Great Plains Country, Oklahoma
In southwestern Oklahoma the golden shortgrass prairie extends for mile after undulating mile, mirroring the sky in its vastness. Less than a century and a half ago, the Southern Plains were the domain of the Kiowa and Comanche, who hunted buffalo on horses bridled with Spanish silver and traded with the Wichitas, farmers who lived in grass houses. To the Kiowa, the earth was sacred, and the Wichitas believed their ancestors lived on in the 650-million-year-old granite boulders of the Wichita Mountains. Travelers exploring the region today may encounter moments of similar reverence -- watching the sun set from atop Mount Scott in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, for instance, or watching an eagle soar in winter. A rowdier spirit lives endures in the area, too: Teddy Roosevelt created the wildlife refuge after he traveled to Oklahoma Territory to hunt wolves. Bison now graze on the 60,000-acre preserve, along with longhorn cattle, antelope and elk -- rugged mountain biking, hiking, camping and backpacking are permitted in some areas.
Explore Great Plains Country
Apache Municipal Building
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Apache, OK Historic BuildingsNational Hall of Fame for Famous American Indians
The National Hall of Fame of Famous American Indians was established to recognize famous Indians. It was a chance to provide a portrait in bronze bust for people to touch and see the famous people in a three dimensional likeness that they read about in history books. Formed in 1952
Anadarko, OK Halls of FameClinton-Sherman Industrial Airpark
Clinton-Sherman Industrial Airpark (CSIA), formerly Clinton-Sherman Air Force Base and Clinton Naval Air Station, encompasses approximately 3,000 acres in western Oklahoma adjacent to the town of Burns Flat. The Air Force closed the facility in 1969. In the summer of 1971
Burns Flat, OK MilitaryWichita Mountains NWR - Fishing
There are 13 Public Use Lakes on the Refuge which provide ample fishing opportunities for both bank and boat anglers. Largemouth bass, sunfish, crappie, and channel catfish are likely to be caught in Refuge lakes.
Lawton, OK FishingPost Office Mural
Displayed on the lobby wall of the art deco post office is a WPA commissioned mural capturing a moment of the infamous Oklahoma Land Run. - Artist, Vance Kirkland, 1940
Sayre, OK ArtsGreat Plains State Park
Great Plains State Park is located on 6400-acre Tom Steed Lake west of the Wichita Mountains in Kiowa County near the town of Mountain Park. A drive along Hwy 183 provides a scenic route that winds its way through the mountains along the lake'
, OK State ParksSayre City Park
The Sayre City Park offers an abundance of activities all within a half-mile radius, such as a well maintained nine-hole golf course with cart rentals available, an 18
Sayre, OK RecreationNational Route 66 Museum
Step back in time at the National Route 66 Museum and Old Town Museum Complex. The museum focuses on the people who lived, worked and traveled "The Road" and offers visitors a road motif to travel through all eight states along Route 66 "The Mother Road".
Elk City, OK MuseumsMangum Library & Genealogy Center - WPA
The Native stone building was built in 1936 and was a WPA project. The stone was dug from the ground and hauled in by teams and wagons, each piece of stone was cut by hand by the laborers and put into place.
Mangum, OK Historic BuildingsSimmons Center
Simmons Center's 105,000 sq. ft. facility serves as a focal point for recreational, social, cultural and business activity in Southwest Oklahoma.
A Duncan Oklahoma dream that is an inspirational example of the Oklahoma "can-do"
Duncan, OK Recreation