Volume 11 , Issue 26

Air Castles & Dreamers

This NW Okie comes from a long line of dreamers with roots in Oklahoma. My grandmother, Constance Estella Warwick McGill, wrote in letters from a friend, John C. McClure, of the places she wanted to go and see when she was younger in the early 1900s. John accused Constance of building "air castles."

One of those places was San Francisco, Philippines, and other places around the world. It was not until the late 1930s thru 1950s that she saw some of her "air castles" developed into reality. She never made it to the Philippines, but did travel to England and back to New England.

Grandma mainly stayed around Northwestern Oklahoma Territory and saw it through it Drought, Depression and Dust Bowl days, raising a family of two sons and acquiring ranch and farm land. Marrying William J. McGill in March, 1910 and divorcing in the 1940s.

Grandma's younger son, Bob McGill, fought overseas in World War II and died at an early age in February, 1954 of lung cancer.

Constance's oldest son stayed around Northwest Oklahoma after his graduation from Oklahoma University in December, 1937, instead of going off to Washington, DC. His grandfather, John Robert Warwick made Gene and offer he could not refuse, "All this would be yours if you stayed and work the farm and ranching business."

Little did Gene know at that time that his mother would control everything and use young Gene as a hired hand. By-passing her remaining son in her Will & Trusts when she died in 1969 -- leaving mineral interests and the majority of landholdings to her four granddaughters, equally.
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