The Story of Downtown Ponca City

Story by Kelsey Wagner / Ponca City Monthly Editor-in-Chief Historic photos provided by Lori Henderson

Ponca City’s downtown was founded after the historic Cherokee Strip Land Run in 1893, the fourth and most massive government land resettlement. The run resulted in one of the largest land grabs in the country’s history. Winning landowners established farms and communities in the land still known at that time as Indian Territory, years before Oklahoma’s statehood. Four days after the run, after surveyors had selected locations for streets and lots, a box was placed on Grand Ave between 3rd and 4th street, and those who had purchased certificates for city lots lined up to receive their assigned lots.

What followed for Ponca City’s downtown was the beginning of a boom and bust cycle, which was very much in play for a century, in a state and a town where the oil industry dictates so much of the economic condition. Ponca City, home to oil tycoon E.W. Marland and founder of Marland Oil Company, was particularly dependent because of the large number of jobs tied to the one company.

Population: 2,521

By the turn of the century, the new municipal government had formed, and many new businesses and professional services were established to serve the city residents. However, a devastating fire occurred in 1900. It burned several of the first buildings constructed of frame and locally mined stone, including the first iteration of the Pabst saloon building, which was later rebuilt with brick. Many businesses chose to rebuild with more permanent, solid materials. The first big boom for downtown Ponca City began around 1905 after discovering natural gas led many, including E.W. Marland, to the city in search of more buried energy sources. Already a bustling center for trade, a sly move by city founder B.S. Barnes moving the Santé Fe train depot from Cross to downtown Ponca City fully cemented Ponca City’s dominance as the center of commerce for Kay County. The railroad, which ran just west of downtown, was crucial to downtown Ponca City’s success as a means to import and export goods. The Arcade Hotel was also initially located in the town of Cross and relocated in 1897 to its new location in downtown Ponca City. Many of the very first large stone and brick buildings were built in downtown Ponca City, including The Donahoe Bothers/JP Souligny Building (1909), the Old United States Post Office, 311 E Grand, (1911) and the Municipal Complex, 500 E. Grand (1917).

Population: 7,051

The roaring 1920’s swept into downtown Ponca City as money poured into the city from new oil wells. The population of Ponca City doubled in size during the oil boom and along with that, so did the increase in building permits. In 1923, the Royalty office building, 401 E Grand, was financed by E. W. Marland and designed by John Duncan Forsyth. Forsyth would go on to design Marland’s Palace on the Prairie, the Marland Mansion, which began construction in 1925 but was not completed until 1928. Between 1918 and 1929, over 25 new downtown buildings were built. Notable buildings constructed during that time were Gill’s Mortuary Building, 122 N. 2nd (1924), Union Bus Station, 201 N. 2nd (1926), the Ponca City News Building (1924), Community Building, located at 223 E. Grand (1925) Masonic Building, 222 E. Grand, Poncan Theatre (1927), Paris Furniture Building, 409 E. Grand (1927), Marland Building 322-324 E. Grand (1928) and the Nonnamaker Building, 205 W. Grand (1929).

Population: 16,136

The 1930s saw the first bust cycle after the stock market crash of 1929. Despite the nationwide economic downturn and hostile takeover of Marland Oil in 1928, Ponca City still benefited from Marland’s refinery , which was now known as Continental Oil Company (“Conoco”), that he worked so hard to build. Growth in downtown Ponca City continued, but at a slower and steadier pace. On January 15, 1935, after serving as a Congressman from 1933-35, Marland was inaugurated as governor of Oklahoma. Fifteen new buildings were constructed downtown between 1930-1939, including the new USPS Office and Federal Building, 402 E. Grand (1935), the Ponca City Public Library, 515 E. Grand (1935) and Ponca City East Middle School, 612 E. Grand (1939).

Population: 16,794

The war effort brought new economic opportunities for Conoco, and another influx of financial prosperity flowed into Ponca City. Conoco assisted the U.S. Government by increasing production and also performed research and development of new petroleum products. Approximately 20 new buildings were built downtown in the 1940s. Notable new buildings included the Andersen Building, 200 N 2nd (1940), and the Odd Fellows Building, 116 N. 4th (1940). The

Population: 20,180

The Ponca City refinery continued to bring wealth and prosperity to the city and downtown businesses. Though Conoco decided to relocate its headquarters to Houston in 1949, the decision was made to build Continental Oil’s central Research & Development Center in Ponca City in 1952 and double the R&D center in size by 1962. The 1950s were a golden era of high wages and job security for Conoco employees. Downtown buildings, many still occupied by the same businesses that built the structures, flourished.

Population: 24,411 to 26,238

The early 1960s saw the first hints of the downturn of the central business district. Aging buildings, cheap land prices, outward expansion, and urban sprawl all contributed to the decline. Though new construction and commercial development in downtown Ponca City slowed drastically by 1960, downtown was still primarily filled with thriving businesses, including clothing and retail, hardware and supply shops, print shops, law and doctor offices, and financial firms. Residents shopped downtown for the bulk of their home goods, as their parents had done before them. Many children of that period have fond memories shopping for school supplies or buying clothing.

A large swath of land on the east side of town underwent substantial commercial development in the early 1970s, including the Ponca Plaza. Downtown lost several businesses during that time, such as JC Penney. To adapt, many building owners began to change the outward appearance of their buildings.

According to an Intensive Level Survey completed in 2008, “The clerestories that had once provided illumination for deep store interiors now conflicted with the air conditioning systems and electric lighting, so they were often covered and sometimes removed. The carefully crafted brick facades that once signaled a respectable and prosperous establishment now were taken by some to mean old-fashioned, or at least not up-to-date, and they were often covered with shiny materials or worse.”

Throughout the remainder of the 1970s, businesses slowly began to shutter as commercial development continued on 14th Street. By 1980 many of the once beautiful buildings had boarded up windows, metal facade coverings and were in disrepair. Conoco thrived in the 1980s and 1990s, but the economic benefit was not in downtown’s favor.

Downtown continued to deteriorate, and, realizing its significance, concerned citizens came together and partnered with the City of Ponca City, and stepped in to help preserve it. Verona Mair recalls traveling to New York state to a National Historic Trust meeting the very first year the Main Street program was introduced. Verona, the only downtown female business and building owner at the time, felt that bringing the Ponca City Main Street program (“PCMS”) was the best path forward to save downtown. Verona says she faced push back from many who said the program was unnecessary. Still, she and a host of other supporters, including Larry Hughes and Bret Carter, continued to push to implement the program. The PCMS was eventually formed in 1988 to revitalize the downtown district and run by a group of dedicated volunteers for 13 years.

Population: 26,637

By the 1990s, many buildings downtown were over 60 years old and in desperate need of restoration. The new main street program’s first major project undertaken was to save the Poncan Theatre. David Keathley, Larry and Susan Buck, Phil and Ann Bandy, and many others raised over $300,000, and through their efforts, the theatre was saved. The restoration of the Poncan Theatre became a benchmark for a new era in downtown Ponca City, a period of historic preservation, and reinvigorate the central business district.

Population: 26,093

By the early 2000s, the Main Street program had great success providing training and holding downtown events, but due to ongoing organizational issues, the board voted to go inactive as of November 2001 with plans to reactivate within 18 months. City Commissioners ultimately voted unanimously to restructure the program, and it was officially revived in February 2003. A new board of directors was appointed, and Jayne Detten was hired as the Executive Director.

Population: 25,387

Under Jayne’s leadership, and with a tremendous amount of support from the City of Ponca City, many new programs and events were put into place that are still in existence to this day. Goblins on Grand and Crazy Days are two of the most popular. Jayne was able to focus on board and member development, and she also worked with Fred Boettcher on the massive Veterans Plaza project, which cost more than $600,000 to complete. Richard Winterrowd, a local architect, has been assisting and supporting PCMS since 2003. New sidewalks were installed, new flowerbeds, and a series of historic murals strategically placed on and off Grand Ave.

The visual appeal of Grand Avenue during the early 2000s improved significantly, but Richard says he believes the facade grant made the biggest impact in the overall appearance of downtown.

“There were a lot of absentee store owners, and the properties were being used for storage because property values were low. The grant was, and probably still is, the biggest grant in the state, up to $5,000. There were boarded up second-story windows, covered façade, and it was honestly a fire hazard. There are probably still four buildings that have metal façade or boarded-up windows. There were over 30 before the façade grant program,” Richard says.

Richard is a property owner himself and owns two historic properties, including the five-story Equity Bank building. Richard says local building owners who are engaged in the upkeep and maintenance of the downtown buildings, are the key to raising property values and the downtown district’s overall success, which is one reason why he is such an avid supporter of PCMS.

In 2014, Jayne left as Director, and Chelsea McConnell was named as new Executive Director. Chelsea is driven and her enthusiam and determination is ushering in a new generation of downtown supporters. Chelsea has overseen an unprecedented resurgence of interest and support for downtown. With a particular focus on place making and art advocacy, Chelsea and her team of dedicated volunteers push hard to keep the momentum of downtown continuously moving forward. PCMS volunteers have recorded more than 1,220 hours of volunteer so far this year.

Jayne, who now works for the City of Ponca City at the Marland Grand Home, says the continued positive changes downtown are thrilling to watch, and she is happy that her time as PCMS director played a part in that change.

“What I think went right, is we had a dead program, we had the right people involved in restarting it including Chris Henderson, Barbara Impson, Phil Bandy was a huge part, Fred Boettcher and Richard Winterrowd to name a few. We did the foundational work to form a healthy organization, and the next group that has come in, they have given it fresh energy. They have been able to grow it and are going full-speed ahead. It was time for a change, and with a firm foundation to grow from, the new group has made it all happen,” Jayne says.

Kevin Emmons is one of the most recent property owners to make a considerable push to reinvest in downtown properties. He has purchased six properties in the last several years and has poured countless hours and dollars into renovating them. Kevin has fond memories shopping downtown as a child, eating ice cream, and hanging out with his friends on Grand Ave.

“A huge motivation for me to continue to invest in downtown is the amount of what I consider ‘kids’ (only because of the proximity to my children’s age) that are so interested in downtown revitalization - people like Terron Liles, Kelsey Wagner, Chelsea McConnell, Kacey Flanery, and so many others, along with a mix of ones closer to my age, such as the Vortex gang, Bret Carter and C.J. and Julie Good. The energy surrounding downtown and the motivation by everyone involved keeps me going. Even when we have different approaches and opinions, we are family, and I love what’s happening at the end of the day.”

Chelsea McConnell lived on 7th street growing up as a child and recalls walking downtown to the Gift Shoppe to buy rock candy and to Central Typewriter to purchase school supplies.

“I feel like we’ve really progressed since I started. When I started, I thought we would just magically change things overnight, which didn’t happen. But we’ve seen a lot more color downtown with the artwork and murals, the signal boxes and the banners. It’s really been a slow and steady progression of changes. I think that is the most valuable lesson I’ve learned – when the Veterans Plaza opened, it is beautiful and expensive and is an amazing thing that was done, but it didn’t change the landscape of downtown overnight. It’s really about the small, steady moves that you make every single day that impact downtown in the end.”

For information about supporting PCMS or to become a member, please visit them online at www.downtownponcacity.com