Volume 15 , Issue 2

Monfort Drugs Memories

In our "OkieLegacy" cleaning this Winter, we have extracted a few articles that appeared in our Vol. IV Issues of The OkieLegacy Ezine that no longer exist on our website. Some of those are the memories we received from readers concerning the Monfort Drugstore fire in the mid-1950's.

In the photo on the left, we see making observations concerning the damage on that Thursday morning were, far left, Carl Shafer, Jim Devery and Marion Monfort. Dr. Felicia Monfort and Toni Monfort, partly hidden, daughters of Marion, are shown on the far right with Leonard Butler. (staff photo). [Click image for larger view.]

The Wrecking Crew


- The front of Monfort's drug is shown being torn down by a wrecking crane in order that it would not fall later and injure bystanders. The front wall was still standing following the disastrous $400,000 fire Thursday morning. (Traverse photo).



Early Morning & Monfort Building Fire



- Early Morning sight in Alva Thursday was the completely gutted Monfort building at the corner of College and Barnes Ave. Smoke was still seen rising from the wreckage at 1 p.m. Thursday. (Staff photo).




The Back Wall


- the Monfort building may be seen early Thursday morning in the center before it was knocked down by the wrecking crew about 11 a.m. Firemen can still be seen throwing water on the smoldering blaze. (Staff photo).



Monfort Building & Gordon's Cafe


- Early problem Thursday morning was the smoke coming from Gordon's cafe. When the firemen first arrived the smoke was chiefly in Gordon's with the flames in the rear of both stores. When the glass was broken in the cafe, a huge puff of smoke burst out covering the firemen holding the hoses. (Staff photo).



Aerial View of Monfort Fire


- the catastrophic fire Thursday was made by Austin Traverse about 6:30 a.m. from a plane which was flown by Wayne Kinzie. The overall view of the scene may be seen in the above photo.




Monfort Building & Streams of Water


- shown pouring on the fire catastrophe which early Thursday morning wrecked and ravaged the Monfort building and damaged other adjoining structures (Staff photo).




Monfort building & Tanner Bros Clothing



- Volunteer firemen are shown with their hoses in front of the Monfort building and Tanner Brothers store here early Thursday pouring water on the fire. (staff photo).



Monfort Fire & Gordon Cafe Memories

"A point of clarification. The pictures of the Montfort fire refer to Pangburn's Cafe next door to Montfort's, which was a total loss along with the drug store. It was indeed Pangburn's Cafe for a number of years, but it had been sold to Rufus Gordon not too long before the fire. Rufus had been the Chamber of Commerce manager in Alva prior to taking over this operation and was hit hard by this loss. He opened another smaller cafe in the Filson building on Oklahoma Blvd. (Normal Street at that time) at the top of 2nd Street which he ran for a number of years as Gordon's Cafe. Pangburn's had already moved to its new location at the east junction of Highways 281 and 64.

"I remember the Montfort fire very well. I got up early that morning, heard about the fire, and made immediately for downtown. The ruins were still smoking and the firemen were playing a high-pressure stream of water against a wall that was in danger of collapsing. They wanted it to fall into the basement and therefore remove any threat it might have to people. It finally fell right where they wanted it to and was a pretty spectacular crash. Dr. Richey's dental office was indeed at the front right of the second floor of the Montfort Building. Chuck Richey, his son, was the circulation manager at the Alva Review Courier at the time and was therefore my boss, as I was a paper boy. I walked by the front of the building a few days later and saw Chuck and James (another brother) sifting through the rubble looking for anything of salvagable value.

"I asked them if they needed any help and they accepted. I spent about an hour or so working with them and found several dental drill bits, picks, and various other small tools. Bob (Buzz) Brandenburg, who was an Alva policeman at the time, came by and ordered us off the building as a matter of safety. The next day Chuck presented me with a check from Dr. Richey in the amount of $10.00 for my help. Up to that time in my life, it was the fastest money I had ever made.

"Great photos. I remember seeing very similar ones in the Courier following the blaze. Keep up your great work. One more memory about Montforts: They sold a frozen concoction from a machine that dispensed a dairy treat much like those later used by Dairy Queen. It was lighter and frothier, chocolate flavored, and was called a frozen malt and for a nickel you got a generous helping heaped in an ice cream cone. It was one of the biggest bargains on the square." -- Jim

Center Parking & Montfort Fire

"Marion Monfort (the owner) was totally opposed to the abolishment of center-parking and even went so far as to have handbills delivered to all of the cars on the square. I know, because Lorace Leatherman and I delivered them. Delivering handbills was a common way to get messages out in the early fifties, and kids were usually hired by the job to do it. I delivered handbills all over town for a lot of different businesses (Oklahoma Tire and Supply, F. M. Woodson real estate, BlueCross/Blue Shield, etc.).

"The only thing I can remember about the Montfort handbills was that they were large (probably legal-sized paper) and Marion expounded that it was A God-given right to park where it was legal and convenient. He really wanted to keep as much parking on the square as possible,and looking back he may have had a point. That square is almost dead today compared to what it was then."

Monfort's Fire 1953 & Other Alva Memories

"I am by no means an authority on the Monfort's burning, but as I recall,The Farry Junior and Seniors were on their school trip. That year we traveled the four corners and parts in between, of the state ofOklahoma. While on this trip we heard on the radio, and in the newspaper,of the tragedy of the burning of Monfort's. We could hardly believe,it could have happened, however when we returned, sure enough, it was gone. This was late May or early June 1953. My brother and I can remember going there and getting our favorite treat (A Chocolate FROZEN Malt fora quarter), the only place that you could get one. Monfort's was where you got your school text books, back in those days. Dr. Hefner had his Chiropractor Office above Monfort's, and his records were the only one's that survived the fire, as they were in pencil, instead of ink. I can remember when Alva had center-parking around the square, and it was hard to find a parking as everything was always full on Saturdays. Alva had 4 theaters on the square, and was usually full on Saturday afternoons and again on Saturday night. Back then they showed the main feature twice, then as the late late-show had a preview, which was the picture show for the first part of the week. They had two different movies each week. I can remember the old courthouse and the fountain on the West side and all the big trees and park benches.On Saturday afternoon the park around the square was full of people visiting, resting and children playing. Back in the forties, I remember when almost every woman wore a hat and several wore gloves How times have changed, now lots of empty parking spaces, one theater, no Minton's Ice cream Parlor. No religious groups singing to the sinners at Snyder's Pool Hall. These are some of the things I can remember about Alva." -- Francis Melkus   |  View or Add Comments (0 Comments)   |   Receive updates ( subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

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