Episode 6 of our special weekly series celebrating the firm’s 70th anniversary.
(Please note: There is no audio in the above motion graphics.)
It’s hard to say what was in the minds of Mr. McAfee and Mr. Taft when they founded the firm in 1952, but it’s pretty safe to assume they weren’t thinking about the legacy they would leave or what the firm would look like several decades into the future, let alone into the 21st century. Chances are, they were just focused on serving clients well, believing that growth would come naturally.
And it did. By 2010, the firm had grown to more than 150 lawyers with offices in both Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
As the firm continued to move forward, it was inevitable that some things would fade away. Long-time oil and gas attorney Terry Barrett, who joined the firm as an associate in 1973, wanted to make sure that an appreciation of the firm’s history and legacy – the inheritance of everyone who had the privilege of working at McAfee & Taft – wasn’t one of them. And so, beginning in August 2010, Terry began sharing stories with everyone at McAfee & Taft about the firm’s early partners – Ken McAfee, Dick Taft, Stewart Mark, Reford Bond, Joe Rucks, Pete Woodruff, and Gene Kuntz. The email series was appropriately titled “Now, don’t you think you needed to know that?”
“With the tremendous growth of our firm over the last several years, many of you have not had a chance to fully appreciate some of the wonderful stories about the great lawyers that started this ball to roll and/or kept it rolling until we showed up,” wrote Terry. “There are some tidbits about them which belong only to us, for us to remember and to learn about, laugh about, or just to be proud about, as a child or grandchild might do about a great forefather.”
Not surprisingly, Terry’s email series sparked great interest within the firm, and other lawyers and staff quickly chimed in to share their own personal recollections and favorite memories. It was that 2010 collection of stories (and side stories) that would serve as the foundation for the firm’s current efforts to chronicle and preserve our firm’s history in both writing and images.
Seventy years after our founding, as we now celebrate McAfee & Taft’s platinum anniversary, we’ve got even more to reflect upon and to celebrate. And today we’re pleased to unveil www.mcafeetaft.life, a website dedicated to celebrating the people, stories, and events that have made McAfee & Taft what it is today. This is only the beginning. In the coming weeks and months (and yes, even years), we will continue to add more stories, more photos, and more memorabilia to our firm archives.
Now, don’t you think you needed to know that?