G Wells [glw513@yahoo.com] August 2011

My name is Greg Wells and I am a personal friend to Joe McFadden and we teach history courses throughout Oklahoma City.

I would like to surprize Joe and during one of our classes talk about his father, who was the Chief of Police of Ponca City.

Any information that you could provide me, to include pictures would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!
I'm really sorry, but I have no idea about this. I don't even know who you are referring to, nor where I could possibly come up with pictures!!!

You didn't mention date wise, nor a year time wise, as to when this had taken place.

His name was Joe E. McFadden and he was the Chief of Police from 1935 to 1947!

Julia McKinstry [Talkingteacups@msn.com] November 2008

My name is Julia Lee McKinstry. My ggg was Levi Lee McKinstry who after the death of his first wife moved to Ponca, Noble, Newkirk areas of OK. I have his obit. I don't know much about his life in OK.What I am looking for is his brother Aaron's death certif. and obit. I know he purchased land in 1905 here in Newkirk. I know his sister Catherine moved back to Mattoon, IL and am pretty certain Aaron had died 1905 - 1910. She went everywhere with him. Aaron also married a very young girl when he lived in Topeka, Nellie M. Spawr. I can locate nothing on her either. I do not know if she went to Newkirk w/ him and if they had any children.

I can't help but wonder what the connection is to David McKinstry the Telephone entrp. there in Kay, Cty. Levi, his brothers Aaron and Robert and David were all in Topeka or Wichita and getting married around the same time. There has to be a relationship to David too.

If you can help I really would appreciate it. There are a number of us who are stuck!

Thanks a bunch!

Julia

Julia,
I have not found much, but what I did find is as follows:

Aaron [born Mar 1838 Ohio] and Catherine [born Mar 1826 Ohio] are in the 1900 Newkirk OK Census.

On the Oklahoma Historical Society's Newspaper index I found in the Oklahoma Times Jrnl, a Oklahoma City Newspaper July 31, 1895 Page 4 Col 4 Notice of publication of divorce Nellie vs Aaron McKinstry. I do not have access to the actual newspaper, but you can go to
http://www.okhistory.org/research/ and search their catalog or get the order blank to send for a copy. They do charge for this service.

In the Kay County Court Records there is a Criminal case for Aaron August 6, 1895 [probably why his wife filed for divorce] I have no idea what the case is about without going to the court house and looking thru the case papers. Case #CR-B5-00092. You can send for these records also, but they do charge for copies and would require a SASE.

I only found one McKinstry marriage application - in 1982 Larry Wm/Terri Sue Long, she married Ray Forrest Hogh III in 2000.

I did not find any McKinstry burials in any of the cemeteries inventoried so far. Ponca City IOOF and St Mary's are the only ones not completed. This is not to say that they are not buried in one of the cemeteries. Unfortunately All of the cemeteries have unmarked graves, without any existing record available.

If Aaron did die in Oklahoma in that time frame, it is highly unlikely that there would be a death certificate. Oklahoma didn't start keeping any kind of death records until 1908 and it wasn't manadory until 1917, but still remained sketchy until in the 1930-40's. Since all the area newspaper copies available have been researched and obits are online from the 1890's to 1908 it is highly unlikely that a obit can be found.

Concerning the David McKinstry connected with the telephone company. When he passed away his body was sent to Gardiner, New York...said to be his childhood home. When he passed in 1920 he still owned at farm there. Surviived by his wife Leona, a sister Maggie Merritt of NY City, a niece Gertie Speers of Indianapolis, IN, a nephew Fred Woolsey of Brooklyn, NY. He married Leona Herzer in Wichita, KS in 1903. Is he one of yours??

Feb 2, 1893 The Cherokee Advocate has a article about Robert McKinstry having the largest apple orchard in NY.

I hope this helps.