Francisco
Vásquez de Coronado first explored the region for Spain in 1541. The U.S.
acquired most of Oklahoma in 1803 in the Louisiana Purchase from France; the Western
Panhandle region became U.S. territory with the annexation of Texas in 1845.
Set
aside as Indian Territory in 1834, the region was divided into Indian Territory
and Oklahoma Territory on May 2, 1890. The two were combined to make a new state,
Oklahoma, on Nov. 16, 1907.
On
April 22, 1889, the first day homesteading was permitted, 50,000 people swarmed
into the area. Those who tried to beat the noon starting gun were called “Sooners,”
hence the state's nickname.
Oil
made Oklahoma a rich state, but natural-gas production has now surpassed it. Oil
refining, meat packing, food processing, and machinery manufacturing (especially
construction and oil equipment) are important industries. Minerals produced in
Oklahoma include helium, gypsum, zinc, cement, coal, copper, and silver.
Oklahoma's
rich plains produce bumper yields of wheat, as well as large crops of sorghum,
hay, cotton, and peanuts. More than half of Oklahoma's annual farm receipts are
contributed by livestock products, including cattle, dairy products, swine, and
broilers.
Tourist
attractions include the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, the Will
Rogers Memorial in Claremore, the Cherokee Cultural Center with a restored Cherokee
village, the restored Fort Gibson Stockade near Muskogee, the Lake Texoma recreation
area, pari-mutuel horse racing at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, and Blue Ribbon
Downs in Sallisaw.
Coming
Soon!
See
more on Oklahoma:
Encyclopedia:
Oklahoma Encyclopedia: Geography Encyclopedia: Economy Encyclopedia:
Government Encyclopedia: History Monthly Temperature Extremes
Accredited
Colleges and Universities
Selected
famous natives and residents:
Johnny Bench baseball player; John
Berryman poet; Garth Brooks singer; Iron Eyes Cody Cherokee actor; L.
Gordon Cooper astronaut; Ralph Ellison writer; James Garner actor; Owen
K. Garriott astronaut; Vince Gill singer; Chester Gould cartoonist; Woody
Guthrie singer and composer; Roy Harris composer; Paul Harvey broadcaster;
Van Heflin actor; Ron Howard actor and director; Ben Johnson actor;
Jennifer Jones actress; Jeane Kirkpatrick educator and public-affairs
spokesperson; Shannon Lucid astronaut; Wilma P. Mankiller principal chief
of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma; Mickey Mantle baseball player; Reba
McEntire singer; Shannon Miller Olympic gymnast; Bill Moyers journalist;
Daniel Patrick Moynihan N.Y. senator; Patti Page singer; Mary Kay
Place actress and writer; Tony Randall actor; Oral Roberts evangelist;
Dale Robertson actor; Will Rogers humorist; Dan Rowan comedian; Thomas
P. Stafford astronaut; Maria Tallchief ballerina; Jim Thorpe athlete;
Alfre Woodard actress
Capital:
Oklahoma City
State
abbreviation/Postal code: Okla./OK
Governor:
Brad Henry, D (to Jan. 2007)
Lieut.
Governor: Mary Fallin, R (to Jan. 2007)
Senators:
Tom Coburn, R (to Jan. 2011); James Inhofe, R (to Jan. 2009)
U.S.
Representatives: 5
Secy.
of State: M. Susan Savage, D (to Jan. 2007)
Treasurer:
Robert Butkin, D (to Jan. 2007)
Atty.
General: W. A. Drew Edmondson, D (to Jan. 2007)
Organized
as territory: May 2, 1890
Entered
Union (rank): Nov. 16, 1907 (46)
Present
constitution adopted: 1907
Motto:
Labor omnia vincit (Labor conquers all things)
State
symbols: flower mistletoe (1893) tree redbud (1937) bird scissor-tailed
flycatcher (1951) animal bison (1972) reptile mountain boomer lizard (1969)
stone rose rock (barite rose) (1968) colors green and white (1915) song
“Oklahoma” (1953) beverage milk butterfly black swallowtail
fish white or sand bass folk dance square dance furbearer raccoon
game animal white-tailed deer grass Indiangrass insect honeybee musical
instrument fiddle poem “Howdy Folks,” David Randolph Milsten waltz
“Oklahoma Wind” wildflower Indian blanket
Nickname:
Sooner State
Origin
of name: From two Choctaw Indian words meaning “red people”
10
largest cities (2003 est.): Oklahoma City, 523,303; Tulsa, 387,807; Norman,
99,197; Lawton, 91,730; Broken Arrow, 83,607; Edmond, 71,643; Midwest City, 54,662;
Enid, 46,436; Moore, 44,987; Stillwater, 41,320
Land
area: 68,667 sq mi. (177,848 sq km)
Geographic
center: In Oklahoma Co., 8 mi. N of Oklahoma City
Number
of counties: 77
Largest
county by population and area: Oklahoma, 680,815 (2004); Osage, 2,251 sq mi.
State
parks: 51 (72,000 ac.)
Residents:
Oklahoman
2004
resident population est.: 3,523,553
2000
resident census population (rank): 3,450,654 (27). Male: 1,696,895 (49.1%);
Female: 1,754,759 (50.9%). White: 2,628,434 (76.2%); Black: 260,968 (7.6%); American
Indian: 273,230 (7.9%); Asian: 46,767 (1.4%); Other race: 82,898 (2.4%); Two or
more races: 155,985 (4.5%); Hispanic/Latino: 179,304 (5.2%). 2000 percent population
18 and over: 74.1; 65 and over: 13.2; median age: 35.5.
