Oklahoma
The Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum is both profoundly meaningful and intensely emotional. The exhibits told the journey of what began as an ordinary spring day in 1995, shattered by a bomb, and the incredible stories of the survivors, rescuers, and families of those killed. We left reflecting on the strength and resilience of the people of Oklahoma City.
The Survivor Tree is an American Elm that withstood the full force of the attack. It continues to stand as a living symbol of strength and resilience. The inscription on the deck wall reads: "The spirit of this city and this nation will not be defeated; our deeply rooted faith sustains us."
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Arranged in nine rows reflecting the floor of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building where the victims were working or visiting, the Field of Empty Chairs contains 168 chairs, each etched with the name of one of those killed in the bombing. The 19 smaller chairs represent the children.
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We returned later to see the Oklahoma City National Memorial illuminated at night.
After lunch at Earl's Rib Palace, we walked to see the Centennial Land Run Monument, commemorating the opening of the Unassigned Land in Oklahoma Territory with the Land Run of 1889. The frenzied energy and emotion from one instant during the run is captured in bronze by artist Paul Moore. It is one of the world’s largest bronze sculptures featuring 47 statues spread across a distance of 365 feet, frozen in motion as they race to claim new homesteads.
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Cattlemen's Steakhouse, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in Oklahoma City, opened its doors in 1910, the same year that the stockyards started operating as a public livestock market. The area became a hub for cattlemen, farmers, ranchers, and cowboys. They serve generous cuts of their award-winning steaks so we chose to share one.
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The next day we headed to Tulsa, meandering along a portion of Route 66, stopping to see iconic symbols of another era.
Another Route 66 landmark in Arcadia is the Round Barn, built by local farmer William Harrison Odor in 1898 using native bur oak boards soaked while green and forced into the curves needed for the walls and roof rafters. The World's Tallest Gas Pump in Sapulpa is not vintage, but was built in 2018 next to the Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum. We ate lunch in Stroud at Rock Café. Opened in 1939, the restaurant has maintained its historic rock walls, foundation and original grill since WWII.
Arriving in Tulsa, we were joined by our friend Phyllis, who guided us around some of Tulsa's historic buildings. Tulsa boasts one of the nation’s most extensive collections of Art Deco architecture. During the early 20th century, Tulsa was widely known as "The Oil Capital of the World" and the city's prosperity boomed just as the Art Deco movement came into vogue.
Atlas clock, 1922 Atlas Life Building; the 1929 Warehouse Market Building with its terra cotta adorned tower; detail on the Blue Dome Building, originally the 1924 White Star Gulf Oil Station, located along the original Route 66
The following morning we visited Pawhuska and took the driving loop through the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, looking for bison. The 39,000-acre Preserve is protected as the largest tract of remaining tallgrass prairie in the world.
We all were looking forward to visiting The Pioneer Woman Mercantile and having lunch at Ree Drummond's restaurant...oh yes, and doing a little shopping, too! The first emigrating Drummond, Frederick Drummond, came to the area in 1886 and made a living as a clerk at the Osage Mercantile Company, the very same building that the Pioneer Woman renovated.
We made a point to stop at these two Oklahoma landmarks. The Golden Driller is a monument to a time when oil was king and Tulsa was the throne. The nearly 22-ton, 76-foot-tall Driller rests his gloved right hand on a real Oklahoma oil derrick. On Route 66 is the Blue Whale of Catoosa, built by Hugh Davis as a 34th wedding anniversary present for his wife.
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