Cushing museum

CUSHING, Okla. (AP) _ For the last 60 years Richard Dodrill has been collecting things like rocks and fossils. <br/><br/>Many years after he began collecting, it became an issue of what he was going to

Friday, May 21st 2004, 2:08 pm

By: News On 6

CUSHING, Okla. (AP) _ For the last 60 years Richard Dodrill has been collecting things like rocks and fossils.

Many years after he began collecting, it became an issue of what he was going to do with his vast collection. He wanted to be able to keep it together, he said, even if he died.

Dodrill and his wife decided the best way to do this was to open a museum, which they did at 123. S. Cleveland.

The museum is registered with the State of Oklahoma and the federal government, an action the Dodrills took so they could accept donations and donors could receive a tax credit. Registering also allows them to feature exhibits from different museums.

``We have fun with it,'' Dodrill said. ``And that is what you get out of life.''

While the museum serves as a legal means to keep his collection together, he said, it also provides a unique opportunity to work with children. He like to host children's groups at the museum, he said, as it provides the children a chance to lean something they don't know.

Children can walk through and look at a variety of different rocks, mineral and gemstones Some of the rocks have fossils.

A display case shows different fish fossils that Dodrill has found over the years. Some of the fish fossils and coral displays raise questions from children, especially when the fossil or coral is from Oklahoma or Kentucky, Dodrill said, adding that he explains to the children that earth used to be one big ocean.

His mineral collection also sparks a lot of questions from children, he said. One purple-white mineral in the display case is fluorite. Many of the children don't recognize it as the same mineral used in toothpaste, he said.

Fluorite, Dodrill said, is ground up into a white powder called fluoride and is commonly found in toothpaste and some municipal water systems.

It a child has a question that he can't answer, Dodrill said, he quickly looks up the answer. He has a small library of books and videos in the museum's conference room.

Dodrill's rock lessons are more than questions and answers and looking at examples in glass cases.

He has also set up a hands-on-area for the children. The section allows the children to touch rocks, crystals and minerals and feel their weight and texture.

One rock, Dodrill said, has a fossil in it. Children can examine the rock closely to find the small set of jaws lodged in the rock.

The hands-on area also features a pan filled with dirt and different rock types, which allows the children to get the basic feel of digging for a rock, Dodrill said.

While different rocks and fossils fill the main exhibit area, Dodrill's Museum has three other rooms. One focuses on minerals and gemstones and the other two focus on local, state and tribal histories.

One room is simply designated the Indian Artifact Room. Everything in the room, except for one shelf, is an American Indian artifact, Dodrill said. They range from arrowheads to peace pipes to even photographs of local tribes like the Sac and Fox.

Dodrill said one piece of jewelry was made by a Cherokee woman in the 1920. One of her family members donated it to the museum so it would be taken care of and be in one place.

After he opened his museum, Dodrill said, many older Cushing residents approached him about dedicating one room to Cushing history. He said he didn't have a problem doing that.

The room's contents include pictures of Cushing and the sign from the old Hudson refinery. He even has old curling irons, hair pins and doctor's kits. They fit into the local history because they were donated by local people, Dodrill said.

The room's focus has been expanded beyond just Cushing. Many of the materials in the room relate to Oklahoma history like pictures of Frank ``Pistol Pet'' Eaton and equipment from old oil rigs and pumps. An old pump sitting the corner, Dodrill said, created the familiar ``putt-putt-putt'' sound so many heard in the boom days.

Recently an individual donated several old tools, Dodrill said, including a hand drill dating back to the 1600s and a drill press from the mid-1800s.

Dodrill's Museum is open Tuesday through Friday, from noon to 4 p.m.