In the mid-1960’s, I was a student at Lincoln Elementary School in Tonkawa. The railroad tracks were the line in the sand between neighborhood schools. We at Lincoln Elementary were west of the tracks and students on the east went to Washington Elementary. We shared a relationship that mirrored the Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s. A fierce rivalry existed as if we lived in two neighboring towns. I discovered it when I went to the school cafeteria in the basement of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.To set the stage, Lincoln School is located on North 11th Street, approximately three blocks from the Catholic Church. (Junior high and high school students walked 6 blocks to lunch and then back.) Each day, our teacher gave us a small lunch ticket and sent us out the door in hopes we would make it to the church for lunch. This 6-year-old fell in line, walked the route, (which included crossing a street) and stood outside until I made my way down the basement stairs. While waiting, a bus approached from the east loaded with kids hanging out the window yelling, “Lincoln Stinkins”. I was offended until the Lincoln upperclassmen yelled back, “Washington Washtubs”. This daily ritual continued until the “New” cafeteria was built in the early 1970’s. We all know it as the cafeteria that to this day prepares food for the entire district.The new cafeteria brought about the union of the Stinkins’ and the Washtubs’. You see at this time, the schools were divided by grade level. Grades 1st-3rd went to Washington and grades 4th-6th went to Lincoln. This was the end of the long time rivalry. From this day on, we were all Buccaneers!In 1988, Tonkawa Elementary was built with a bond for approximately $1,000,000. The structure included classrooms, restrooms, and an office. There was no cafeteria, gym, library or safe room. Once again, students hit the streets and walked to lunch daily. The cross-country trip took us from TES to the cafeteria and back each day. One teacher charged with 60 hungry kids. The best strategy was to lead the pack as fast as one could without looking back. The return trip was equally as funfilled. This procedure continued until the 1990’s when a lunchroom was added on to TES.Fast-forward to today. The district looks somewhat different. Although the food is still prepared at the same site, Grades PK-5th eat all meals at Tonkawa ...
