The 2019 high school football season is upon us and not many more teams are ready to get the year kicked off Friday night than the Pawhuska Huskies.


Pawhuska held a scrimmage against Nowata and Tulsa Union's JV last week. Coach Matt Hennesy liked what he saw, but added that it was good being able to knock the rust off before the first game of the year.


Pawhuska's first game is a home contest against Kellyville. The Ponies graduated 20 seniors a year ago and they have a first year head coach in Joe Brown. Hennesy expects a tough game regardless.


Kellyville went 8-4 a year ago. Kickoff from Ormond Beach Memorial Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m.
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The Osage County Sheriff's Office is working in conjunction with the Bartlesville Police Department after the Sheriff's Office received a phone call from a landowner who had located a deceased man along highway 123 and county road 2300.


At this time, the man hasn't been identified and the death is suspicious in nature. Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden says this is an ongoing investigation.


We will have more on this story when updates become available.

A substitute teacher at Pawhuska Elementary School made a threat toward a student Thursday morning. Superintendent David Cash explains the sequence of events that led to Nancysu Herron's arrest later in the afternoon.


Cash wants to be clear that this kind of behavior will not be tolerated at Pawhuska Public Schools.


This is the second threat made against Pawhuska Schools in the last week. Former Pawhuska student Justin Boone threatened to shoot up the school last Thursday.

The Bartlesville Redevelopment Trust Authority met for its monthly meeting at city hall Wednesday afternoon. Director Chris Wilson talked about the possibility of adding living spaces to downtown Bartlesville.


The group who performed this study will be back in September to share the results and say what the next step of action should be.


Wilson also stated that he believes Crossing on Second should be open by the new year. This is a wine bar set to open up downtown.


The board also accepted the July 2019 financial reports. Debbie Mueggenborg said with it being the first month of the fiscal year, there wasn't much to report. 

Hominy EMS has officially switched over to the Osage County Dispatch System. If you live in the Hominy area and need an ambulance, please call 911.


When dialing the Hominy Police Department requesting an ambulance, you will be re-directed to the Osage County Sheriff's Office. Hominy EMS encourages you to skip that step and call 911 because every second counts in an emergency.


You can still reach the Hominy Police and Fire Department. This will have no effect on their day-to-day operations. The number to reach the police department is 918-885-4545 and the number to reach the fire department is 918-885-2328.

Pawhuska High School will be holding a blood drive tomorrow inside the lobby of the field house for anyone who is able to make it. You may sign up at the high school office or at OBI.org.


Everyone who participates will receive a coupon for a free honey butter chicken biscuit from Whataburger. There will also be T-shirts available while supplies last.


The event runs from 8:30 in the morning until 2 in the afternoon. Participants must have a photo ID with them when signing up.

The Bartlesville Redevelopment Trust Authority will meet for a regularly scheduled meeting Wednesday afternoon to discuss items dealing with the budget.


The board will first review and look to accept the July financial report. They will also consider approving an amendment to the 2020 fiscal year BRTA budget.


The Executive Director will give a report on activities going on in TIF's 1 and 2 as well. That meeting begins at 3:30 in the afternoon at City Hall for anyone interested in attending.

The Board of Osage County Commissioners met for a regularly scheduled meeting at the courthouse in Pawhuska and got a number of things accomplished. 
Executive Director for Tourism in Osage County, Kelly Bland, was at the meeting. Bland said things have been going well across the county and that she has seen a lot of tourism dollars come into the county. She was also there requesting money for various events upcoming in the county. 
The Board granted Bland $1,100 for Heritage Days, which will take place in Fairfax in October. She also received $1,500 to be used for the National Indian Taco Championship, which will take place in Pawhuska. That event will also take place in October. Bland also received funds for the Roy Clark Run for Special Needs Barrel Race and the Pioneer Cutting Horse Association event. 
Randall Jones worked up a list of items regarding what the job description and duties of the Osage County Fairgrounds Manager would be. It was noted that the list he gave out needs to be condensed within the next week.   
The commissioners signed a service agreement with Guy Engineering Services Inc. to make embankment repairs along Holt Rd. in District Two. The commissioners also selected Lucas Buildings to make improvements to a shop in District one over in McCord. They were the lowest bidder at just over $34,000. 
Delores Covington was appointed to a two-year term as a tenant commissioner of the Housing Authority of Osage County. 
The next regularly scheduled Board of Osage County Commissioners meeting will be next Monday at 10 o' clock in the morning. 

The Blackburn bridge connecting Osage to Pawnee county in District Three was damaged to the point where no cars are able to cross that bridge. At the Board of Osage County Commissioners Meeting, the commissioners met with three different engineering firms to see who would fit best in making the road repairs. EST Inc, Kellogg Engineering and Guy Engineering were all there to state their case.


EST Inc. made the case that they would want to do a hydraulic test study to see what caused the bridge to fall apart. They also said they would be able to start on the project immediately.


Kellogg Engineering is currently doing a project along Oologah Lake that is very similar to the work that would need to be done along the Blackburn bridge. This firm made the case that they are already on call for two of the three districts in the county, which proves that they have good accessibility. They believed that the best way to prevent this from happening again is to lower the fuse plug.


Guy Engineering was the last firm to speak. They were the ones who worked on the initial project. Darren McKinney, who represents district three where the collapse occurred, let the representative know he wasn't pleased with the amount of help their company showed after the collapse. The representative did say they would be able to start on the project whenever necessary and that they would want to do a full inspection of the embankments.


The commissioners will wait until next week to make a decision on which firm to pick.

A Bartlesville man was arrested Thursday morning on charges of possession of paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and a felon being in possession of a firearm.
Ronald Viles was the passenger in a vehicle that got pulled over at 420 SW 14th Street. The officer noticed Viles making furtive movements in the vehicle. He was also slightly bent over and stuffing something into the seat or floorboard.
When waiting for the driver, William McGuire, to get his driver’s license and insurance information, the officer asked Viles what he had been stuffing into the seat. Viles advised that he had dropped his lighter and that he was picking it up.
When Viles spoke, the officer noticed that Viles’ artery in his neck was pulsing very hard and that he was almost hyperventilating. Viles would not make eye contact with the officer. These were all signs that something illegal may be in the car.
The officer called for backup so that K-9 Officers could see if anything illegal was in the car. Upon arrival, they immediately ran to the vehicle. Under the passenger seat was a red, “hyper tough” bag. Inside the bag was a black .357 magnum Llama revolver loaded with six hollow point bullets. In the glove box, the officer found two plastic baggies with a green, leafy substance. This was later identified as marijuana. Officers also found two backpacks and in the backpacks, officers found a glass meth pipe, two syringes, scales and plastic baggies.
Viles, along with another passenger, Diana Fritchie were both read their Miranda Rights. The officer asked Fritchie who the gun, drugs and backpacks belonged to. She claimed the backpack, but said the drugs and gun were McGuire’s. Fritchie is also being charged with possession of paraphernalia.
Viles’ bond was set at $7,500.