Bryant Ave namesake

[Swalell1960]

For whom or what is Bryant Avenue named?

[Martin]

i found maps from 1914, 1947, and 1953 that calls the street "foundry" from ne 63rd to se 44th. then, maps from 1960 and 1967 still use "foundry" around edmond, but "bryant" from ne 122nd to se 89th.

so... sometime in the 1950's, the name was changed. it's possible that it was somebody from that era.

[Martin]

i don't have any evidence, but maybe it was named for anita bryant... she had some level of popularity in the late 50's and early 60's, so it fits the timetable:

Anita Bryant - Wikipedia


edit: i see a 1956 reference to 'bryant ave' in the oklahoman, so i'm doubting this connection.

[Martin]

it's also possible that it shares the namesake of bryant school which was at ne 3rd and geary. i-235 now runs across that parcel. i'm not sure who the school was named after. i didn't see a 'bryant' on the 1889 oklahoma township plat map, so i'm ruling them out as the donor of the school land. consequently, the plats also do not show 'bryant' for any of the parcels near the present-day street.

Bryant School | Metropolitan Library System (metrolibrary.org)

Bryant School - Clio (theclio.com)

[Martin]

well... i think the answer is that there isn't a definitive answer. i finally found this article from 1956 in the oklahoman:

Attachment 18248

it seems that there were naming variations in different parts of town, inclduding 'foundry', 'bryan', 'bryant', and 'bryand'... if there was a clear answer to the original source of the name, i'd think that this would have been included in the article. the article quotes a city engineer who states that 'bryan' was the most generally accepted name, but that the mayor and a city councilman thought that 'bryant' had been used for many years.

[oklip955]

I've always wondered about Sorghum Mill in Edmond/north Okla county. Where was the mill?

[Midtowner]

I've always wondered about Sorghum Mill in Edmond/north Okla county. Where was the mill?

Sorghum would come from sugar cane which isn't grown here. So doubtful there was a sorghum mill anywhere in the area.

I think it's just a random name someone made up.

[Studying Okie]

Sorghum would come from sugar cane which isn't grown here. So doubtful there was a sorghum mill anywhere in the area.

I think it's just a random name someone made up.

Sorghum is a grain and is pretty commonly grown in Oklahoma... although it's often called "milo." Sorghum is not a byproduct of sugar cane.

[Midtowner]

Sorghum is a grain and is pretty commonly grown in Oklahoma... although it's often called "milo." Sorghum is not a byproduct of sugar cane.

Well my apologies! I'm just a city boy and I thought for sure the Sorghum I used to spread on my biscuits was a sugar byproduct.

Well anyhow.. I got a response from the Historical Society and they've passed my request on to a researcher.

[Studying Okie]

Well my apologies! I'm just a city boy and I thought for sure the Sorghum I used to spread on my biscuits was a sugar byproduct.

Well anyhow.. I got a response from the Historical Society and they've passed my request on to a researcher.

Thank you for the update - it would be awesome if there was an accessible database online with all the local street names and their namesakes.

[Swalell1960]

Well my apologies! I'm just a city boy and I thought for sure the Sorghum I used to spread on my biscuits was a sugar byproduct.

Well anyhow.. I got a response from the Historical Society and they've passed my request on to a researcher.

Thanks Mid, Studying, et all! My fam has lived off of what turned out to be Bryant since the land run. I’ve never heard anybody refer to it as anything other than Bryant… and those are some old memories.

Mostly just curious.

[Urbanized]

Well my apologies! I'm just a city boy and I thought for sure the Sorghum I used to spread on my biscuits was a sugar byproduct.

Well anyhow.. I got a response from the Historical Society and they've passed my request on to a researcher.

You're probably thinking of molasses, which DOES come from sugar cane. Sometimes folks might also call sorghum syrup molasses, and they do seem pretty similar before being refined. But as pointed out elsewhere sorghum is a grain, and it was grown pretty commonly in Oklahoma in the early 20th century. I'm sure there was an actual mill tied to the sorghum mill name. Would be fascinating to find out more about it.

Regarding Bryant, I did quite a bit of research on newspaper.com and found some interesting info that I typed into a post here, but got logged out and lost everything I'd typed. So I will have to double back and give it another shot soon.

[Bellaboo]

Sorghum would come from sugar cane which isn't grown here. So doubtful there was a sorghum mill anywhere in the area.

I think it's just a random name someone made up.

Sorghum was definitely grown here. I had a relative who died several years back at the age of 95. He claims he used to drive a horse drawn wagon to the Sorghum Mill plant south of Guthrie in the late 1930's.

[oklip955]

Sorghum is grown as a feed around here. Ok maybe no longer in the Edmond area but used to be and maybe a few that grow it and bail it up for cows. If mature it can be pressed to make sorghum syrup that is more of a southern thing. I think a few stores carry it. I have not tried it.

[Midtowner]

Sorghum is grown as a feed around here. Ok maybe no longer in the Edmond area but used to be and maybe a few that grow it and bail it up for cows. If mature it can be pressed to make sorghum syrup that is more of a southern thing. I think a few stores carry it. I have not tried it.

It's good stuff. I don't know why no one really buys it anymore. Probably because imitation syrup/high fructose corn syrup is so inexpensive.

I emailed the Edmond Historical Society re the main question of the thread. I'll let y'all know if they have anything.

[HangryHippo]

Thank you for the update - it would be awesome if there was an accessible database online with all the local street names and their namesakes.

Your username sure checks out.

[Swalell1960]

Thanks Derek!

Also, while poking around Logan County as a rail fan I noticed the BNSF ROW grade crossing at Academy that the signaling cabinet is labeled N Bryant, and is indeed on the same line as in Oklahoma County.

I wonder if that makes is an old ATSF reference or something?

[Swalell1960]

Whoa—Nice work, Urbs! That’s a whole new bit of NEside narrative to ponder.

Now I’m wondering if the bnsf Logan Co grade crossing predates the school.