One Sunday I was driving by the Ferguson Home Museum and noticed a man and woman looking at the home. I stopped to talk, and discovered they were from out of town (as most of our visitors are). They were originally from the upper Peninsula of Michigan as I recall, and I asked them how they found the Ferguson. To my surprise, they had seen a sign on the highway that directed them in the right direction.
That prompted me to think about the signage for the museum as an important component of having those 50,000 visitors in the first 15 years of the museum. I started looking and found three signs on major roads. I assume these old and faded signs were placed by the state of Oklahoma when the state owned the museum.
One is located on Highway 33 and Weigle and points north. Then there are smaller faded signs at 11th and Highway 8 and also one at 11th and Weigle. I have not found one on U.S. 281 coming from the south nor on U.S. 33 coming from the west. These are incredibly busy roads, and signs could direct tourists to the Ferguson.
At the Bikes and BarBQ a couple of years ago, we saw a large metal sign and bought it from a dealer from Guthrie. I suspect it originally had been on U.S. 281or U.S. 33. It is rusty and weathered but tells an important story. It now hangs at the museum. It would be so useful in directing tourists to the museum to spend a few hours and perhaps a few dollars in Watonga.
Since the city of Watonga owns the museum, perhaps the Street and Alley Department or Economic Development might help us with new signs or refurbishing the existing signs. Perhaps the state highway department would handle signs on the highways? The T.B. Ferguson Museum and Watonga will benefit from this improved signage and increased visitors.
Editor’s note: Because the museum does not charge a set fee for tours, it is ineligible for Watonga Economic Development Authority assistance, since it cannot show a direct economic impact on the city.