History of This Site

History of This Site. Land donation by Markham D. Ferrell. The land on which you are now standing is steeped in the history and tradition that is Oklahoma. Originally a part of the Creek Nation prior to statehood, this land supported a family grocery store along Route 66 for nearly four decades. Now it has become the new home of the historic Meadow Gold Sign., This property was originally deeded by the United States Government to the Creek (or Muscogee) Tribe of Indians (one of the Five Civilized Tribes) on August 11, 1852. President Millard Fillmore conveyed the land to the tribe as a result of a treaty signed nearly 20 years earlier on February 14, 1833. On May 24, 1901, the land was allotted to Clarissa Perryman Bell, who has half-blood Creek Indian. Two years later, on June 27, 1903, a Homestead Deed was granted to Clarissa Perryman Bell as part of her allotment of 40 acres of land. She and her husband John T. Bell used the land for agricultural purposes. The Bells sold the land to Stebbins Investment Company on July 9, 1914. On January 14, 1919, the land was annexed into the City of Tulsa., On October 14, 1934, during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, Robert W. Brinlee purchased this corner and established what would stand on the site for the next 40 years - the Brinlee Grocery and Market. The grocery store was witness to all that traveled "The Mother Road" through the City of Tulsa. As long as Route 66 passed by its door, Brinlee Grocery provided travelers on the "Main Street of America" with refreshments, food and supplies. After Route 66 was bypassed by the Interstate highway, the store remained open and continued to serve the surrounding residential neighborhoods and the occasional traveler of the old highway. In 1975, not long after 11th Street lost its designation as Business Route 66, the market closed. Four generations of the Brinlee family were proud to have been, in some small way, part of the history of the most famous road in America., On April 11, 1973, E. Ray Ferrell, Sr. of Ferrell Investment Company bought the corner to the west at 11th Street and Peoria Avenue, which was occupied by an office building. E. Ray Ferrell, Jr. purchased that site from his father on January 21, 1983. It was during 1983 that the building that housed the Brinlee Grocery and Market was demolished and the property was converted into a parking area. In June 2005, Markham D. Ferrell became the sole owner of this property and the corner to the west making him the third generation of the Ferrell family to own the property. , After learning that the Meadow Gold Sign needed a new home and concluding that it would be fitting for the Meadow Gold Sign to be erected one mile west of its original location along Historic Route 66, Markham D. Ferrell contacted the City of Tulsa Planning Department and offered to donate this site. Markham D. Ferrell donated the property to the City of Tulsa in November of 2007.