The date has been set, the Oklahoma Humanities grant, and the Oklahoma Art Council grant confirmed, and plans made for the 19th annual Charlie Adams Day festival. Mark your calendars for September 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on the Kay County Courthouse lawn.Once again, there are a few folks out there scratching their heads saying, “Who was Charlie Adams – or do they mean Samuel Adams?” It really is Charlie and here is just a little history about this wonderful fellow and his famous horse, Good Luck.He was born near Albany, Kansas on August 31, 1875, and named Charles Francis Adams. He received a degree in pharmacy from the University of Kansas and opened a drug store in Newkirk in 1899 at the ripe age of 24. At about the same time, Adams patented Good Luck Liniment which consisted mainly of linseed oil. He always told his family that in addition to the ingredients listed on the label it also had a “secret” ingredient. Although the liniment label states “for veterinary use only” many Newkirk residents can attest to its healing powers on the human animal also. The label states that it “does not smart, burn or blister.” It does not, however, say anything about the odor.At a very early age, Adams fell in love with horses, particularly harness racehorses. He kept his horses in the barn behind his home at 421 North Walnut and maintained a practice track in the 800 block of West 8th in the block that is now home to Robert Stewart and Joe Anderson. He named his favorite trotter after the patent medicine and in 1941 Good Luck Liniment won more firsts than any trotter in the United States. He won every start he made over half mile tracks, winning 32 first, five seconds and two thirds. Good Luck was raised in the Kaw Country, eleven miles east and one and half north of Newkirk. Adams bought him there in 1937 when he was four years old. Good Luck had always paced in the pasture, but Adams shod him to trot and had him ready to start in 1940 but was rained out in almost every race meet that year. After his retirement, Adams entered most of the harness racing circuits in Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska During the war years, Adams and Good Luck were basically idle as far as races were concerned;
