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
The Pancoast Building
J.A.. Pancoast, a lawyer, erected this building in approximately 1905
Perry, OK Historic BuildingsOutdoor Murals
The Cherokee Strip Land Run - Robert Cooke, 1998 Northwest wall at 6th and College
Alva, OK ArtsBlackwell 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 BuildingsMidgley Museum
At the Midgley Museum, you can view an eclectic assortment of objects and artifacts collected over a lifetime of rock collecting by Mr. and Mrs. Dan Midgley. Gem and mineral enthusiasts will enjoy the array.
The museum is a monument to the Midgley family, one of Oklahoma'
Enid, OK MuseumsWindmill Museum and Park
Shattuck Windmill Museum and Park was established in 1994 and now, 37 windmills stand in the park, with no two alike, from a little 5 foot "Star Zephyr" to the big 18 foot "Samson."
Shattuck, OK MuseumsConvention Centers
Enid has plenty of facilities for community and family events.
Cherokee Strip Conference Center is one of Oklahoma'
Enid, OK VenuesSanta Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail is thought to be the oldest and longest commercial highway across the Great Plains, from Franklin on the Missouri River east of present Kansas City nearly 800 miles southwest to Santa Fe of today's New Mexico. A direct path across the plains (the Cimarron Route or Cut-off)
Boise City, OK Pioneer HistoryArtesian Well
An ever-flowing "Artesian well" spring is located northeast of Cherokee, Oklahoma, and provides a cool drink for travelers and a "fill-your-own-container" source of water for many homes of the area. In 2003
Cherokee, OK Natural AttractionsBeaver Dunes ATV Area
Beaver Dunes State Park has set aside approximately 300 acres of sand dunes for motorcycles, dune buggies, ATVs and 4x4s. Operated by the Corps of Engineers, the dune area is open from 8:00 A.M. until 11:00 P.M. every day, year round. Dune entrance fees may be paid daily, through the purchase of a 3
, OK ORV Areas