Taken about 2 years ago, I shot this photo from my car as I was driving home from a job in Muskogee, Oklahoma. I don’t recall why but I got off the road in Checotah and drove through town. I had never seen an Odd Fellows Home and thought that it might be a shelter for local indigents.
This evening while surfing the web looking for information on this Odd Fellows Home, I found the following:
The land in this region had an abundance of wildlife and fertile soil. Cotton and grain, and orchards thrived. Much of the area also was grazeland for cattle. In 1901 the building was a home for orphans and elderly that was constructed on a 153-acre farm near Checotah. In 2001 the Oklahoma Odd Fellows Home at Checotah was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NR 01000660). It was also known as Odd Fellows Widows and Orphans Home.
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows “strive to make the world a better place in which to live, seeking To Improve and Elevate the Character of Mankind.” I could find very little information on this particular home but it appears that it is now privately owned and may still be used for the care of elderly. There were a few photographs on some of the geneology websites. Perhaps a phone call to the IOOF will result in some interesting facts and stories of this home. Maybe you know.
masterharper
July 20, 2011 at 6:59 am
So many of these kind of homes have disappeared
Bobby
July 20, 2011 at 7:52 am
Interesting history lesson. I wonder what it is used for presently…
NikkiMarie
November 28, 2011 at 2:56 pm
This place gives me the creeps. My boyfriend lives in Checotah and every-time I visit we pass this place once or twice and i always get chills… its a very “odd” place
brandy
January 21, 2012 at 8:37 pm
What I know of the home, it’s currently a mission outreach for the Homeless. They sell clothing , furniture, and other items. They have also been known to help citizens who can;t afford to pay their utilitites.
wildstorm
January 23, 2012 at 12:04 am
Thanks Brandy. I was sure it was used for some kind of charity. I appreciate your comment.
PAPA
March 8, 2012 at 11:07 am
YES WE ARE STILL HERE, BUT THEY CANT BELIEVE THAT WE ALL BECAME A SUCCESS IN LIFE . I WILL CONTACT YOU LATER WITH SUCCESS STORIES THAT ARE UNBELIEVABLE. , NIKKIMARIE, ONE OF THE HOME GIRLS FROM THAT CREEPY PLACE,WAS THE LEAD ARCHITECT FOR THE SUPER DOME IN HOUSTON AND IS A MULTI MILLIONAIRE .ONE OF THE HOME BOYS EMPLOYED OVER 500 PEOPLE IN THE OIL AND GAS BUSINESS AND WAS A MILLIONAIRE BY THE TIME HE WAS 30 YEARS OLD..BUT MORE IMPORTANT THAN ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD WAS TO HEAR SOMEONE CALL US MOM OR DAD SINCE WE NEVER HAD ONE AND WE KNEW YOU TOWN KIDS WERE SO RICH BECAUSE YOU HAD A MOTHER OR FATHER OR ANYONE TO JUST TOUCH YOU WITH LOVE BEFORE YOU WENT TO SLEEP
ONE OF THE HOME KIDS
rhonda posey
May 13, 2012 at 7:39 am
My dad was an odd fellow and when I was a kid we would go their and stay the night,have a lot of good memorys from this place. It seems I remember part of the home was a nursing facility for the elderly people.