Another woman we couldn ’ t forget , Charlotte Jenkins founded the Stephens County Historical Museum on Oct . 1 , 1969 , when the Stephens County Historical Museum was organized following the 75th Anniversary in Duncan on June 27 , 1967 .
Then , on May 30 , 1971 , the SCHM was dedicated at 816 Main . Just two years later , the museum moved on Jan . 30 , 1973 , to 916 Main .
For the final time , the SCHM move to the old armory , which is where it currently occupies space , on Sept . 4 , 1977 .
Several items remain on display of historical significance , such as the very first female police officer uniform in Duncan .
Williams said they will soon exhibit the first Black female police officer uniform in Duncan as well .
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CHARLOTTE JENKINS
GRIFFITH :
has hung in the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center , the Choctaw Nation Headquarters , the Veterans Hospital in Lawton , among other places . Brunetta ’ s series on the Leaders of the Five Civilized tribes was purchased for display in Washington , D . C . She is also known for painting several historical murals , one of which depicts early Rush Springs and hangs in the Rush Springs Library .
Brunetta also served as a longtime board member for the Oklahoma Historical Society and was selected as Outstanding Artist .
While we mentioned just a few of many amazing women from Stephens County ’ s history , another we must mention is the woman who now serves as our historian : Cova herself .
Williams said she came to the museum as director around nine and a half years ago after working at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center for 12 years .
Although she wanted to slow down a bit , Williams still wanted to be of assistance at the museum , so she rolled up her sleeves and did just that in October 2013 .
Williams noted one of the first things she updated was “ the Derrick ” at the museum .
“( It ) had a barn wood structure attached to it that was kind of like a dog house ,” she said . “( The ) paintings that Mr . Halliburton commissioned in the 30s and 40s were on the blue wall in the back ( of the museum ).”
Williams said she took down and claimed the art , then her son , who was a third generation
COVA WILLIAMS
Halliburton , built the new wall and pulled the paintings into the museum for a better view .
According to Williams , she managed to bring all of the Halliburton items together .
Willams said she has redone many of the cases to make the museum more cohesive , as well as redesigned the Hall of Fame room to bring more historically significant items to the museum .
“ We have a lot of history in Stephens County ,” she said . “ Stephens County was the top oil producing county in the state a number of times .”
Williams said they have the largest collection of Halliburton artifacts at the museum .
“ The Halliburton Company was started here over 100 years ago and still is one of the 10 largest in the world ,” she said .
The museum opens from 1-5 p . m . Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday and is located at 1402 W . Beech Ave . in Duncan .
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