Oklahoma City, unlike Rome, was built in a day. On April 22, 1889, the U.S. government opened part of the Oklahoma Territory to white settlers who raced in to stake claims. By nightfall, the barren prairie was a city of 10,000. (Those who sneaked over the line the night before were dubbed "sooners" — the reason Oklahoma is known as "the Sooner State."
With a population of over one million, it's become a big city with a small-town feel in America's heartland. There seems to be a church on every corner; and store clerks exchange pleasantries while ringing up your bill.
Oklahoma's capital city has seen cowboys and Indians, oil booms and busts, a devastating terrorist attack and tornadoes. You can feel part of the "Oklahoma Spirit" when you explore the state's past and present. There's a surprising number of museums to fit nearly every interest — from softball to firefighting, the Old West, photography, military and even terrorism.
This is also the place to explore American Indian culture. During the 1800s, the U.S. government forced Indian tribes from all over the country to move to the Oklahoma Territory. Today, it is still home to more American Indians than any other state, with at least 67 tribes represented, according to the Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau. The Red Earth Festival, held in June in Oklahoma City, is one of the largest American Indian festivals in the world.
Some sites you'll want to visit:
The Oklahoma City National Memorial, downtown at 620 N. Harvey Ave., honors the 168 people killed in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, as well as those who were injured or helped with rescue efforts. This act of terrorism on April 19, 1995, literally and emotionally struck the heart of the city. Twenty percent of the city's population attended a funeral of at least one victim, according to memorial placards. In June 2001, Timothy McVeigh was executed for the crime; his accomplice, Terry Nichols is serving time in prison.
The museum is in the old Journal Record newspaper building, also damaged in the blast. It tells the chilling story of the bombing and aftermath — TV news clips, interviews with survivors, items pulled from the wreckage, such as cracked coffee mugs, broken watches, and shoes. When you see the dozens of sets of keys recovered, you realize, sadly, that many of the owners wouldn't be going home that night. There are photos with mementos of each person who died — a stethoscope of Dr. George Howard; Matchbox cars for 5-year-old Aaron Coverdale. A tissue dispenser is thoughtfully placed in the room — who can't help but get teary-eyed?
A "Shared Experience" exhibit details parallels with the Sept. 11 attack. In sad irony, some New York City rescue workers who helped out in Oklahoma later lost their lives in the World Trade Center, and a group of Oklahomans traveled to New York City to comfort their families. The memorial also funds a non-profit organization that researches and educates people on the social and political causes and effects of terrorism, in an effort to prevent other violent acts.
Visitors can share their impressions on a wall at the end of the tour. On the day we were there, one read, "Hate is for cowards; love is for heroes."
Some may shy away from the museum due to its depressing topic. But after witnessing how the rescue and rebuilding efforts united the community and volunteers from all over the country, you go away feeling that the world is still full of more good than bad. As one rescue worker was quoted, "We went to Oklahoma City to assist with a horrible situation . . . We went home with a life lesson about how a community should react to adversity."
The museum is open Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Sunday 1-6 p.m.; $7 per person. You don't need a ticket to visit the outdoor memorial. (405-235-3313; www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org
Give yourself a couple of hours to tour the exhibits, which close at 6 p.m. Then, while a bell tolls from a nearby church, you can stand by the reflecting pool at sunset and ponder the 168 empty bronze and glass chairs flanked by bronze gates marking 9.01-9.03 a.m. — in those two minutes, the city was changed forever. At the highest point, a lone elm tree that survived the bombing stands as a symbol of hope.
About four blocks south, Myriad Gardens on Sheridan Avenue offers an oasis in the middle of the city, along with views of the brick-towered downtown skyline. The centerpiece is the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory, a seven-story glass tube full of exotic plants, bright flowers and palm trees. Hawaii in Oklahoma? Well, it's close. It's open daily, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.; $4.
The attractions clustered near the intersection of Route 66 and Route 35 are for nearly every taste. The National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Heritage Center, 1700 NE 63rd Street, houses just about every facet relating to the Old West. At the main entrance, you're greeted by James Earle Fraser's famous 18-foot sculpture, "The End of the Trail," of an Indian slumped over his horse in exhaustion.
You'll need several hours to do the place justice, especially if you're a fan of Western and American Indian art, lore and legends. You'll find lots of paintings and sculptures, including artwork by Charles Russell and Frederic Remington, as well as a gallery that focuses on American Indian art.
Stroll through Prosperity Junction, a replica of a cattle town, complete with a saloon, school and church. A children's interactive "cowboy corral" is where kids can dress up like a ranch hand ready to rope a few steers. There are separate galleries for rodeo history, American guns and Western movie memorabilia such as saddles owned by Tom Mix and Tom Selleck. It's open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day; $8.50 for adults, $4 children (405-478-2250; www.nationalcowboymuseum.org)
The Omniplex, just down the road at 2100 NE 52nd St., features several small museums, a planetarium, kids' science center and an OmniDome theater, all under one roof. The Air Space Museum has full-scale models of Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space capsules, as well as lots of vintage planes, engines and other aeronautic memorabilia. There's an Oklahoma twist here — this is the home state of astronauts Gordon Cooper and John Herrington, who is the first American Indian astronaut to go into space.
The Red Earth Museum explores American Indian culture from ancient to modern times. It's especially interesting to compare the cradle boards collected from different Native American Indian tribes. The Kirkpatrick Art Galleries and the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum are also at the Omniplex.
While watching "The Coral Reef Adventure" on the OmniDome's huge rounded screen, we felt as if we were swimming underwater alongside the jewel-toned fish and coral. We also saw "Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit" (playing through July 6) of actual artifacts recovered from Titanic's wreck site in the North Atlantic.
Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is I $7.50, $5 for children; there are other optional packages for the Omniplex and planetarium movies. (405-602-3770; www.omniplex.org)
Nearby are the Oklahoma City Zoo, Softball Hall of Fame, Firefighters Museum, 45th Infantry Division Museum and Remington Park Horse Racing Track, and the 14-acre Coles Garden, with waterfalls, mazes and topiary animals. There's also a Frontier City theme park with Western-style amusement rides.
Stockyards City, near Agnew Avenue and Exchange Street, is home to the world's largest live cattle auction. In the "olden days," herds of cattle were driven from the Western ranges to Oklahoma City. Nowadays, auctions are on Mondays and Tuesdays. On a Thursday afternoon in March the place was quiet, except for a few plump pigs and the whiff of genuine stockyards. The area has a few Western-wear stores (the most well-known being Langston's) to outfit yourself in authentic boots, chaps, cowboy hats and so on.
This also home of Cattlemen's Steakhouse, a landmark since 1910, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in Oklahoma City. In 1945, Oklahoma rancher Gene Wade won it in a craps game. He had to roll two threes in order to win, and the lucky "33" brand on the wall is a symbol of Wade's good fortune. Don't let the small entrance fool you — it opens up to cavernous dining rooms on either side that keep extending, as if the owners just added on as business expanded. One wall has a large mural of cattle grazing on the open range, blissfully unaware that they will soon become someone's dinner.
At this downhome-cooking haunt, salads are of sturdy iceberg lettuce (no wussy "field greens" here). The baked potato toppings (sour cream, shredded cheese and bacon bits) are served in little plastic to-go containers — almost giving it a fast-food drive-in touch. The menu includes Oklahoma's "official state food" — chicken-fried steak, beef batter-fried and smothered in cream gravy. Most of the restaurant's beef is "choice," a better grade than what you usually find in supermarkets, with steak prices ranging from around $12 to $20. There's also a limited amount of "prime" steaks offered on special each night. Since only about two percent of all cattle are graded "prime," you won't find this in your budget steakhouse. The night we dined there, the special was a 14-ounce rib-eye steak for $24.99 — enough for two people to split. When your steak arrives, the server waits as you cut into it to make sure it's done to your liking. It was fork-tender, juicy and with a deep beef-y flavor— steak heaven! (405-236-0416;www.cattlemensrestaurant.com).
Other dining hot spots are located at Bricktown, east of the Santa Fe Railroad. A few years ago the old warehouse district was redeveloped into a nightlife center, with a milelong canal and boat taxi to take people from one restaurant or night club to another in the summer. The area is anchored by Southwestern Bell Bricktown Ballpark, built in 1998, and the nearby Mickey Mantle Steakhouse plays well to the theme. The small-town Oklahoma ballplayer dubbed "the Commerce Comet" is celebrated at the restaurant, displays of Mantle's 1951 World Championship ring, the bat and ball from his 500th home run, and other memorabilia. The menu's pricey line-up of steaks and seafood appears to be batting a thousand.
Oklahoma City is headquarters of the Sonic Drive-Ins , with numerous branches throughout the city to offer a less-expensive "authentic Oklahoma" dining experience. Or pack yourself a picnic and enjoy it along the shores of Lake Hefner.
Before leaving town, check out the State Capitol Building's new dome. In 1910, the original building plans called for a dome, but World War I, politics and material shortages halted the plans for over 90 years. Finally, this year the Capitol was crowned. At the dome's top is a 17-foot statue of an American Indian called "The Guardian," crafted by Enoch Kelly Haney, an Oklahoma state senator and member of the Seminole Creek Indian tribe.
Getting around: "Oklahoma Spirit" streetcars make runs to downtown attractions, and there are buses that go to the Cowboy Museum area. Check schedules on www.gometro.org
Information: Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau, 189 W. Sheridan, Oklahoma City, OK 73102 (405-297-8912); www.okccvb.org.
E-mail: vphillips@desnews.com