Socialite, ex-judge and oil baron, and WWI Army pilot find themselves as characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald-like drama

One of the hardest things about being an amateur historian and chronicler of stories throughout our region is tracing back the histories of women, especially those born in the 19th century. 

The reasons for the difficulty in producing stories about females of the era are diverse. Considering the fact that women didn't even have the right to vote until 1918 in Oklahoma, females, for the most part, were treated as little more than domestic partners for the breadwinning men. 

In addition, the fact that when women did marry they lost their maiden names can also be a hindrance to researching individual women. In fact, unless their accomplishments were well documented or their efforts played a big part in our historical fiber, sadly the legacy of a lot of women, even into the 1940s, was in the role of mother and homemaker.

Rarely, in my walks through the various cemeteries throughout the region, do I stumble on to a headstone for a female that is not next to the monument of her husband that leads to any hint of information that results in an Arklahoma Heritage or Stone Garden feature story. 

But it happens, as evidenced by this wild tail from the Roaring Twenties that includes jealousy, mayhem, illegal alcohol, murder, and political shenanigans.

In Poteau's Oakland Cemetery is a tombstone marking the grave of Aubye Emma Oates Day, who was born April 15, 1878 in Paris Texas. The daughter of John and Eliza Oates, Aubye moved to Poteau at the age of 20 in 1898.

In 1889, 100,000 people came from all over the United States to take part in the Oklahoma Land Rush. One of those Sooners was an ambitious young man by the name of Jean Prentiss Day who, at the age of 25, decided to leave his home in Webster County, Mississippi to seek one of the free parcels of land the government was handing out after dividing up the old Indian Territory. 

J.P. Day ended up as a resident of Choctaw, Oklahoma which is approximately 10 miles east of Oklahoma City. Within a year, J.P. had met and married Aubye Oates, who he managed to romance despite the 184 miles between their hometowns. (One story says the couple actually met on a train while Aubye was traveling to Oklahoma City to visit a relative.) 

The first child was born to the couple in 1901. J.P. went on to become a successful attorney and climbed the political rungs from being an Assistant County Prosecutor, through a circuit court judgeship and eventually earning a spot on the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

After leaving the Supreme Court, Judge Day made a fortune in the oil business. Politically connected, and considered among the top movers and shakers in Oklahoma County, the couple bought a pricey house in the highbrow Mesta Park area (901 NW 17th St) of the city where they threw lavish parties and entertained a number of guests.  

One of those guests was an aviation pioneer in the United States Army and one of the first military pilots. Paul Ward Beck, who eventually advanced all the way to the rank of lieutenant colonel, back was one of the four students in the first class of US Army and US Navy pilot trainees in 1911. 

Returning to the Infantry in compliance with an Army regulation in 1912 he served as a field-grade infantry officer in World War I before returning to aviation as part of the Air Service in 1920. On May 1, 1922 he was named commandant of the Air Service Observation School and assistant post commander of Post Field at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

The guy was a big deal. He has his own Wikipedia page.

The post in Fort Sill put him back in touch with his old friend Judge Day and Lieutenant Commander Beck became part of the Day social circle that included politicians, businessmen, government workers, and their spouses. 

Now that you've been introduced to the cast, here comes the drama. 

Approximately six weeks after Lieutenant Commander Beck took over his command at Fort Sill he made the run from Lawton to Oklahoma City to spend the day with his old friend. In fact, on April 3, 1922, Judge Day returned home from work to find Beck waiting for him on his porch.

According to information from The Oklahoman’s online archives, .Aubye Day was at a friend’s house, so Beck waited outside for the judge to arrive from work. The two went inside and had a few pints of “home brew” that the judge managed to procure.

Skirvin Hotel

Prohibition had been in effect for two years, but then (as now) rules and laws don't always apply equally to the different ends of the economic and political spectrum.

 For men like Judge Day, it was a "wink-wink" competition between gentlemen as to who could procure the highest quality liquor. So, the men went into the house and imbibed before the time came to pick up Aubye and proceed to the Skirvin Hotel for dinner. At dinner, Beck invited the couple to a movie at the Orpheum Theater later that evening.

Ironically, the movie he suggested, “Black Is White,” was the story of how a husband’s jealousy destroyed a marriage.

Judge Day was not a fan of the cinema and declined, saying he had to return to the office and finish up some work. But he insisted the two go ahead without him. and Beck and Aubye Day left for the Orpheum while Judge Day went back to his office.

Hours later, the judge returned to the hotel to collect his wife but was given a note from Beck saying the two had gone to the “Prichard’s house” and that he should join them there. When Judge Day got to the Prichard's home, "people were singing and dancing and whiling away some nice hours after a day’s work.”

At some point around Midnight, the party moved to the Day residence and "the rugs were pulled up and the fun continued", until someone realized the next day was a workday and the festivities started to wind down.

Ever mindful of his guests, Judge Day volunteered to drive a few of the more inebriated home and asked Aubye and Beck if they wanted to ride along. She begged off because of “aching feet,” and Beck volunteered to “stay and keep her company.”

They also might have taken into consideration the fact the judge himself was as drunk as the people he was taking home. Or maybe they just wanted some "time alone".

After some more adventures and late-night stops for more refreshments, the judge returned to his home somewhere around 3:30 a.m. Upon reaching the porch, Judge Day peered through the widow saw his "friend" Beck and his wife on the sofa, with one arm around her shoulders and one hand on her knee.

The euphemism he used later in court was the couple was "scuffling".

Push came to shove and eventually, Judge Day called Beck a " damnable cur” and ordered him from the house. This after going upstairs and getting his handgun.

This is where the story lines get blurred.

Day told the Grand Jury Beck put up his hands and approached him as though he wanted to fight . Day said he pulled back the gun intending to strike Beck with the butt of it.

He said as he swung the gun Wyatt Earp-style , Beck moved his head to avoid the attack and hands to ward off the anticipated blow, the barrel deflected and hit his head...and the weapon "accidentally" went off.

The judge was arrested but, long story short, was later cleared of any wrongdoing. The body of Beck was taken by train and buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

Less than two years later, the judge and Aubye divorced, and she moved back to Poteau to live with her daughter. She never remarried and died in LeFlore County at the age of 39.

The good judge stayed in Oklahoma City, eventually remarrying. He died at the Presbyterian Hospital in Oklahoma City in 1964.

His obituary left out the part about catching his wife and "good friend" doing the "wild thang"shortly before he "accidentally" shot the war hero in the head.