Elgin, Oklahoma

Right here in the Wichita Mountains, you're driving past the site of an Easter pageant that became one of the longest-running in the nation! It started in 1926 with just five actors and a handful of spectators. But word…

You're driving through Medicine Park, Oklahoma's only cobblestone town, nestled in the foothills of the Wichita Mountains. Back in 1908, visionary Elmer Thomas bought this land, dreaming of a resort powered by the…

Right here in southwestern Oklahoma, you're driving past the legacy of some truly unique architecture! Back in 1911, the first cannonball-style buildings started appearing, using rounded river stones. Think cobblestone…

You're driving through Medicine Park, a town with a unique story. Back in 1908, it opened as Oklahoma's first planned resort and health spa, built around natural medicinal springs. It was known for its distinctive…

Right here, near Mount Scott, you're passing through the area that was once the site of the Medicine Park Resort. This was the brainchild of Oklahoma politician John William Elmer Thomas, who arrived in Oklahoma in 1900…

Spring-fed 1920s swimming hole. 25000+ swimmers every summer for a century.

Oklahoma first resort town founded July 4 1908 with cobblestone buildings from Medicine Creek.

During Prohibition Al Capone and Pretty Boy Floyd hid among the cobblestone cottages.

From derelict ghost town in the 1980s to one of Oklahoma most visited villages.

This isn't just another roadside stop; it's a place that echoes with the complex history of Native American education. Fort Sill Indian School, founded in 1871, was part of a nationwide system of boarding schools…

Right here in Oklahoma, you're passing near the final resting place of a legendary Apache leader: Geronimo. Born in the 1820s, his life was defined by fierce resistance against those who threatened his people, from…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and right here, you're passing through history made by the legendary Buffalo Soldiers. These weren't just soldiers; they were African Americans who bravely served on the Western frontier…

You're driving past Fort Sill, and right here, in 1910, Mildred Imoch was born a prisoner of war. Her family, Chiricahua Apache, had followed Geronimo and were held at Fort Sill, then moved to Florida and Alabama before…

You're driving through Comanche County, and right here, legends of buried treasure once drove folks wild! Back in the 1600s, Spanish explorers searched these Wichita Mountains for gold. Then, in the late 1800s and early…

You're driving through Comanche County, and right here, near the town of Meers, is evidence of some seriously ancient history. About 1,200 years ago, a massive earthquake ripped through this area, creating a fault scarp…

Right here, near Fort Sill, is where Henry Ossian Flipper made history. In 1877, he became the FIRST Black graduate of West Point. Assigned to the Tenth Cavalry, the famed Buffalo Soldiers, he arrived at Fort Sill in…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and right here, you're passing through a place with a history of legendary warriors. The Forty-fifth Infantry Division, known as the 'Thunderbirds,' was organized back in 1923. Oklahoma…

You're driving through southwestern Oklahoma, and right here, in the Wichita Mountains, was once the site of a genuine gold rush! Forget the tales of Spanish gold in McCurtain County or Jesse James's buried treasure.…

You're driving through Comanche County, and right here, the story of Kicking Bird, a Kiowa peace chief. Born to Kiowa and Crow heritage, he started as a warrior but grew to champion diplomacy. He signed major treaties…

Right here, near Fort Sill, Oklahoma, a unique art movement began to bloom in the most unlikely of circumstances. In 1875, many Plains Indian men, including Kiowa, Cheyenne, and Arapaho artists, were arrested and sent…

You're driving through Comanche County, not far from Fort Sill. Right here, you're in the last home of Naiche, the final hereditary leader of the Chiricahua Apache. Son of the famous Cochise, Naiche fought alongside…

You're driving through the Wichita Mountains, and right here is a place that saw one of the last gold rushes in the United States! Back in August of 1901, word spread about gold, and twenty thousand miners flocked to…

You're driving through the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge, home to Oklahoma's largest wildlife refuge. Right here, in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1905</say-as>, President Theodore Roosevelt…

You're driving through Comanche County, and right here is the site of the Kiowa and Comanche Agency at Fort Sill. In 1869, Quaker Indian agent Lawrie Tatum, known to the tribes as Pot-ta-wat Pervo, or Bald Head Agent,…

Up ahead, atop Signal Mountain, sits a silent sentinel from a turbulent time. This blockhouse, built in 1871, was part of Fort Sill's early warning system. Following the Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867, the U.S. Cavalry…

Lawton rises from the rolling plains of southwest Oklahoma, a landscape sculpted by eons of wind and water. The air here is noticeably drier than in the eastern part of the state, reflecting its higher elevation and…

You're driving through Comanche territory, a name that likely means 'enemy' to outsiders, but they called themselves numunuu. For centuries, these fierce Plains warriors, masters of horse and buffalo, ranged across what…

You're driving through a historic part of Oklahoma, and right here, in 1901, the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache reservation opened for settlement. Imagine it: over 165,000 people registered for just thirteen thousand…

You're driving through Lawton, Oklahoma, the birthplace of Tommy Wayne Cannon. Born in 1946, Cannon was a pivotal figure in 20th-century Native American art. Alongside Fritz Scholder and Oscar Howe, he helped…

You're driving through Lawton, Oklahoma, a town that was once the childhood home of Hollywood legend Joan Crawford. Born Lucille LeSueur in Texas, she moved here as a baby when her mother remarried. Her stepfather…

You're driving through Lawton, Oklahoma, where one of America's most remarkable senators got his start. Thomas Pryor Gore, born blind, became a powerful orator and a two-time U.S. Senator for Oklahoma. He famously…

Right here in Lawton, Oklahoma, you're passing through the birthplace of N. Scott Momaday, a writer who would bring Native American stories to the world stage. Born in <say-as interpret-as="date"…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and you might just be passing through Lawton, the birthplace of a true music legend: Leon Russell. Born Claude Russell Bridges in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1942</say-as>, he…

Right here in Lawton, you're passing through the stomping grounds of one of Oklahoma's most legendary lawmen: Heck Thomas. Born in Georgia, Thomas served in the Confederate army as a boy, then became a police officer in…

You're driving through Lawton, Oklahoma, a town born from a federal land lottery. Right here, in August 1901, the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache lands were opened to settlers. Lawton itself was named for U.S. Army Major General…

You're driving near Lawton, and right here is the site of the Fort Sill Indian School, which operated for over a century, from 1871 to 1980. It wasn't just a school; it was a place where Native American students…

Right here in Lawton, you're driving past the home of a woman who turned a gift into a multimillion-dollar empire. Edna Hennessee started with a Merle Norman franchise in 1944, but she didn't stop there. In 1973, she…

Right here, near Lawton, Oklahoma, you're driving through a place where history was painted. In 1842, artist John Mix Stanley traveled to Indian Territory, setting up a studio at Fort Gibson and visiting Tahlequah. The…

Right here in Lawton, Oklahoma, you're driving through a town that owes its existence to the great land rush of 1901. Two weeks before the Kiowa and Comanche lands opened up, a young lawyer named Lorraine Michael…

You're driving through Lawton, and right here, a future literary star got her start. Caroline Janice Cherry, who you might know by her pen name C. J. Cherryh, moved to Lawton as a kid. She fell in love with classics,…

You're driving through Comanche County, near Lawton, where Scott Ferris, a prominent Oklahoma politician, got his start. He settled here in 1901, practicing law and quickly rising through the ranks. Ferris went on to…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and right here, in Lawton, back in 1903, a plasterer named J. Harvey Lynch had an idea. Workers in both the Oklahoma and Indian Territories had unions, sure, but they weren't talking to…

WPA-built road to a 2464-ft summit with 360-degree views across 500-million-year-old mountains.

You're driving through Cement, Oklahoma, a town with roots as deep as the gypsum mines that first put it on the map. Back in 1902, this place got its name from a cement mill that hoped to turn local gypsum into building…

Last building of a gold rush ghost town. Population: 6. Seven-inch longhorn burgers.

In 1907 fifteen bison from the Bronx Zoo rebuilt the southern plains herd. Today 650 roam free.

Gold fever hit Meers hard in 1901, but the only gold found was microscopic! This tiny spot, now just a dot on the map, was once a bustling prospecting town. Named after mine operator Andrew J. Meers, this community…

You're driving through Stephens County, near Marlow. This area, known for ranching and farming, consolidated four small school districts in 1921 to create Central High School. The first student graduated in 1923. After…

WPA-built replica of ancient Jerusalem. Longest-running outdoor Easter pageant in America since 1926.

Reconstructed tribal villages built on the actual 1868 Washita battlefield approach route.

You're driving through Grady County, and right here is Rush Springs. This spot was a vital watering hole for cattle herds trailing up the Chisholm Trail, but its history goes back even further. In 1858, this area was…

You're driving through Oklahoma, maybe near Rush Springs, and right here, a major battle happened on the frontier. It was October 1858, and Brevet-Major Earl Van Dorn, a decorated Mexican War veteran, was leading a…

You're driving through Grady County, not far from Rush Springs, and right here, on October 1st, 1858, a surprise attack turned a peace conference into a tragedy. U.S. Army forces, operating from Camp Radziminski,…

Right here in Anadarko, you're driving past the home of the American Indian Exposition! This amazing cultural event started in the shadow of an earlier fair near Cache, but in 1933, Native leaders decided they wanted…

Hey road-trippers! You're driving through Oklahoma, and right here, in 1923, the state made history. Governor John Walton signed a bill that included an amendment, nicknamed the Montgomery Amendment after its creator…

Right here in Oklahoma, you're driving through a place that became a cradle for a revolutionary art movement. In the 1920s, young Kiowa men and women, mentored by Susie Peters at the Kiowa Agency in Anadarko, began…

Right here near Anadarko, you're driving past a place where a Quaker schoolteacher named Thomas Battey made history. In 1871, Battey arrived at the Wichita Agency, determined to help the Caddo and Kiowa tribes find…

Right here, you're passing through Anadarko, the final resting place of the Kiowa war chief Big Tree. Back in 1871, Big Tree, along with Satanta, was part of a raid into Texas that killed several men. What makes this…

Right here in Oklahoma, you're driving past the land of Black Beaver, a Delaware Indian scout, interpreter, and chief born way back in 1806. This guy was a legend! He spoke eleven languages, reached the Pacific Ocean…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and you might just smell it – the sweet, fried aroma of fry bread. This iconic treat has roots deep in American Indian history, emerging in the mid- to late-1800s. When tribes were…

Right here near Anadarko, you're driving past the legacy of Jack Hokeah, a Kiowa artist who rose to national fame. Born in 1903, Hokeah studied painting at the University of Oklahoma in the late 1920s, alongside other…

You're driving through southwestern Oklahoma, the heart of the Kiowa nation's historic homeland. Imagine this: as recently as the late 1700s, the Kiowa were migrating south from Montana, eventually reaching this very…

You're driving past Anadarko, and right here is the nation's oldest federally operated American Indian boarding school: Riverside Indian School. Organized way back in 1871, it's one of only four such schools still…

You're driving through Caddo County, not far from Anadarko. Right here, in October of 1862, a brutal massacre took place. The Tonkawa tribe, recently relocated from Texas, were camped along the Washita River. They were…

You're driving through Oklahoma, and right here, you're crossing paths with history that stretches back centuries! Long before Oklahoma was even a state, the Wichita people called this land home. In fact, their villages…

You're driving through Caddo County, and you might see the town of Anadarko. But did you know that town was named for a tribe that was driven out of Texas right here into Indian Territory? The Anadarko, or Nadaco, were…

You're driving through Oklahoma, a land that's been home to Apache people for centuries. Around 1800, nomadic Apache groups, like the Lipan and the Fort Sill Apache, began making this region their home, following the…

You're driving past Anadarko, the birthplace of Francis Blackbear Bosin, a Kiowa-Comanche artist who defied convention. Born in 1921, Bosin served in World War II and became a self-taught painter. He blended traditional…

You're driving through Anadarko, Oklahoma, home to a fascinating chapter in the state's cultural history. Right here, John Jasper Methvin, a Methodist missionary, was sent in 1887 to minister to the Kiowa, Comanche, and…

Right here near Anadarko, you're passing by the site of St. Patrick's Mission, which served Native American boys from 1892 until 1966. It was the first Catholic effort specifically for the Plains Indians of Oklahoma,…

You're driving through Anadarko, Oklahoma, the birthplace of one of America's most unsettling crime novelists, Jim Thompson. Born in 1906, Thompson's early life was a whirlwind of his father's oil fortunes and failures,…

You're driving past Anadarko, and right here, in 1901, thousands of people were crammed into a makeshift town called Rag Town. They were all waiting for August 6th, the day the government auctioned off town lots on the…

You're driving through Oklahoma, but the name 'Delaware' has a story that starts way back on the Atlantic coast. Back in 1610, an English explorer named Argall named a bay for Lord De la Warr. But the people who lived…

Right here in Oklahoma, you're driving past a living legacy of American Indian architecture. From the iconic tipi, originally made of bison hides and later canvas, used by nomadic tribes like the Cheyenne and Kiowa, to…

You're driving through Anadarko, the headquarters for the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, which include the Waco people. Their ancestors lived across the southern Plains, speaking related languages and trading with the…

In 1862 Confederate-allied tribes killed 137-150 Tonkawa including Chief Ha-shu-ka-na.

CCC-built miniature Hoover Dam named for the last Comanche chief deep in the Wichita Mountains.