When it comes to March holidays, you are probably familiar with St. Patrick’s Day. But have you ever heard of National Old Stuff Day? Very little is known about the origins of Old Stuff Day, but the general idea is that it is a time to do several things: smile at beloved old knick-knacks and cherished heirlooms, clear out the clutter (we’ve all got some), and maybe try something new. In honor of this fun little holiday, explore some unique Enid institutions that do indeed have old stuff—lots of it!—while at the same time offering some truly unique perspectives on looking forward.
LOOKING BACK
Trains are an integral part of the rhythm of life in Enid, and it wouldn’t feel right to have it any other way. Everyone gets caught by a train from time to time, but generally speaking, nobody minds. And at the Railroad Museum of Oklahoma, they really don’t mind. In fact, trains are a way of life for this fun-loving group.
Tucked away on a quiet stretch of Washington Street, the Railroad Museum is a rather considerable complex. There is the museum itself; it’s housed in the historic Sante Fe Railroad Freight Depot, which was built around 1924. There is a second, modern building, known as “Round Top,” which houses the Cherokee Strip Model Railroad Association and a dazzling array of model rail layouts. Alongside the buildings are the actual trains, which includes nine cabooses, 13 freight cars, a dining/lounge car, and a 50-ton diesel switch engine. However, the grande dame of them all is easily the Frisco #1519 steam engine. “It’s celebrating its 100th birthday this year,” said museum board director Mike Marshall. In honor of the Frisco’s age, the museum hopes to undertake an extreme makeover, with the goal of letting her shine once again. Mike said their plans include raising funds to “cosmetically restore it, new paint and everything, put it under cover, and put a new ADA-compliant ramp up to the cab.”
Tackling a big job is nothing new for this museum. In fact, when they moved into the depot, the building had been sitting unused for about 20 years. Most of the windows were broken, and “there were pigeons in here. It was just a mess,” according to Marshall. Powered by volunteer labor and a whole lot of love, the depot was painstakingly restored, and the museum opened to the public in April of 1989. The hard work paid off, when in 2015, the depot joined just a handful of other Enid buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.
When you step into the museum, several things stick out. First, there is the wall-to-wall train paraphernalia. Much of the collection was assembled by the late Frank “Watermelon” Campbell, who worked for the Frisco and Sante Fe Railroad for over 40 years, and who, according to Marshall, “would load up his pickup with watermelons and park it in the yard and just let any of the railroaders take one. So that nickname stuck!” The collection includes the expected signs, lights, and tools of the trade, such as ticket punches. But there is also a delightful collection of china from the dining cars of old. Over 1,000 pieces of china are on display and are believed to represent every line that came into Enid, which in its prime was a major rail hub for Oklahoma.
From the Railroad Museum, a four-minute drive brings you to the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center. A star in Enid’s cultural firmament, the Center is situated on a hill overlooking the Government Springs city park. With a dozen full and part-time staff members and “a ton of volunteers,” according to Director Christopher “CJ” Budy, the Center offers a variety of educational and just plain fun experiences for children and adults alike.
Like most museums, the Center offers several permanent exhibits and usually hosts one visiting (or “travelling”) exhibit. Inside the Ward & Meibergen Exhibition Hall, the Center tells the story of northwestern Oklahoma. Visitors can learn about the early Cherokee inhabitants and their relocation, the Land Run of 1893, and the experiences of early settlers. There is even a replica sod house. The region’s historical development oil industry and early life in Enid is also covered in depth.
In Mabee Foundation Gallery, visitors can enjoy special art shows and traveling exhibits. Currently, the gallery is housing The Fourth Grade Project by the late Judy Gelles (1944–2020). Over the course of a decade, Gelles interviewed and photographed over 300 fourth-grade students from every conceivable background. Featuring children from across the globe and the United States, the exhibit shares their answers to the same three questions: Who do you live with? What do you wish for? What do you worry about? The stories of these children are all different yet share certain fundamental threads of the human condition and a multitude of social issues. The Center will host The Fourth Grade Project through Sunday, March 16, in the Mabee Foundation Gallery of the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center.
The Center is also home to substantial research holdings. “We have our archives, photographs, manuscripts, books, and 3D objects. We have the Phillips collection, a collection from the Sons and Daughters of the Cherokee Strip, and we’ve collected quite a few oral histories over the last few years,” said Budy. “We also have Ancestry where you can look up family history, and we have record books of families that were in the Land Run.”
Just a few steps from the Center doors, history literally comes alive in Humphrey Heritage Village. A charming assortment of genuine 19th century buildings, the Village “was donated to us in 1993,” according to Budy. It features a church, one room schoolhouse, and the only remaining land office from the Land Run. The most recent acquisition is the Sneed Cabin, which was dedicated in May of 2024. Originally from Cleveland, Oklahoma, and built in 1900, Budy said that “it was given to us, and we were able to take it down like a toy log cabin and put it back up.” Some repair work was necessary, but the end result was worth it. “The building itself is really cool because it gives us an opportunity to show what early, early settlers would have lived in, especially on the eastern side of the state.”
Even more special is the fact that many members of the Sneed family were able to attend the dedication. “We had close to 40 grandchildren, nieces, nephews, great-grandchildren. We had a few who actually remembered when they were kids running around the cabin. We got some oral histories from them as well, and some old photos. They’re super, super pleased with how we have it set up.”
Through a variety of regular events, Budy and the team strives to share Enid’s story with the community. For example, there’s History Alive!, the Center’s own living history program. On the first and third Saturday of every month, the Village comes to life with a dedicated cadre of historical reenactors who share what it was like to live in the late 19th century. Children can see what it was like to learn in the one-room schoolhouse, how the Land Run worked, and domestic tasks such as grinding corn or baking bread. There is also the annual Family Farm Day and Christmas in the Village, both of which have proven very popular.
Another program that has proven successful is Museum After Dark, a series of events that take place in the evening, allowing working adults the chance to attend. “It’s been really fun to do because we get a lot of good feedback from that,” said Budy. “Our biggest ones are probably our two upcoming ones, Liquid History and our Date Night.”
They are even planning a kid-friendly Museum After Dark event. According to Budy, there have been multiple requests for such an evening, so the Center is going to deliver. It is planned for later this spring, and the theme is a play on The Fourth Grade Project exhibit. “It’s Vintage Kids, and we’re doing the 1930s. It’ll be for kids 12 and under,” Budy explained. “They’ll get to come in with their parents and experience games and activities like hopscotch, marbles, and we’ll finish the night with a little mock radio show.” They plan to have a script for the kids to read out, just like the radio shows that our great-grandparents might have listened to.
LOOKING FORWARD
From the Land Run era to the richness of our railroad legacy, there is plenty of “old stuff” for Enid residents to explore. However, for anyone who is interested or even mildly curious, there are also plenty of opportunities to look ahead and learn more about one’s own family legacy.
For those who are from the area, the Enid Public Library has a treasure trove of materials awaiting your perusal. Not only does the library offer access to online databases like Ancestry and Heritage Quest, but they also have significant print holdings. “We have county histories, some military census…the main Enid newspapers going all the way back to around 1893,” said Sarah Cariker, reference librarian and self-described “jack of all trades.” The collection also includes unique resources such as records for Tri-State and old Enid city directories. “People don’t realize how nosy the old city directories were. They would tell you where people worked!”
In addition to the library, the folks at Garfield County Genealogists are an outstanding resource. For anyone who would like help getting started, President Jody Turner and her friends at the club are always happy to lend a hand. They will often suggest that people start with the Enid Public Library or the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center, but even if you are not from Oklahoma, they can still help you. Because the simple truth is that regardless of location, wading into old census forms and trying to understand old records can be intimidating. “We’re more than happy to give people ideas of how to get started,” Jody said.
Jody came to genealogy later in life. Her father was from Enid, but he was career Navy, so the family moved many times when Jody was growing up. Jody herself moved to Enid as an adult, but it wasn’t until a Navy reunion commemorating the 50th anniversary of the end of the Korean war took place that Jody became interested in genealogy. Her father had long since passed, and Jody found herself thinking, “I want to show them what his life has been…I started volunteering at the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center, and you can research Ancestry for free.”
As it turned out, Jody ended up having deep roots in Oklahoma. She said, “I’m related to families that did the 1893 run, and I have a blood relative that’s on the 1890 territorial census.” If you are from Oklahoma, there are a lot of resources out there to help you research your family, and that includes Native American genealogy, as well. “It’s kind of a combination of knowing history and feeling like a forensic detective,” said Jody.
LOOKING AND APPRECIATING
Let’s face it, National Old Stuff Day is not a major holiday. It’s not on the novelty calendars you can buy at Walmart, and truth be told, it is not on the radar of most people. Nevertheless, in the Enid community, there is a quiet, steady commitment to appreciating the past. Within these very pages, the Enid Monthly has shown how the community at large actively supports our own “old stuff” through the American Military Heritage Museum, the Lady Liberty A-26 Invader, Simpson’s Old Time Museum, and more. And through its enthusiastic embrace of events at the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center and the many programs offered by the Enid Public Library (seriously, there were too many to list in this article), Enid residents continue to show their appreciation of the cultural heritage of which we are all a splendid, multifaceted part.
