Jacqueline’s Jaunts

We slept in and did a few chores this morning: today’s agenda, another cemetery, Holdenville Cemetery. The drive was about an hour and fifteen minutes from our RV park in Sulphur. My Grandma Griffin’s older brother and sister-in-law are buried here, Herbert and Ethel Landrum. I know most of the people I have visited are on Find A Grave, but I want the photos I use to be mine and to include the GPS coordinates.  This is a large cemetery for such a small town, and it is beautifully maintained. We found their gravesites right away, thanks to the information provided by the Find A Grave source person. They included a map and the plot information. After the cemetery, we drove through what remains of Holdenville today, which is not much. It’s so sad to see all these old towns boarded up and deserted. To think they were once bustling with activity.  Since we would be going by Stonewall on our way back, I wanted to stop at Highland Cemetery one more time and talk to my Great Gran...

Today, we planned to hit the Chickasaw National Recreation Area to see the museum and get my passport stamps and stickers. The park consists of 10,000 acres. Directions to the visitor center took us into town. The visitor center is right outside the park entrance. When we arrived, we saw that a large artisan's festival was underway. The parking gods shone on us, and we found a spot right across the street. The visitor center features a small museum, and I was able to get my passport stamped; however, no stickers were available. One of the salespeople told me to go to the Travertine Nature Center inside the park, and they have stickers.  We decided to wander through the festival. The artists were mainly American Indians. All the art, jewelry, materials, baskets, and mosaics were so colorful and beautiful. We watched a few tribes perform dances, which I always love. The tribal clothing was amazing; the colors so vibrant. After exploring all the booths, we found the food truck ar...

Genealogy Fireworks in Stonewall: Whispers, Surprises, and a Happy Dance Most genealogy days feel routine, like flipping through old pages. But every now and then, you hit the jackpot — fireworks go off, your heart races, and the ancestors practically shout, “Pay attention!” That’s exactly what happened to me in Stonewall. From the moment we pulled out of the Arbuckle RV Resort — just a 30-minute drive away — I had no clue the day would end with me doing a full-on genealogy happy dance. Everything felt wet and balmy due to last night’s crazy thunderstorm. However, late spring still lingers, and the green grasses along the highway glistened from the rain the night before.  Once we arrived in Stonewall, we parked on Main Street. Barry went into a store to see if they had a few supplies we needed. The row of old buildings we parked in front of included the store. I just wanted to walk the street and take it all in. Knowing my Griffin grandparents, Bertha and R. D., Uncle Richard, Uncl...