One of the biggest advancements in firefighting equipment was the motorized Fire Pumper. The 1926 Seagrave Pumper purchased and used by the City of Wichita Falls. It was used in many of the devastating fires including the Antlers Hotel Fire of 1929 and the Texan Hotel Fire of 1942. Wichita Falls Fire and Police Museum…
The Wichita Falls Fire Department has made significant advancements through the years in firefighting apparatus. In the 1800s, firefighters would pass metal buckets to each other to put out a fire. Many of the buckets had conical bottoms to stop them from being stolen or borrowed.
Branding iron heater designed and built by the Kelton Blacksmith Shop in the 1940s to accompany the Branding Table as an improvement in the safety during cattle branding and used a new fuel (propane) instead of an open fire which also cut down on the number of cowboys needed. Clay County 1890 Jail Museum 116…
The Staggs Calf Branding Table designed by Brad Stagg and produced by the Kelton Blacksmith Shop in Clay County in the early 1940s. The need created by Second World War when many men were called into service. The table allowed two cowboys to “work” their calves which would have taken 5 to 6 men to…
This cotton string crochet dress was made by Ena Koethe from Southern Clay County in the 1930s. In rural Texas, the Depression was very different than in the larger cities. Goods for sale were very limited. Mrs. Koethe began saving the cotton string that tied up goods traded for at the Mercantile locally or brought…
The drilling bit is at the heart of any oil boom. Burkburnett’s oil boom would change the oilfield bit, and the oilfield forever. A new type of drill bit – rotary bit was invented by Howard Hughes Sr. This technology, used in Burkburnett, made it possible to reach oil deep underground. Burkburnett Historical Society 104…
This unusual looking fishtail drill bit to break through a variety of Texas conditions from quicksand to solid rock. Burkburnett Historical Society 104 W 3rd St, Burkburnett TX 76354 (940) 249-0729 Facebook