Family Stories-Garrison Standridge
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Only in Oklahoma--Fannie Darrow's Memories.
Fannie Garrison Darrow lived near Hubert, Ok. when interviewed by Dub West. This article was printed in a Newspaper in Ok.
Fannie Garrison Darrow was born in 1898 near Starville, Indian Territory, the forerunner of Porum. Her father, Pete Garrison, worked for Frost Starr. She is loud in her praise of Frost Starr and says, "No one was ever better."
Of course, that area was well-known for two other members of the Starr family--Belle, the female outlaw, and Tom, who is reported to have killed a score of individuals who he suspected of having taken part in the assasination of his father, Sam Starr.
While he worked for Frost Starr, Garrison operated a ferryboat across the Canadian River. On the occasion of a flood, Mr. Garrison ferried more than 200 persons across the river to the safety of Starr's barn. To indicate the character of the Starrs, they had three beeves and four hogs butchered to feed the refugess and sent for a wagonload of flour and another load of meal and coffee to supplement their food.
A bad epidemic of spinal minigitis hit the area, which resulted in scores of deaths. The burial of the dead was hindered by the frozen ground, which was reputed to have reached 18 inches.
The Doctor said he did not know what to do for the disease but recommended putting a drop of camphor on the patient's tongue three times a day and burning sulphur in the stove.
The epidemic caused them to leave that area of the country. They spent a few months in the southern part of Indian Territory, after which Mr. Garrison became the caretaker of Vann's Lake, located between Muskogee and Wagoner.
Vann's Lake was one of the most important vacation spots of the area. Persons came there from far and wide to fish and relax.
Mrs. Darrow remembers 1903 as one of the worst winters on record. She recalls taht there was ice as early as Oct. 22. She says that during the middle of the winter, her father (Pete Garrison) hauled wagons with sideboards loaded with corn across the Arkansas River on the ice. Mr. Garrison bored holes in the ice with an auger, and since the thinnest ice was 8 inches thick he decided it was safe.
Mr. Garrison and George Morgan, the father of Charlie Morgan, blacktopped the first road between Muskogee and Warner in 1917. It was the first blacktopped road in the area.
Another interesting job Mr. Garrison pursued was to haul fuel oil to various establishments, including Bacone College. he obtained the oil from Pure Oil Refinery near the fairgrounds.
Note by Betty: Peter Thomas Garrison was the son of Jonathan Lewis Garrison and Mary Elizabeth Tannahill. He married Sarah Standridge who was the daughter of Lemuel and Margaret Blevins Standridge. Sarah was a triplett.
Sarah's Death Certificate
