My Dad began working for OTASCO in 1955 in Okmulgee Ok & worked for the Company until around 1985 pushed into retirement by ‘new blood ownership’ who then shut the entire Company down in Bankruptcy in 1988 such a shame Oklahoma Tire and Supply Company had its origins nearly 75 years when the Sanditin Brothers created this storied franchise … my Mother and Dad raised a family of 3 boys from OTASCO
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Welcome to the site.
Many memories of the OTASCO at the junction of US 81HWY and State HWY 33 in Kingfisher.
thanks … it was young guns that took over the organization ‘Oklahoma Tire And Supply’ they began bleeding the company of $ and toss in the advent of Wal Mart and many of our stories franchises organizations were sent up in a cloud of smoke … you can run a list of who’s who a mile long of your long standing traditional and beloved places known brands that existed prior to the mid ‘80’s that nosedived subsequent to Sam Walton’s world assualt on small towns across this country it’s a sad commentary isn’t it … for me I’ll take that double stacked cheese burger steak fries and chocolate malt form Woolworths any day of any week all day long … I guess my age is showing itself being 65 puts a whole new perspective on things for sure it’s been said ‘although we’ve advanced technologically speaking… we lack in the humanities…’ I believe this to be true thanks for your indulgence of my musings and rumblings
respectfully with warmest regards
thanks … it was young guns that took over the organization ‘Oklahoma Tire And Supply’ they began bleeding the company of $ and toss in the advent of Wal Mart and many of our stories franchises organizations were sent up in a cloud of smoke … you can run a list of who’s who a mile long of your long standing traditional and beloved places known brands that existed prior to the mid ‘80’s that nosedived subsequent to Sam Walton’s world assualt on small towns across this country it’s a sad commentary isn’t it … for me I’ll take that double stacked cheese burger steak fries and chocolate malt form Woolworths any day of any week all day long … I guess my age is showing itself being 65 puts a whole new perspective on things for sure it’s been said ‘although we’ve advanced technologically speaking… we lack in the humanities…’ I believe this to be true thanks for your indulgence of my musings and rumblings
respectfully with warmest regards
this is a fantastic story… my dad loved to quail hunt he grew up out in the sticks just SW of Bristow Oklahoma … when we were youngsters my Dad and Grandad and my uncle they’d all go quail hunting on Thanksgiving morning … post oaks black jack’s didn’t slow them down much and they’d hunt sometimes until dark and they’d tell of the fire out of the shotgun’s muzzle just as the sun was setting … and I have my Dad’s favorite quail gun in my gun cabinet a 20 gauge Ithaca Featherweight my Dad learned at a young age how to handle a firearm and could knock down 3 birds on a covey rise … those were the good ol’ days … when my Dad was transferred from El Reno OTASCO to Ottawa Ks OTASCO his quail hunting became a paradise & a dream you see we don’t have post oaks and black Jack trees here but we do have lots of great cover by way of draws which are lined with briars and cedar trees and lots of thickets whether berries or just other types of cover … tall grasses ravines covered with thickets briars brambles and such you can post up on either side and let your bird dog typically Brittany or Pointer’s for this area of the country … we also have hedge rows … Osage Orange trees and the understory is covered with thickets the quail love this type of cover and we have plenty of bean fields corn fields expanses of crop fields creeks springs so everything quail need … food shelter & water … we used to have more quail but for some reason the population has dropped over the last 30 years or so … it once wasn’t uncommon to hit your limit go home with your game bag full of birds … I’ll digress for now I’m getting a bit weary trying to use this small keypad on my cell phone but yeah I was born an Okie in Sapulpa then moved to El Reno and then to Kansas thanks for sharing your experience with your shotgun and how it stood up to hardship dunked in the creek or was it pond and it still shot holy smokes and you never went anywhere without it … OTASCO had a good assortment of firearms I’d my memory serves me right and ammo as well … have yourself a very safe and pleasant night wherever you might be
I totally understand I mowed lawns at one point in time made me some much needed money at that time … nice you purchased your 1st firearm with lawn mowing $ that’s a great story in and of itself for sure buddy Ponca City… I was born in Creek County Oklahoma Sapulpa my older brother was born in Okmulgee my younger brother was born in El Reno Oklahoma my Dad began working with OTASCO in about 1954-55 started in Okmulgee he was then moved over to Sapulpa and then was transferred to El Reno Okla from there and I had gone from K-2nd grade my Dad was once again transferred to Ottawa Kansas …. I had always wondered what it would have been like to have grown up in say El Reno Oklahoma what would my life have looked like there … unsure I still remember a few kids from El Reno Oklahoma from my early childhood Kindergarten through 2nd grade … who knows
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While Walmart certainly bears a significant amount of blame for the damage they did to small town businesses and mom & pop businesses, some of the blame rests on the business owners as well.
In my little town the stores on main street were open 9-5 M-F and 9-Noon on Saturday, feed store, lumber yard and the auto parts store usually opened earlier though.
A lot of the people that lived in the town were no longer farmers and ranchers and worked in neighboring towns at 8-5/9-5 jobs. By the time they got back to town at the end of the day the businesses were closed. If the business owners had shifted their hours to stay open till 6:00 or 6:30 pm or extended their hours on Saturday they could have gotten some of that business back. Might not have been enough to save them but failing to even try to adapt to a changing world is a failure out of the gate.
In my little town the stores on main street were open 9-5 M-F and 9-Noon on Saturday, feed store, lumber yard and the auto parts store usually opened earlier though.
A lot of the people that lived in the town were no longer farmers and ranchers and worked in neighboring towns at 8-5/9-5 jobs. By the time they got back to town at the end of the day the businesses were closed. If the business owners had shifted their hours to stay open till 6:00 or 6:30 pm or extended their hours on Saturday they could have gotten some of that business back. Might not have been enough to save them but failing to even try to adapt to a changing world is a failure out of the gate.
"and I have my Dad’s favorite quail gun in my gun cabinet a 20 gauge Ithaca Featherweight my Dad learned at a young age how to handle a firearm and could knock down 3 birds on a covey rise"
May I have permission to use this quote here in the forum??? Bet he was left handed.
ithaca-37-20-ga-feather-light-57-year-old-gem-price-drop-550.359550
May I have permission to use this quote here in the forum??? Bet he was left handed.
ithaca-37-20-ga-feather-light-57-year-old-gem-price-drop-550.359550
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Dennis hopefully I am seeing your name right … you mentioned being able to carry your gun into your bank was it & that you were able to buy ammo at a very early age I think I can relate to your experience as a young kid my dad would hand me some change and send me to the local grocery store Stevenson’s it was called & have me buy him cigarettes… I would head on over to the grocery store and they in fact would sell me a pack of smokes for my Dad now you tell me how that would fly in today’s world … well we both know the answer to this one … it wouldn’t fly wow how much has changed so much has changed and a lot of innocence has been ruined … I never thought a thing about what my Dad was asking me to do for him just never would have entered my young mind in those days … it was a ‘safer world’ then small town Oklahoma no one even at the grocery store thought anything about selling a kid a package of cigarettes for his Dad they knew I wasn’t buying cigarettes for myself because they knew my family and my parents very well there
Well I’ve typed quite a bit today so have yourself a good night wherever you might find yourself
Otasco was stop #2 (grandma was 1st) for my dad nearly every Saturday morning when we weren't hunting or fishing. He had two buddies who worked in the shop. I'd sit on an old bus seat and drink a pop one of them had given me, if dad would let me have it. The two of them were brothers and worked there together for many years. When it closed, they opened their own auto repair shop and continued working together.
My brother and I would ride our bikes to otasco and buy cva kits with our lawn mowing money. We’d take them home and build during the week. The next weekend, we were out shooting our new guns. Good times
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