Red Carpet Country, Oklahoma
A vast prehistoric sea that covered what's now northwestern Oklahoma colored the soil a deep red-brown -- and left a few other surprised as well. Like the cedar-flecked canyons in Roman Nose State Park, carved by receding water, or the Alabaster Caverns, the world's largest gypsum-lined cave. Shifting sand dunes tower 40 feet high at Little Sahara State Park and the 4,973-foot-high, lava topped Black Mesa near Kenton was created by an ancient volcano. The mesa, the state's highest point, has long been a have for wildlife and for hikers -- some of them bigger than others, as nearby dinosaur footprints testify. The prairies were once dotted with tipis; northwest Oklahoma were the winter campgrounds for the Cheyenne-- the last great herd of buffalo on the Oklahoma plains was spotted near Fort Supply in the 1870s. Two decades later, the largest of all the land runs took place when the Cherokee Outlet was opened in1893 to settlement. In a single afternoon, 100,000 men and women raced to claim 160-acre quarter-sections; some of their great-grandchildren still live on original homesteads. In Aline, the Sod House Museum shelters the only remaining sod house in the state, built in 1849.
Explore Red Carpet Country
Kaw Lake Water Sports
Ten boat launching ramps provide boaters with easy access to Kaw Lake. Once on the water, boaters can find two full service marinas located at McFadden Cove and Pioneer Park.
, OK BoatingBlackwell Armory
The Blackwell Armory with it Art Deco architecture was built in 1925, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Blackwell, OK Historic BuildingsOld Cowhands Reunion
This ongoing tradition began way back in the year 1939, when members of the Freedom Chamber of Commerce decided to sponsor a reunion and chuck wagon feed in honor of the old time cowhands of this vast area who braved the perils and hardships of the range in search of their fortune.
Freedom, OK Festivals
Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge
Salt Plains was established in 1930 "as a refuge and breeding ground for birds." It provides habitat for approximately 300 species of birds and 30 species of mammals. The 32,030 acres is divided into almost equal parts of nonvegetated salt flat, open water, and vegetated land (
Cherokee, OK Wildlife Refuges"Boomer" Sculpture
Just across the street from where the original land office once stood that registered the claims of anxious settlers who succeeded in the land run is the life-size bronze sculpture of "Boomer."
Enid, OK ArtsThe Story of the Battle of the Washita
Introduction The cultural collision between pioneers and Indians reached its peak on the Great Plains during the decades before and after the Civil War. U.S. Government policy sought to separate tribes and settlers from each other by establishing an Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma)
Cheyenne, OKAntelope Hills
The distinctive formations of the Antelope Hills were a landmark for Spanish explorers in the 1500
Cheyenne, OK LandmarksLog Cabin
The two-story log cabin now located just south of the Ellis County Courthouse on the Courthouse lawn, built of cedar logs was originally built in Ellis County near where Joe Pyle Canyon and Spring Canyon intersect. Tom Black built the cabin in 1893
Arnett, OK Pioneer HistoryBeaver County's Oldest Tree
Beaver County's oldest tree estimated to be over 120 years old has a reserved spot of distinction in the Lingering Memories Park, a spot in downtown Beaver dedicated to the early pioneers of the area.
Beaver, OK Natural AttractionsGrace Episcopal Church
Grace Episcopal Church began in 1898 in another location in town.. The sanctuary was designed by John Duncan Forsyth and was commissioned on Whit Sunday 1951 in our current location of 13
Ponca City, OK Historic Churches