The Neighborhood: Memories of an Oklahoma Boyhood - Hardcover

At the turn of the twentieth century and in the four decades after, the Oklahoma town of Ponca City bustled with energy as Native Americans and the pioneers who made the Cherokee Strip Land Run of 1893 saw the influx of another era where oil would be the driving force for a young state. Amidst this background, a neighborhood full of children enjoyed a Never-Never Land as they explored the world around them. The joy they shared as they fished, played games and explored their surroundings during the Depresssion, Dust Bowl, and days preceding World War II remains with them to this day. Robert Clark Jr. was one of those privileged children, his father being an executive for Marland Refining Company. He was one of a handful of boys who freely roamed the 300 acre estate of E.W. Marland - a principal player in the oil industry. Mr. Clark has woven his memories into pleasurable tales peopled with a cast of local characters. These stories will bring back many memories to those who lived in this era, and those who grew up hearing about the times. It is an oft times humerous tale, as well as a poignant stroll through a community and region that might have been enjoyed in your own backyard, no matter where you lived in small town America. The Neighborhood will appeal to history buffs, the general populance and to all those who just enjoy a good read. It is the heyday of the oil boom, Depression, and Dust Bowl days of the Twenties and Thirties. The voices matured, as did some of their owners' forms of entertainment, but tucked deep down in the very soul of the boys who lived in the Acre Homes addition, an upscale area of the oil refining town, there forever remains a youthful joy of friends remembered before the events of World War Two changed their lives forever.