|
ERICK,
OKLAHOMA
Hometown
of Roger Miller
Beckham County
35° 12' 55" N, 99° 51' 59" W (35.215278, -99.866389)
State Hwy 30 I - 40 (formerly Route
66)
15 miles W of Sayre, Oklahoma, the county seat
6 miles E of the Texas State Line
23 miles E of Shamrock,
Texas
134 miles W of Oklahoma
City
ZIP code 73645
Area code 580
Population: 1,000 (2020)
1,052 (2010) 1,023 (2000) 1,083 (1990) |
Erick,
Oklahoma has a name that begs for musical accompaniment. Look at what
The Music Man did for Gary, Indiana.
We include Erick here in Texas Escapes since it is so close to Texas
you could see the state line from there - if someone would hold it
up. It's also happens to be in an area that used to be part of Texas
- one of Texas' forgotten "ghost counties" that were authorized but
not organized. |
Roger
Miller and Sheb Wooley
Erick was the
boyhood home of Roger
Miller who was (technically) born in Fort
Worth - and served briefly as a fireman in Abilene.
Sheb Wooley, related to Roger Miller by marriage, is also from Erick
and the town today has an intersection of Sheb Wooley Blvd and Roger
Miller Road.
Roger used Texas as a source for his first guitar - borrowing it from
a pawn shop while the place was closed. This incident led to Roger's
stint in the military in the early 1950s. |
Famous
Visitors That Never Arrived
Erick had been the destination of Bonnie
and Clyde in 1933 when they took their "Red
River Plunge" - an incident that warranted a Texas historical
marker.
En route to meet his brother Buck, Clyde was going 70 mph at night
when the pavement abruptly stopped. The car, however, didn't and Bonnie
was pinned upside-down in the burning wreckage.
She barely survived the severe burns on her leg and face. It was actually
just borrowed time, since five weeks later she and Clyde were killed
in Louisiana. |
Roger
Miller Museum
Grand Opening October
23, 2004 to coincide with their “2nd Annual Roger Miller Festival”.
Hours - Wed. - Sat. 10 am - 5 pm, and Sun. 1:00 to 5:00 pm.
(Groups and tours by special appointment)
Admission will be $3.00 for Adults 18 - 61,
$2.00 for Senior Citizens 62 & over and Students 12 to 17.
Children 11 and under will be admitted free.
Call 580-526-3833 for membership inquiry and hours.
Chamber of Commerce: 580-526-3505
© John Troesser
|
Related
Stories
The
Great Greyhound Hijacking on Route 66 in 1931 by Mike Cox
"... In the early 1930s commercial bus travel could hardly
be considered luxurious, but a Yellow Coach Co.-built bus beat the
horse-drawn stagecoaches of the previous generation, an era many
Texans still remembered. The bus had left Tulsa on the night of
June 6, 1931 bound for El
Paso. The last stop had been Erick, Oklahoma where two men boarded
with tickets to the Panhandle town of Shamrock,
Texas.
About 2:30 a.m. on June 7, driver W.E. Trammel felt something hard
poke him in the back-the barrel of a pistol..."
Reas full story
|
Erick Oklahoma
Forum
Subject:
Erick Oklahoma
I was also raised in Erick and knew Roger Miller, Jerry Reed, &
Sheb Wooley. I sat in on some playing by Roger at the original Cal"s
Cafe one night in Lefores. I lived in Borger
when it was a REAL rough town. I attended several street dances
in Erick. In those days we had great BBQ's on the Fourth of July,
St.Patrick's Day, etc. I recall one street dance featuring Mac Wiseman.
As usual the performers used a flatbed trailer for a stage. I remember
spending several evenings in the city park where the swimming pool
was. My Grandparents (Ed & Ottie Alexander) lived about a block
from there.
Any old-timers in [or from] Erick reading this are invited to e-mail
me. By old timers I mean 70+ years of age. - Homer A., brassstetson@webtv.net,
May 09, 2006
Subject:
Erick
I am proud to say that I had a part in the awesome history of Erick,
Oklahoma. My dad Bobby D. Pierce, his brothers J.L Pierce, and Dale
Pierce were all raised in Erick where they subsequently graduated.
My dads first job was at Cal's and as a child I grew up loving the
town eating at Cal's. The Martins Ropha Wayne owned the Texaco gas
station and all the kids grew up together, my dad and his brothers
with the older generation and me, my cousins and brother with their
children. We went yearly to visit and for the reunions. As I grew
up I met the legendary Roger Miller and at one concert in Tulsa
he introduced my dad and his brother, Dale as those boys from his
"hometown." My grandpa Claude Cotter had a carpentry shop there
on main street and I used to go shopping at the Dixie. We attended
the street dances when were there as well. I miss the town and plan
on taking my daughter to walk the now deserted streets that both
my dad and myself grew up loving. - Tammy Lynn Pierce, October
16, 2005
|
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
|
|
HOME
