Vista, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma  
VISTA
"Ghost" town of 
Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma

Location: 4 miles east and 1 mile south of present-day Asher, OK
Existence:  December 22, 1900 -December 14, 1905
Name: Spanish word meaning "view."

Joel Edward "Ed" Cunningham had the first store and was the first postmaster.  A second store was started by Rufus L. "Rufe" Howard.  He was a well known public auctioneer and wore a red, stubby mustache.  Most unusual in all the annals of the county's history, was the fact Rufe Howard rode a trained ostrich to all his auctions and put on demonstrations of a race between him riding his ostrich against all horses and riders.  Rufe Howard store was the last to close in 1916.  Besides these two stores the town at one time had a cotton gin and grist mill, a drug store, a blacksmith shop, and late in it's history, a 44 box telephone exchange.  Henry Hudson lived south of town, and he later owned the ostrich that Rufe Howard rode.  Bill Manley owned a barber shop and Frank Morris had the first cotton gin, a Murry Gin, sawmill and grist mil.. Alice Morris/Morrison and Mrs. Ed Jones had a millinery shop in town for several years.

Other citizens were: 
Joe Quiz & Joe Tenwas, Indian allottees living near town 
J.T. Deister
J.W. "Billy" Lehman 
Billy Smith
Augusta Ann Hardin
Joseph Epteska
Henry Hudson
"Mas-we"
Peter Curley
Charles W. Villines
A.J. Morrison
Wood Myers,
Thomas J. White
S. Husband
Joseph Negahnquet
Laura Simmons
Oliver K. Posey
George W. Hardin
James Yott
P. W. Cunningham



 

Do you have photos of Vista, OK  that you would be willing to share so we can post them here?
Please email the Pott County Genealogy Club at 
[email protected]
We would love to have pictures of each post office; schools; churches, people/families.

 
Source: "POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY OKLAHOMA HISTORY" compiled and edited by Pottawatomie County History Book Committee; published by Country Lane Press, Claremore, OK, 1987.

 
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