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Fort Washita Barracks Destroyed by Fire
In the early morning hours of Sunday, September 26, 2010 the South Barracks at Fort Washita Historic Site burned. The building, and its contents were a total loss.
The South Barracks were a reconstruction of an original 1849 post building. The furnished barracks served as the main interpretation setting for the historic site. Living history groups stayed in the barracks and presented programs bringing the fort  back to life for the visiting public. Numerous other programs such as candlelight tours made visits memorable for young and old.
The cause of the fire has been determined to be arson. Three individuals have been implicated in the crime. The cost involved in restoring the barracks is being determined and plans for rebuilding the barracks will be presented to the OHS Board of Directors on October 27, 2010. |
Oklahoma National History Day
by Jason Harris
Every May, hundreds of students make their way to the Oklahoma History Center for a special contest known as History Day. But what is History Day? In Oklahoma it is more than 5,000 students in an academic contest. But History Day is even more than that. It begins at the district level with individual students and  schools. Students begin in early fall. Throughout the semester they conduct research at libraries, archives, museums, historic sites, and more. All of this research is based on a theme that changes yearly. For example, the National History Day theme for 2011 is Debate and Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, Consequences. Students have the opportunity to develop their research and present their work through original papers, exhibits, performances, websites, and documentaries. Professional historians and educators from across the state gather to judge the  projects at the state finals each May. Students who place 1st or 2nd have the chance to take their project to the National History Day competition at the University of Maryland, College Park. As Jason Harris, the state coordinator for History Day, and his staff begin to plan for this year's event you, too, can help these students succeed. Through the generous support of Sonic and the Ad Astra Foundation, History Day is off and running. Each has made $1,000 contributions to the program. You too, as an individual or group, can help support Oklahoma National History Day. If you would like more information or to make a contribution please contact Jason Harris at (405)522-0785 or jharris@okhistory.org.
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Speaking of the Truth Lecture features
Dr. Jimmie Franklin
Dr. Jimmie Franklin will be a guest lecturer at the Oklahoma History Center on Tuesday, October 19, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. in the Chesapeake Events Room.
The event is titled "Speaking of The Truth." His talk is titled "Educators, Excellence, and Change: A Reflection" in which he will discuss the role of education in social reform, as well as the trend toward expansion of research on African American history.
This program is free and open to the public. Dr. Franklin's lecture program will include a performance by the Langston University Choir.
The program will include the introduction of an initiative sponsored by the Oklahoma African American Educators Hall of Fame in partnership with the Oklahoma Historical Society's Black Heritage Committee, to collect historical research material, photographs and other archive data pertaining to early African American schools in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma African American Educators Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization headed by Dr. Donnie Nero, President of Connors State College.
Dr. Franklin holds the prestigious title of Professor of History, Emeritus, from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. He was the second African American to earn a Ph.D in History from the University of Oklahoma in 1968. Dr. Franklin has authored many articles and four books: Born Sober: Prohibition in Oklahoma, 1907 - 1959 (1971), Blacks in Oklahoma (1980), Journey Toward Hope (1982), and Back to Birmingham: Richard Arrington, Jr., and His Times (1989).
In 1993, Dr. Franklin was elected president of the Southern Historical Association and has accepted committee positions with the Organization of American Historians, and the American Historical Association. While at Vanderbilt he received numerous professional awards but he stayed connected to his students. He played an active role in the African American Studies Program, the Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series, the Compton Fellowship Advisory Board, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center Advisory Board.
For additional information, contact Bruce Fisher, curator of Oklahoma African American History at (405) 522-5049. |
| Oral History Update
by Larry O'Dell
As the Oklahoma Historical Society prepares for a museum on popular culture in Tulsa, the oral history department has begun to gather interviews of performers
and artists. The new building will rely heavily on interactive and audiovisual
Artistic rendering of the Oklahoma Museum of Music and Popular Culture | technologies, which needs this content to drive it.
With funding from several sources, including the Kaiser Foundation, the Gaylord Foundation, and the OHC annual fundraising drive, a small crew has taken several trips to California, Branson, Tulsa, and around Oklahoma to gather these Oklahomans' stories. We have interviewed more than two hundred people associated with the entertainment industry for several projects,
(l-r) Larry O'Dell, Wayne Coyne (The Flaming Lips), Jeff Moore | including the Rock and Roll Exhibit, the Jim Halsey exhibit, the Okie cartoonist exhibit, and a new exhibit on Hee Haw. These will fold into the Oklahoma Museum of Music and Popular Culture.
A few of the interviewees are Leon Russell, David Gates, Patti Page, Hanson, Megyn Price, Kelli O'Hare, Ernie Fields, Jr., Moon Martin, the Collins Kids, Gary Busey, Roy Clark, Wanda Jackson, Jodi Miller, Norma Jean, All-American Rejects, Don Wallace, Wayne Coyne, KK Barrett, and many more. Interviews that have been set for the near future include Kristin Chenoweth and Toby Keith. |
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For a full listing of benefits, download the membership
brochure.
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OHS EVENTS
10/16 Third Annual Victorian Fall Costume Ball, 7pm, (405)375-5176
10/1-10/31 Fall Maze, 10am-5pm, (405)375-5176
10/29-10/30 Haunted Village, opens at dusk, (405)375-5176
10/8&9 Fall Encampment, 10am-5pm, (918)478-4088
George M. Murrell Home:
10/22 Murrell Home Ghost Stories, 6:30pm, (918)456-2751
Oklahoma History Center:
10/6 Lunch & Learn: Finding the Girls, 11:30am, (405)522-5225
10/7 Oklahomans in the World Series, 7pm., (405)522-0785
10/23 Dutch Oven Cooking Class, 1pm, (405)522-0785
10/23 Workshop: "Oklahoma! The Land we belong to is Grand!", 10:15am, (405)522-5225
10/26 Lunch & Learn: Research in Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations, 11:30am, (405)522-5225
10/12 Quilt Block of the Month Class, 6:30pm, (918)762-2513
10/23 Ghost Story Tours, 6:30pm, (918)762-2513
10/22 Pumpkin Carving Workshop, 9:30am, (918)335-2491
10/15 Cherokee Cultural Day, 10am, (918)775-2413
10/16 Vortex Pillow Workshop, 10am,
(580)463-2441 |
The Importance of History...
"History is the record of encounters between character and circumstance."
Donald Creighton |
Oklahoma Historical Society
800 Nazih Zuhdi Dr.
Oklahoma City, OK
73105
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