A HISTORY LESSON

Here's a bit of the history of Babcock's Store for you.

Babcock's Store was built in the fall and winter of 1983 and opened for business in April, 1984. It was built, owned, and operated by W.B. "Bill" Babcock and his wife, Joan.

We had retired from the "rat race" in Dallas, Texas and moved to the small rural community of Octavia, Oklahoma in 1982. With nothing to do but fish and hunt, (not a bad thing, actually), however, I decided it was time to go back to work.

Using lumber that had formerly been the old Studebaker Wagon assembly plant in Wills Point, Texas which was originally built in 1882, Babcock's Store finally evolved into a 4500 sq. ft. two-story "tourist trap". The outside appearance was enough to stop the travelers along Hwy. 259, but it was inside the store where the magic happened.

Along with an ample amount of affle-gaffle from the owner (Bill, not Joan), the store boasted an "ol' time soda fountain" which served up malts, shakes, ice cream sodas, and sundaes like you used to get at the corner ice cream parlor. We didn't need gas pumps out front. Once our customers tasted a treat from the soda fountain, they rarely passed by without stopping.

Gifts and gadgets were the main features of Babcock's Store. Our motto was "if you don't have it, you can find it here." We prided ourselves on NOT handling anything a person actually needed. It could be in the antique cases that lined the main floor, hanging on one of the huge beams holding the whole thing up, hung from the ceiling, or hidden under a table. There was stuff EVERYWHERE! There were: coonskin caps, snap-its, OK souvenirs, whooie sticks, doodads, antiques, Smokey Mountain music tapes and CDs, "jams and jellies for your bread", and on and on and on.

The store hours posted on the gate out front were: "Open when the gate is. Closed, ditto." We were closed most major holidays anyway, as there were really more people stopping by than we could handle.

Well, enough history for this post. Will add more later when time permits, and my old brain recollects some more "fascinating" tales of Babcock's Store.