Just off U.S. Highway 183, on the shortgrass plains of Southwest Oklahoma, all that remains of the town of Babbs Switch is a blink-and-you-miss-it stone monument and a pair of picnic tables. But, on Christmas Eve 1924, nature, federalism, politics, crime, negligence, and Santa Claus himself conspired to create the perfect firestorm in the community six miles south of Hobart.
The blaze in the community's one-room schoolhouse catapulted little Babbs Switch onto the front page of newspapers in every major city in America. The Kiowa County tragedy spurred nationwide reform, saving millions of lives around the world. Yet few today realize that, when they send their children to school confident that the building is not a firetrap, they have the sacrifice of Babbs Switch to thank. The legacy of Babbs Switch, however, is not confined to legislation: it also launched a mystery that enthralled a nation for decades—one that continues to this day.
Justin C. Cliburn's upcoming book tells the true story of one of the Wild West's last boomtowns, a prophetic fire marshal, a penny-pinching legislature, a newlywed teacher, a horrified nation, and a relentless search for a missing girl, punctuated by a real-life phoenix, a nationally-televised reunion, and a journalist who valued honor and humanity over profit and prestige. It is a story of carelessness and indifference. Generosity and sacrifice. Hope and hopelessness. Redemption and second chances, and kindness and compassion.
The blaze in the community's one-room schoolhouse catapulted little Babbs Switch onto the front page of newspapers in every major city in America. The Kiowa County tragedy spurred nationwide reform, saving millions of lives around the world. Yet few today realize that, when they send their children to school confident that the building is not a firetrap, they have the sacrifice of Babbs Switch to thank. The legacy of Babbs Switch, however, is not confined to legislation: it also launched a mystery that enthralled a nation for decades—one that continues to this day.
Justin C. Cliburn's upcoming book tells the true story of one of the Wild West's last boomtowns, a prophetic fire marshal, a penny-pinching legislature, a newlywed teacher, a horrified nation, and a relentless search for a missing girl, punctuated by a real-life phoenix, a nationally-televised reunion, and a journalist who valued honor and humanity over profit and prestige. It is a story of carelessness and indifference. Generosity and sacrifice. Hope and hopelessness. Redemption and second chances, and kindness and compassion.
Do you have information on the fire, its aftermath, or the mystery surrounding Mary Elizabeth Edens?
Old photographs? Diaries? Notes? Stories passed down through your family?
Information about Babbs or Hobart in the 1920s?
Were your ancestors in the fire? Did they take part in relief efforts?
Please contact me.
Old photographs? Diaries? Notes? Stories passed down through your family?
Information about Babbs or Hobart in the 1920s?
Were your ancestors in the fire? Did they take part in relief efforts?
Please contact me.
For a full synopsis with spoilers, click below.
On Christmas Eve 1924, a Christmas presentation at a one-room schoolhouse near Hobart, Okla. turned deadly when a dry Christmas tree caught fire.
There were 36 confirmed deaths, but four-year-old Mary Elizabeth Edens could not be located.
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Over 30 years later, the mystery was seemingly solved when Grace Reynolds was identified as the long-lost Mary Elizabeth Edens.
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