Update on City business

 The Watonga city government has been in flux for a couple of years now, but has been almost completely ineffective since last summer (August 2024) when former Mayor and vice-mayor resigned on the heels of the City Council voting to dismiss the then-City Manager. Following those resignations, the City Council was left with only three members and could not make a quorum in order to vote on business items that had not already been addressed. New council members could not be seated until an election in April 2025. 

For background, in 2021 the town voted to change its form of government from a "aldermanic" form, with an elected Mayor and 5 council persons, one from each district in the town and one at-large seat, to a City Manager form of government. Under the new form of government, council persons were elected, one from each district, and from those elected persons, a Mayor was named by the council members. A City Manager was hired to oversee the business of the city, who took the job on a temporary basis in order to help with the transition. The person they hired had been a city manager in another town and was qualified and experienced in the job. Under his direction, the town made positive progress, including getting a NODA grant. It was a tough transition for our town, but after one year, that person moved on and the city was tasked with hiring a new city manager. They hired a woman with no management experience, no government experience, and who was not vetted very well, probably (I have been told) because she was a friend and "girlfriend" of the then Mayor who had been named by the sitting council members to that position. She was a good cheerleader for the City, always touting the accomplishments of the town, but not an effective manager. Without going into more detail, I'll just say that the townspeople became more and more dissatisfied with her actions in managing the city's business. There was a general "uprising", mostly on social media, calling for her to be fired and for the city to hire a new manager. It was at the August 2024 council meeting that the council voted to remove her but then they also kept her employed until "a new City Manager could be hired," which has not yet happened as of this writing.   

With several questionable issues having been recently brought to light, a state audit has been requested. The City does not post minutes of City Council meetings on its official website, so it is difficult for the average citizen to learn about actions taken by the council other than reading comments on social media (the last minutes posted on the website was in February 2025). It is now more important than ever for citizens of Watonga to attend the town's city council meetings. Regular meetings are held once a month, with special meetings being called when the council deems it appropriate. 

October 2025 City Council meeting

Oct. 22, 2025 

The monthly meeting of the Watonga City Council had 18 items on the agenda. It can be seen on the official city website: www.watongaok.gov.  The minutes of the meeting have not yet been posted anywhere, but there are recordings of the meeting on a couple of Watonga facebook pages, including Blaine County Talk. Unfortunately, the audio is not of good quality and a lot of the comments by council members cannot be heard.  A good reason for people to attend these meetings if you want to know what our city government is doing. Meeting minutes have not been posted on the city's website since February 2025. The October meeting was well-attended. 

Since the public will not see the minutes of the meeting for at least a month (they say their policy is not to post the minutes on their official website until the next monthly meeting when those minutes are presented to the council for approval, but history shows us that it could be months, if not longer, before those minutes are actually posted on the website for the public to read), I am providing a summary of what I could get from the recorded video:

On the Action Agenda --

1. Consideration, Discussion and Action: To censure Councilman Neal Riley for violation of the Ethics Code of Conduct. 

2. Consideration, Discussion and Action: To remove Marcus Wray from the Board of Adjustments due to his posting of sensitive information, concerning the City's Bank Account information from First State Bank, Watonga, on a social media site.

     The mayor first made a motion to move these first two items to the end of the meeting. Before a second could be voiced, Neal Riley made a motion to strike items 1 and 2 from the agenda. The vote was Yes from Neal and Roy and No from McGee and Howard Hursh. The mayor voted to break the tie with a No vote. Then the mayor repeated his motion to move items 1 and 2 to the end of the meeting. There were several objections from the audience, probably because most of the attendees were there specifically to support Neal Riley and Marcus Wray, and by putting those items at the end of the meeting, it was possible that many people would have to leave before the council addressed those items. In fact, the meeting took almost two hours before it was adjourned. At approximately an hour and twelve minutes into the meeting, the mayor addressed item 1. of the Action agenda and Neal Riley was allowed to speak about how those items came to be on the agenda and then presented a valid defense to Ms. McGee's accusations.  It was stated that the items were put on the agenda by Debbie McGee based on Marcus Wray posting a copy of a City check on social media. McGee claimed that Neal was guilty of violating a code of ethics by providing a copy of said check, which is public record, to Marcus Wray, a private citizen of Watonga, who then posted a copy of the check on his facebook page. 

Neal stated that the check was public record, and it was within his obligations as a council member representing the public to provide a copy of such public record. McGee's problem with posting the check on-line was that it revealed the bank account number and routing number of the City's account on which the check was drawn, which she deemed "confidential information." It was pointed out that the information on the check was not confidential information, and if Ms. McGee thought it was, it was her responsibility as keeper of the City records to make sure that information was redacted before it was presented to the City Council for approval and made a public record. [The city council later considered and passed a motion to draft a "policy" that confidential information be redacted in the future. That matter was referred to the city attorney to draft a policy.]  After discussion, a motion was made to strike both items 1. and 2.  All council members except Ms. McGee voted to strike those items from the action agenda.

A memory of the Watonga Cheese Festival

From a facebook post on Watonga Community Events in September 2017:

"Ah, so much has changed in the past three years. The festival has gone back to its original name, Watonga Cheese Festival, and given up the wine competition and removed the word "wine" from all of its branding and marketing.

The festival has given up the Art Show and Canton High School art students' exhibits, along with the popular Race the Rail event. There is no admission fee this year, but the children's activities like bounce house and slides and other inflatable activities for children will charge a fee. The cheese tasting line, one of the more popular attractions of the festival, and the food prep contests will continue, as will the Rat Race (which does charge a fee to participate) and the quilt show. Made in Oklahoma and other craft booths, along with fast food vendors will be part of the festival. (Our favorite food vendor is the local Lion's Club onion burger & fries meal-- great food, good value, and benefits a good cause.)

Musical entertainment will be provided by local talent. As additional information is received it will be posted on WATONGA COMMUNITY EVENTS facebook page, and the Watonga Chamber of Commerce page."

2024 -- For many years, the annual Cheese Festival has been planned and held under the purview of the Watonga Chamber of Commerce. In approximately 2022, the Chamber of Commerce disbanded and the Cheese Festival was taken over by the City of Watonga. It is now close to the end of March 2024 and there has been no mention on the City's website or Watonga Chamber facebook page of this year's festival.

SENIORS: Time to file Application for Property Valuation Limitation (Freeze)

 The senior property valuation freeze is a valuable program for eligible senior homeowners in Oklahoma. This means that their property tax bill will not increase due to rising property values. The freeze is not automatic, and eligibility depends on the household income and the county of residence. The valuation freeze also does not prevent an increase in property tax rates. 

This kind of tax relief program is not available in all states. In Oklahoma, "the tax relief was passed by a vote of the people in 1996, and widened through a state question in 2004, but it’s not widely publicized. Property owners just have to know that after they turn 65, the taxable values of their homes can be locked in, if their annual gross household incomes are under certain amounts." --Paula Burkes, columnist at The Oklahoman, 2014

Eligible seniors must file a one-time application with their respective county assessor offices between Jan. 1 and March 15. The income limit varies from county to county in Oklahoma. In Blaine County, the income limit is $60,800, according to the Oklahoma Tax Commission.

Read this article from The Oklahoman written by columnist Paula Burkes:  Oklahoma 'Senior Freeze' can be cool tax relief for many homeowners (oklahoman.com) [click on link]

To apply, a resident must be over sixty-five years of age, provide proof of gross annual income, and have a homestead exemption for their property.  Applications are currently being accepted at the BLAINE COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR's OFFICE, between January 1 and March 15, 2024. The county tax assessor's office is located in the Blaine County Courthouse and is open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. 

The Blaine County assessor requires a copy of last year's tax return (pages that show gross taxable income) OR a copy of your social security statement for 2023 as proof of income eligibility. Your federal tax return for year 2022 is acceptable if you have not filed your tax return for 2023 at the time you apply for the valuation freeze, according to the Blaine County Tax Assessor's office and the Oklahoma Tax Commission.

The assessor will need the address or a legal description of the homestead property and name of the property owner. 

If you have not yet filed an application for homestead exemption, the assessor can give that application form to you to complete and have processed before the senior valuation freeze form (State Form 994) can be submitted.  

The assessor will print out a partially completed Form 994 from the information you give and information in their records. You will need to fill in a few lines as instructed by the clerk and sign the Form. 

It is recommended that you go to the assessor's office as early in the year as possible, to allow for processing time and any corrections or additional documentation if needed, and to avoid forgetting and missing the deadline! 

The above information was obtained from the office of the Oklahoma Tax Commission and the Blaine County Tax Assessor's Office. 

Good luck!! 

A tour of the TB Ferguson Home and Museum

Yesterday I was happy to have participated in giving a tour of the TB Ferguson Home and Museum to a group of 9th graders from Watonga High School. They spent about an hour going through the house and hearing about the significant importance of TB Ferguson and his wife, Elva. They got to get a taste of the Fergusons' life in the early 1900's. I'll be posting my portion of the tour on my blog, watonganews.blogspot.com, about the Fergusons' participation in the early Land Runs for homesteaders looking for a place to call home. Dr. Joe Bryan gave an overview of the Fergusons and the home and museums and other volunteers offered insights into the Fergusons' life and business here in Watonga. There is a lot more historical information you can read about on the blog.
The nonprofit group of volunteers from Friends of Ferguson Home were so excited to work with Mrs. Hildebran, the high school history teacher, and her students and we hope they will all share their experience and encourage others to visit the Home.
The Ferguson Home and Museum is open for free tours by appointment only. Call 580-623-5069 and leave a message. See www.tbfergusonhome.org.

 

 

The Oklahoma Land Runs and the T.B. Fergusons.

Between 1889 and 1906, BEFORE Oklahoma became a state, unassigned land in Indian Territory was opened to settlement in five land runs, a land lottery, and a land auction. Immigrants from Ireland, England, France and Scotland were among the thousands of potential homesteaders who gathered to race across the open prairie to have a chance to claim a parcel of land. Those who established a claim would receive title to the property after five years if they lived on it and improved the plot.

The land runs have been described as chaotic, disorganized, violent, and difficult due to poor planning.

The first Land Run was held in 1889 and covered an area of what is now central Oklahoma. Tent cities emerged at the first settlements of Oklahoma City, Kingfisher, El Reno, Norman, Guthrie and Stillwater. Thomas Benton Ferguson, a newspaper man from Kansas, joined the first Oklahoma Land Run and staked a claim near Guthrie. He didn't stay there long and sold the claim.

The third land run opened Cheyenne-Arapaho lands. At high noon on April 19, 1892, a cannon boom signaled the beginning of a mad dash for homesteaders to stake their claims.   Watonga grew from a tent city in the midst of the Cheyenne-Arapaho Reservation and was named for Arapaho Chief Wa-ton-gha, whose name meant Black Coyote. In October 1892, after the Cheyenne and Arapaho land run, T.B. Ferguson, his wife Elva, and two sons moved to Watonga.  and began publishing a newspaper, The Watonga Republican, which is still in print today. 

T.B Ferguson also participated in the fourth land run in 1893  which covered the Cherokee Outlet. The 1893 land run has been described as even more chaotic than earlier runs due to inadequate enforcement by federal agencies. There was massive fraud, widespread suffering, and a number of deaths. The Fergusons stayed long enough to build a house. They went to Kansas for a visit and while they were gone, someone stole the house.  The lot was later sold.  

Edna Ferber, The author of the book Cimarron, stayed with Elva at the Ferguson home while writing the book. It was published in 1929.  Ms. Ferber used Elva’s recollections of territorial politics, Indians, outlaws, and frontier life in her book.  In 1931 the novel was made into a movie by RKO Studios, and Elva Ferguson served as a technical advisor for the newspaper print-shop scenes of the movie.

The 1931 movie depicts the chaos and dangers of the Oklahoma land runs. [from www.Okhistory.org]

The movie was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning for Outstanding Production, Best Writing-Adaptation and Best Art Direction. The movie was remade in 1960 starring Glenn Ford.

Mrs. Ferguson published her own account of newspaper life in early Oklahoma, entitled They Carried The Torch: The Story of Oklahoma's Pioneer Newspapers.  Both books, Cimarron and They Carried the Torch, are available in our local library.

There are maps on the website www.nationalcowboymuseum.org showing the areas covered by each of the land runs.

/Linda Barrett

Friends of Ferguson Home and Museum

 April 2023 

At the end of 2022, a new board for the Friends of Ferguson Home was elected:  Connie Burcham-President, Joe Bryan -Secretary, Mary Larson-Treasurer, and Todd Lafferty- Member-at-Large. The Home itself is owned by the City of Watonga, and the Friends of Ferguson Home Inc. is a nonprofit organization that works to preserve the T.B. and Elva Ferguson Home, jail, and relay station as Historic Landmarks and interpret the early day lifestyles of a politician, newspaper owner, and pioneer from the establishment of the Cheyenne and Arapaho land opening in 1892 up to 1947.  The website for the museum is: www.tbfergusonhome.org, and their facebook page is Ferguson Home Museum. 

The Friends group is in the process of working out a contract/lease with the City of Watonga that will allow the Museum to stay open and to improve the condition of the home. The property is on the National Register of Historic Places, and is one of our town's tourism attractions that brings visitors from across the country. The Friends group is sustained by donations, memberships, and volunteer hours. 

The next event to be held by the Friends of Ferguson Home is a Tea Party on May 6, 2023, at the First Baptist Church in Watonga, from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm.  Tickets are $10 each, and must be purchased in advance of the event.  Janine Espy is the chairperson of the event and Linda Barrett is assisting with ticket sales (call 580-623-4269).  

As a member of the Friends of Ferguson Home, I encourage members of our community to support this fundraiser, and to considering becoming a Member of the Friends group.  I'll be writing more about the Ferguson Home and Museum, upcoming events and fundraisers, and membership details in the next few days. 

 

News from the City government

 Kerrie Little, the City Manager, gave a presentation to the Watonga Kiwanis Club on Wed., July 27, 2022.    

Ms. Little told the group that the Chamber of Commerce has been "absorbed by the City", and in fact will be governed  by the recently reinstated WEDA (Watonga Economic Development Authority) committee.  Who makes up that committee?  We assume the city councilmen and mayor but the specific question was not answered.  

Questions were asked about this year's cheese festival, in light of the Chamber going "inactive." Kerrie said that it has also been taken over by WEDA. Evidently, plans for the festival have been in the works and we were told that the festival committee meets about every month; vendors have been contacted, the cheese tasting line will be moved to the City Hall building on Main Street, and they want the Kiwanis Club to sell Watonga Cheese in the City Hall building. We were told that the cheese festival committee doesn't publicize an agenda and they have no set day of the month they meet, but we were told that the meeting is open to the public.  Kerrie said that anyone interested in anything to do with the Cheese Festival should contact Kerrie Little at City Hall. 

We learned that the City has a new website, where the public can get information about City business. The new website's address is:  www.watongaok.gov.   Terri Crawford from the library is in charge of maintaining the website. Looking at the new website, we see that the City Council's agendas and minutes are posted there; there are no agendas or minutes posted for any meetings in July so far.   

Ms. Little was asked if the City is or can do anything about the weeds outside of the former Dollar General store. She said that the City has implemented a new process for code enforcement.  So far that process hasn't produced much results but "it takes time."  Kerrie Little said that the City will send out a "warning" letter to a property owner as a courtesy, and if the situation in violation of the Code is not remedied, they will send out a citation.  Once a citation is issued, the property owner will have to go to City Municipal Court to have the judge give or reduce a fine.  A group has already purchased the building, but habitation and putting in a business there has been stalled after questions were raised by local citizens and business owners about what kind of cannibis business was planned to go in there.  All we were told was that it would be a research facility, and not a retail business.  After a canceled meeting of the zoning committee, the new owners seemed to have backed off, so the property is empty and the lot has not been tended to for some months.  Kerrie said that the warning letter has gone out to the property owner of the former Dollar General store.