Someone recently posted a link to a thread started in Apr 2009. I didn't know this forum was that old. So when did OKC Talk first start? Was there an official start date and can anyone post a link to the very first post? Pete?

I joined 2006. I think the forum as it is has been around since at least 2004, but my understanding is the community spun off from some other board or BBS thing going back to maybe even the 90s?

My first post is from 2005 and I know it had been going 2-3 years before.

I bought the site from the original owners somewhere around 2008.

Oh I thought you started it.

My first post is from 2005 and I know it had been going 2-3 years before.

I bought the site from the original owners somewhere around 2008.

Malibu....

Oh I thought you started it.

No, I was living in California at the time and started to post a bit because I wanted to stay on top of what was happening here.

Eventually, I became a moderator and I told the owner -- a guy who started it but never posted or really cared about the site -- that I might like to buy it. It wasn't long before he took me up on my offer and I paid way, way too much for something that only had expense and no revenue.

But I felt like it could become something and just kept at it and then after a while, the whole thing blew up. The rest is history!

BTW, this is a good time to mention that I keep a database of site analytics; things like unique visitors and page views.

OKCTalk has higher traffic than ever and we have much more on social media where we are getting ready to pass 250,000 followers across all platforms.

The TV stations have more social followers but OKCTalk gets many multiples of their engagement (likes, shares, views) than anyone in the state outside of official accounts of sports (Thunder, OU, OSU).

I have two primary missions: 1) Get people excited about all the great things happening here; and 2) be an independent voice that is unafraid of speaking truth to power and identifying corruption and scammers.

i think i started looking at the site in like 2009. but didn't create an account and start contributing till 2012

I joined this site about the same time as I joined TulsaNow, in late 2003 to talk about the Tulsa Vision project. This isn't my original user account, though my user name is the same. I stopped posting here for a couple of years when certain posters seemed take over that had a particular political bent. I came back under the very fake name of user name of swakeII before restarting this user name back in 2012.

My understanding is this site was built when the city of OKC shut down a city based board. I never was on that site, but joined here very quickly after it was founded. There were very few users back then. I can't recall the old owners name, but Patrick posted probably half of everything on the site at that time. Other users back then were Metro, Kerry, Mr Anderson, Spartan. Midtowner was here back then as well. My memory is that Pete was Malibu.

If you look at my join date, it's within a few months of the place starting.

If you look at my join date, it's within a few months of the place starting. That was 9-15-2004.

So I just passed my 20th year as a member and not so much as a hello.

If you look at my join date, it's within a few months of the place starting. That was 9-15-2004.

So I just passed my 20th year as a member and not so much as a hello.

well if it helps i pulled the 2004 number out in my post because your join date was the oldest i could find in a quick search

So I just passed my 20th year as a member and not so much as a hello.

well... that just kind of snuck up, happy 20th year to you. your celebratory plaque and commemorative set of okctalk steak knives might have gotten lost in shipment.

pete have you ever thought about doing a interview and talking about the history of this website? i find it very interesting and i think many others would agree

pete have you ever thought about doing a interview and talking about the history of this website? i find it very interesting and i think many others would agree

I once was a guest on a podcast where we got into all that, but it's no longer online.

I've grown to like being somewhat of a mystery! I'd rather leave people with the impression OKCTalk is a vast operation. haha

I’ve lurked almost daily since 2006 when I was in college. There were a few dramatic members back then that kept me from wanting to post and engage, and I do remember them also having meetups. Also the old banners before Devon, which this was the place to get the inside scoop on the tower before everyone else did. I still remember the Gazette with the originally proposed height rendering & okctalk being the only place to collectively talk about it and it became that for all the other things that momentum brought during the 10s when OKC was rapidly changing.

…My understanding is this site was built when the city of OKC shut down a city based board. I never was on that site, but joined here very quickly after it was founded. There were very few users back then. I can't recall the old owners name, but Patrick posted probably half of everything on the site at that time. Other users back then were Metro, Kerry, Mr Anderson, Spartan. Midtowner was here back then as well. My memory is that Pete was Malibu.
I believe this is accurate. I think the original board was a part of OKC.gov, but the City’s PIO decided it was too burdensome/tricky to manage and moderate, so the BBS that is now OKCTalk was spun off to a private entity.

I started lurking. I hate that word. In around 2008 and joined in 2010. So I've been around for more of the forum's life than I realized.

I believe this is accurate. I think the original board was a part of OKC.gov, but the City’s PIO decided it was too burdensome/tricky to manage and moderate, so the BBS that is now OKCTalk was spun off to a private entity.

I think that's accurate. Mick Cornett was a participant very early on, but found the place to be too negative.

This was early on in the days of the internet when PIOs and such did not yet know the full terrors of an unbridled comments section.

In the early days, the original owners and moderators created fake accounts and posted as Tom Ward and other prominent locals.

They didn't know how to build traffic any other way.

This brings up an interesting point of conversation.

Pete, have you ever looked into not only archiving this site, but the content of the many various and important links that are found in the discussions?

I read an article earlier this month that really got me thinking about this site and so many others
Business Insider Digital Dark Ages Article (https://www.businessinsider.com/digital-dark-ages-internet-history-old-websites-disappearing-link-rot-2024-10?fbclid=IwY2xjawGHXvdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHf2qOGt4MX HcBKndOiVi5rd5cMHy6cLgSJ2k_kl0zdDMx6en9eXP_h_ASw_a em_1P07RReN9IC4cRmqyRBDDw)

i think i started looking at the site in like 2009. but didn't create an account and start contributing till 2012

Similar but about a year earlier on both. I pretty sure the Devon Tower announcement was what got me here.

If you look at my join date, it's within a few months of the place starting. That was 9-15-2004.

So I just passed my 20th year as a member and not so much as a hello.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWlPd3vuY2w

Similar bur about a year earlier on both. I pretty sure the Devon Tower announcement was what got me here.

It's amazing to look through that Devon Energy Center thread, as we were all over it before it was even announced, had all the renderings and then literally thousands of construction progress photos, along with a webcam.

Strange to see photos of construction ending with the old I-40 still in place.

There are over 12,000 posts on that thread alone, and over 1.2 million on the site overall since inception.

Similar bur about a year earlier on both. I pretty sure the Devon Tower announcement was what got me here.

it was the Devon Tower for me too... so maybe it was 2008.

Searched for the oldest threads with at least one reply, looks like the first one was April of 2004.

First Thread I could find: https://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=5&highlight=

Interesting one about ownership: https://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=57&highlight=

Search for oldest threads: https://www.okctalk.com/search.php?searchid=11247793&pp=

Also of note, HOTROD & BG918 have Midtowner beat by a few months (7/2004). TStheThird is the oldest member who is still active (was on today!) and joined on 6/6/2004.

Member search by join date: https://www.okctalk.com/memberlist.php?s=&securitytoken=1729816565-739f76d0e09dac3e8f4f490a107968f77c928461&do=getall&ausername=&homepage=&field1=&field3=&field4=&icq=&aim=&msn=&yahoo=&skype=&postslower=&postsupper=&joindateafter=&joindatebefore=&lastpostafter=&lastpostbefore=&sort=joindate&order=&perpage=

^

Yeah, it was Todd (original owner), Patrick, and Keith were the moderators; I was added a couple of years later.

Todd was never very active or interested; he only had like 500 total posts.

When you click on a name in that Member search by join date link the number in the URL is the order of them signing up. That is true for a lot of forums. So even that first name in that list, Karried is #23 so there were 22 others that joined before that person. In April of 2004 I wasn't much into forums other than a couple that had to do with my car hobby. I didn't get my first smart phone until May, 2011 which was an iPhone 4. My wile was insisting that we didn't need them and now she uses hers more than I do.

^

Karried was also a moderator and continued to serve in that role for a while after my purchase.

I'm glad I started this thread. So much about this site I didn't know.

It's funny to think I ran this site from Southern California for about a decade, and it taking off was one of the primary reasons I moved back.

I've told this story many times, but it fits here...


I would come back to OKC about once a year, usually around Christmastime, and of course I always had a list of things I wanted to go check on and photograph. Each successive year that list became longer and longer to the point it was hard to squeeze everything in.

A big part of me wanted to move back but I was pretty deliriously happy in SoCal and had been out there two decades. I loved California as much as anyone could love it, so it was very, very hard to think about leaving.

Then, on one of my trips back, I was sitting at the bar at Slaughter's Hall (now closed in Deep Deuce) and I started a conversation with a couple visiting from out of town. I happily told them about all the great things they should see and do and they were already impressed with the area.

As I was talking to them I noticed the female bartender -- the type of person you'd usually think was so cool they hated absolutely everything, especially Oklahoma -- and she had what appeared to be '405' tattooed on her arm. I had to ask, "Is that the *area code* on your biceps??" And this tragically hip young woman said, "Yes. There is a whole group of us that have them. Young creatives that really love OKC."

And that was it. I knew I had to be physically present and contribute to moving things forward.

About two years later, I did the reverse Grapes of Wrath (after literally crying tears as I pulled out of my old driveway for the last time). That was eight years ago this week!

That is a great story.

So were you retired when you moved back or just quit your job and move?

It's funny to think I ran this site from Southern California for about a decade, and it taking off was one of the primary reasons I moved back.

I've told this story many times, but it fits here...


I would come back to OKC about once a year, usually around Christmastime, and of course I always had a list of things I wanted to go check on and photograph. Each successive year that list became longer and longer to the point it was hard to squeeze everything in.

A big part of me wanted to move back but I was pretty deliriously happy in SoCal and had been out there two decades. I loved California as much as anyone could love it, so it was very, very hard to think about leaving.

Then, on one of my trips back, I was sitting at the bar at Slaughter's Hall (now closed in Deep Deuce) and I started a conversation with a couple visiting from out of town. I happily told them about all the great things they should see and do and they were already impressed with the area.

As I was talking to them I noticed the female bartender -- the type of person you'd usually think was so cool they hated absolutely everything, especially Oklahoma -- and she had what appeared to be '405' tattooed on her arm. I had to ask, "Is that the *area code* on your biceps??" And this tragically hip young woman said, "Yes. There is a whole group of us that have them. Young creatives that really love OKC."

And that was it. I knew I had to be physically present and contribute to moving things forward.

About two years later, I did the reverse Grapes of Wrath (after literally crying tears as I pulled out of my old driveway for the last time). That was eight years ago this week!

I remember interacting with you years ago, particularly when I first joined (late 2009/early 2010) wondering how/why an Okie transplant in California was running a popular okc based forum.

After all this time I’m glad to finally learn the story. ��

So were you retired when you moved back or just quit your job and move?

I had effectively retired long before moving back.

Or I should say, I stopped working for other people in 2001. I've done tons of different things since then, just completely on my own terms and not always for much money.

I was just curious as to how long I've been a member....almost from the beginning. Join Date04-22-2005

Those were interesting times. Yeah, Pete is right. Todd started the site, and Keith, Karrie, and myself were the original moderators. We had started on the OKC.gov "Talkback" forum. Keith was a city employee. I was just an OKC junkie that was in college. Hot Rod was from OKC but moved to Seattle, still interested though. Karrie was a realtor I believe. Laramie, Kerry Decker, and Earnest were also originals. Once Gilmore was released as city webmaster, Talkback ended and we moved to a forum on the Oklahoman site. It was later closed, and Brian Bates briefly hosted us on OklahomasOwn. We then later moved to this site, originally started by Todd Reagor, who was a web guy on the side and district manager for the Oklahoman during the day. My only connections were Mick Cornett and Steve Lackmeyer, so the site definitely lacked content.

Once Pete bought the site, he had a vested interest in growing it so he really grew it into what it is today. He also got the in position with a lot of developers and city officials.

This is actually my re-created account. I left the site soon after Pete bought it. But my interest in OKC remains. Now that I have a "real" job I just don't have the time anymore. So I lurk from time to time.

As Pete said, the only real city official on the site in the beginning was Mick Cornett. He was a childhood friend of my dad's, and came to the site mostly to appease me. Todd and I actually met with Mick regularly back in those days. Midtowner is right though.....he became less interested as the forum became more negative.

BTW, my first post was on 7/6/2004. Todd started the site shortly before then. It was the "roll call" post which still remains active today. It's in the announcements section

I was talking with my friend one day about OKC Talk and he told me he built the site. I kept asking him "are you sure it was okctalk?" He was very certain.

As Pete said, the only real city official on the site in the beginning was Mick Cornett. He was a childhood friend of my dad's, and came to the site mostly to appease me. Todd and I actually met with Mick regularly back in those days. Midtowner is right though.....he became less interested as the forum became more negative.

But Todd is right in that you impersonated Tom Ward for a bit, so he's at least half right there, eh?

Those were interesting times. Yeah, Pete is right. Todd started the site, and Keith, Karrie, and myself were the original moderators. We had started on the OKC.gov "Talkback" forum. Keith was a city employee. I was just an OKC junkie that was in college. Hot Rod was from OKC but moved to Seattle, still interested though. Karrie was a realtor I believe. Laramie, Kerry Decker, and Earnest were also originals. Once Gilmore was released as city webmaster, Talkback ended and we moved to a forum on the Oklahoman site. It was later closed, and Brian Bates briefly hosted us on OklahomasOwn. We then later moved to this site, originally started by Todd Reagor, who was a web guy on the side and district manager for the Oklahoman during the day. My only connections were Mick Cornett and Steve Lackmeyer, so the site definitely lacked content.

Once Pete bought the site, he had a vested interest in growing it so he really grew it into what it is today. He also got the in position with a lot of developers and city officials.

This is actually my re-created account. I left the site soon after Pete bought it. But my interest in OKC remains. Now that I have a "real" job I just don't have the time anymore. So I lurk from time to time.

As Pete said, the only real city official on the site in the beginning was Mick Cornett. He was a childhood friend of my dad's, and came to the site mostly to appease me. Todd and I actually met with Mick regularly back in those days. Midtowner is right though.....he became less interested as the forum became more negative.

Hi Patrick! Good to see you still on the forum. Wasn't there a time when we were also on the Oklahoman forum? I can't remember if that was before or after the city closed down; I suspect before since we all came over to OKC Talk after the city shut down. If that is the case, then we originals started at the Oklahoman then migrated to the city then finally to OKC Talk.

I wanna say the Oklahoman forum was around during the millenium/1998ish or when internet forums were getting started - I noticed OKC didn't have a presence so when I found (the Oklahoman) I was immediately on-board. Correct me if Im wrong on the timing ...

Anyway - good to hear about the early start of OKC internet forums and the old timers, and the OKC talk originals.

Hi Patrick! Good to see you still on the forum. Wasn't there a time when we were also on the Oklahoman forum? I can't remember if that was before or after the city closed down; I suspect before since we all came over to OKC Talk after the city shut down. If that is the case, then we originals started at the Oklahoman then migrated to the city then finally to OKC Talk.

I wanna say the Oklahoman forum was around during the millenium/1998ish or when internet forums were getting started - I noticed OKC didn't have a presence so when I found (the Oklahoman) I was immediately on-board. Correct me if Im wrong on the timing ...

Anyway - good to hear about the early start of OKC internet forums and the old timers, and the OKC talk originals.

We started on city hall's forum. They had a forum on their website called Talkback. They closed it because they decided it wasn't worth the effort. That was in the late 90's.

We migrated to a forum on The Oklahoman's website called the MAPS Forum. They eventually closed it for the same reason as the city.

We then migrated to Brian Bates' OklahomasOwn forum. Most of us left there when we found OKCTalk. I joined OKCTalk in July of 2004 under the same name but different accont (I asked for my account to be deleted when Todd sold the site) . Todd Reagor originally developed EdmondTalk as the initial site. But then he later decided to expand it. His goal was to have a separate site for every city in the metro. It clearly wasn't his interest and he was doing it m ore as an investment opportunity and hobby.

He sold the site to Pete. Pete has really been the one that has developed it into what it is.

And Midtowner, I honestly can't remember if Tom Ward was a fictional character (I'm sure he was) but Todd did encourage us back then to generate content by developing fictional characters. Mick Cornett and Steve Lackmeyer were always legit on the site though.

A lot has changed since then. I was in my early 20's and in undergrad and had lots of free time. I'm now in my mid 40's, have a family, and a professional career that require a lot of my time.

well documented, and I too am in a somewhat similar (but older) boat as your situation. Cheers!