Small Town, Big Dreams By Mark Beutler
NOT SO LONG AGO, Edmond was a quaint little village – home to OTASCO, Van’s Bakery and the WideA-Wake Café. The favorite watering hole among locals was the Green Hog Tavern, and Edmond Plaza was the first modern shopping center. Today, “The Plaza,” as old-time Edmondites call it, is still there, but the Green Hog is long gone. The Pontiacs and Oldsmobiles that ambled along Broadway have been replaced by Lexus SUVs and sporty BMWs, and Edmond is part of an upscale, thriving metropolis. Here’s a look back at that charming little village, over a half-century ago.
Top to bottom: Wide-A-Wake Café, 1940, Van’s Bakery logo, Edmond Plaza Shopping Center, 15th and Broadway, Downtown Edmond, looking north from Second Street and Broadway, circa 1960.
26 SLICE // MAY 2013
PHOTOS COURTESY EDMOND HISTORICAL SOCIETY PHOTOGRAPHIC COLLECTION AND THE UCO LIBRARY, ARCHIVES/SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
o r t Respective