huge building with about 30 windows on the second floor and all are painted with different colorful scenes. At ground level there are six businesses operating out of that building. You have to give credit to the owner of the building for going to that expense. I would suspect that even the roof doesn’t leak. So many multi-story buildings have leaky roofs and there’s no money to fix them so the second floor serves to catch most of the leaks. And it’s a time bomb for many of our marvelous old buildings.

For shear size and modern appearance, the First Intermark building could have been built in the last few years. However, it was built in 1917 and was a complete break with the past both in style and construction. They used reinforced concrete covered with stucco and gone were the decorative touches of the late 1880s through the early part of the 20th century. The simplicity and utilitarianism of the future is reflected in this building.

In the 200 block of South Summit is a good example of a great building that apparently has become too expensive to maintain. The former Security National Bank, built in 1880, now has nearly all the windows closed off and houses a tax service business.

Just up the street is the Union State Bank building that was constructed in 1883 with a golden dome. The building has been painted beige with green trim and the bright golden dome. While it wasn’t built for the bank, the Union State Bank has occupied the building since 1898. The building at the north was a 1911 addition to the bank. As we were leaving Arkansas City we noticed a smaller drive through bank facility that also featured the golden dome. There was no mistaking that this was a Union Bank facility. They have not only maintained an historical building but made the dome their trademark.

We walked down the block to the west to check out the large five-story building that was evidently built as a commercial building with offices and possibly apartments. The plaque at the front notes that the building also contained the city offices in 1929. It appears to have apartments there today as well as offices on the ground floor. Next to it is what appears to have been a movie theatre at one time. As we were looking around we met Ms Taylor from the Law Office of Tamara Niles, just across from the theatre. She couldn’t remember it ever being a theatre but had heard that it once was. Anyway, she invited us into their office that once served as the Cornish Studio, a photographers shop. It was actually built as a photo studio, which is rare. Photographers, generally, didn’t build their own buildings since they generally traveled around the country taking photos in those early days. This building dates to 1924 and is definitely of the Spanish influence, inside and out. At the front are iron window grills at the top and interesting arches at the entry. Inside, the arch motif continues everywhere, from the windows to the second story entry and three small windows to match.

Ms Taylor took us on a tour of the building and upstairs was the actual studio. For the photographer’s convenience there was a dumbwaiter that went to the basement where the darkroom was maintained. Photographers of that time would have had a lab assistant and the negatives would have been sent down to be processed while the next group would be ushered in for their session. In those days there were no roll film and film holders, with some exceptions, held two sheets of film. The holders were expensive so the film had to be emptied from them quickly and sent back to the photographer. Thus, the dumbwaiter.

The building, inside and out, is perfectly maintained and the transoms have stained glass with the center proclaiming this to be Cornish Studio. And the window display area, while perfect for display of photos, is a great place to grow plants. Even the desk lights are designed to fit in with the overall design of the building. We might have been able to check out the basement but with the recent rains the basement was flooded. Still, it was an impressive tour.

Just to the east of the Matlack building, on the side of the Farmers Insurance building, we found an interesting mural that was a line drawing of an old stone arch bridge. That was an interesting way to do a mural.

Our walk about town continued and we were impressed with the former High School building. It is fantastic and rivals the Topeka High School. The building boasts some interesting gargoyles at the entrance and above the first story windows. Built in 1890 the building now serves as a residence hall for the college. Back when the college was first started, classes were held in the basement of this building. The building today has faint pinkish cast to some of the stone and gray/brown for the trim. We saw a photo of the building after it was cleaned and the pink really stood out. Weather has made the colors less outstanding.

Just to the west is the Pilgrim Congregational Church that was built the following year, in 1891, and in the same style. Like the school, it is a nice condition and still used today.

To the south a block or two is the 1907 Carnegie Library that remains as it was when built except for the addition of the class entry doors. As we walked back to the car we saw an interesting spiral fire escape stair on the back side of the current City Hall. It sure beat having a straight stairway. The front of the building it’s equal to many courthouses in massive appearance.

After walking around town for several hours we returned to the car to cool off and check out some of the other features of the town. One really interesting building was the First Church of Christ Scientists. The dome was unusual and fit perfectly with the massive looking structure. I have to confess a limited knowledge about their philosophy. We had an aunt who was a Christian Scientist, but she never talked about it much. We attended her funeral long ago and it was interesting. We had to drive a couple of hundred miles and when we arrived we didn’t have much time, arriving at the funeral with minutes to spare. As we listened we weren’t sure we were at the right place. All they talked about was Mary Baker Eddy who founded the church in 1879. We kept looking at each other wondering if we really in the right place. We were, but they never mentioned my aunt’s name. That was an interesting experience and probably atypical. Anyway, we did learn something that day. Evidently, Eddy became convinced that illness could be healed through an awakened and clearer perception of God and rejection of drugs, hygiene and medicine based on the concept that Jesus used none of these in his healing.