[betrdaze]

You are all very friendly and helpful. We have checked out the suggested websites and more for SE OK. It is surprising to see the rugged terrain. It would appear that the Colony is a very good place to live especially for retirees. There seems to be lots of nearby lakes for fishing and plenty of forest for hunting. We are beyond needing malls, nightlife or yuppie restuarants so this place is one of the places on our must see list.

[peggydavis]

Great! Please let us know what happens.

[scaredofsnakes]

It's an ok place to live down in this area. Your not that far from McAlester where there are better places to eat all. Also your close to Lake Sardis where alot of folks tend to retire at an enjoy. That is where my husband an I will be retiring at. But the colony is alot a nice place too. Then you also have Poteau also which is a bigger town to go too an enjoy doing things at. So down in this area it is beautiful an quite.

[Celia9393]

A few years ago, I visited friends who lived in the Colony. There were huge pine trees as well as oak and hickory trees. Their home was secluded so deer and fox came to visit. The road was paved, the water was soft, mail delivery to the door, satellite TV, all the comforts imaginable. There is a lovely well maintained park with walking trail. There is a quietness there, that was most restful. We went out to Hwy 2 which is the road that runs by the Colony and ate at a little restuarant. People who run it are retired so everything seemed laid back. We went down to the lake to fish off friend's pontoon boat. As has been mentioned, it might not appeal to everyone, but for anyone looking for peace and quiet..it sure would fit the bill. My friends are no longer there as he passed away and was buried in the cemetery there. She moved closer to family.

[betrdaze]

Last week was a family reunion in TX. We decided to take a day and drive to the Colony for a once over. Our first impressions were very favorable in spite of a LOT of rain which precluded much exploring on foot. All the rain was a surprise as I had always thought OK was pretty dry. But at least the trip answered some of our questions. Thanks again for your help.

[pulciferwi]

I bought a really old framed photo at a yard sale. It was of a few men replacing railroad ties. There are a few houses and an old two floor school house with a bell tower next to the tracks. From the mens cloths I'd estimate it to be very early 1900's at least. The photo is very sun faded, but still one of the favorites I have hanging in my home. I don't know if the photo is of Wilburton, Okla. or not, but on the back written in pencil is : Property of J.R. Blair, Wilburton, Okla., U.S.W.V. Colony, and the script it is written in, is (sadly) no longer taught in school. Very flambouant. I'm really not sure what its actuall style is. I looked up on the web and found out what the colony is and was. It sounds very interesting. Is there any other places like it around the country? Is or was there a two floor school house with a bell tower next some railroad tracks in Wilburton? You can e-mail me at pulciferwi@att.net. I don't have an electronic copy of the photo yet, but will try to do it if there is any interest. Just thought I'd share an interesting find. Thank You

[dreamr2]

Your photo sounds very interesting. Most likely it was taken in Wilburton because of that is where the train tracks run. The Colony is about 9 mile south of Wilburton. A little checking might reveal who the Mr. Blair was. There is a street named Blair in Wilburton. It is possible however that he lived in the Colony or else kept a summer home there. This Colony was the only Spanish-American colony in the US. Over the years membership has extended to other eligible war veterans. At one time , I was a resident there for a number of years.

[wintertime]

My family operates the railroad here. It is the former Rock Island line, but people may be surprised to learn that there were other lines in the area. The Katy ran through Poteau, Wister, Talihana, Clayton to Antlers. There was one from McAlester to Krebs, Adamson (The south end of Eufalla Lake) into Wilburton where it met the Rock Island. There was also a light rail passenger line from McAlester to Alderson (Choctaw Lighting and Gulf, I think)

The picture would most likely be here by our office on main street in Wilburton, the writing could be Choctaw.

[wintertime]

I was mistaken, the script was in English. My grandfather was the station agent in the 60's, and he wrote that way. It looks like something from a pirate map.

[khillhouse]

If anyone is interested I am going to be putting my father's home up for sale at the veteran's colony. The colony is in Wilburton Oklahoma. It is very beautiful there. I would have moved there myself but you have to be a Veteran or have served during war time. His home is off by itself not near anyone else's and it has a creek running in front of it. I am going to be selling it for 12,000.00. Please send me an email at tdkhillhouse@att.net if you are interested.