Portal:Oklahoma

The Oklahoma Portal

Oklahoma (/ˌoʊkləˈhoʊmə/ OH-klə-HOH-mə; Choctaw: Oklahumma, pronounced [oklahómma]), is a landlocked state in the South Central, Southern, Southwestern regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the southwest, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northeast, Arkansas to the southeast, New Mexico to the west, and Colorado to the northwest. Partially in the western extreme of the Upland South, it is the 20th-most extensive and the 28th-most populous of the 50 United States. Its residents are known as Oklahomans, and its capital and largest city is Oklahoma City.

The state's name is derived from the Choctaw words okla, 'people' and humma, which translates as 'red'. Oklahoma is also known informally by its nickname, "The Sooner State", in reference to the Sooners, American settlers who staked their claims in formerly American Indian-owned lands until the Indian Appropriations Act of 1889 authorized the Land Rush of 1889 opening the land to settlement.

With ancient mountain ranges, prairie, mesas, and eastern forests, most of Oklahoma lies in the Great Plains, Cross Timbers, and the U.S. Interior Highlands, all regions prone to severe weather. Oklahoma is at a confluence of three major American cultural regions. Historically, it served as a government-sanctioned territory for American Indians moved from east of the Mississippi River, a route for cattle drives from Texas and related regions, and a destination for Southern settlers. There are currently 25. According to the 2020 U.S. census, 14.2 percent of Oklahomans identify as American Indians, the highest Indigenous population by percentage in any state.

A major producer of natural gas, oil, and agricultural products, Oklahoma relies on an economic base of aviation, energy, telecommunications, and biotechnology. Oklahoma City and Tulsa serve as Oklahoma's primary economic anchors, with nearly two-thirds of Oklahomans living within their metropolitan statistical areas. (Full article...)

Selected article -

Arkansas River headwaters in Colorado

The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas River Valley. The headwaters derive from the snowpack in the Sawatch and Mosquito mountain ranges. It flows east into Kansas and finally through Oklahoma and Arkansas, where it meets the Mississippi River.

At 1,469 miles (2,364 km), it is the sixth-longest river in the United States, the second-longest tributary in the Mississippi–Missouri system, and the 47th longest river in the world. Its origin is in the Rocky Mountains in Lake County, Colorado, near Leadville. In 1859, placer gold discovered in the Leadville area brought thousands seeking to strike it rich, but the easily recovered placer gold was quickly exhausted. The Arkansas River's mouth is at Napoleon, Arkansas, and its drainage basin covers nearly 170,000 square miles (440,000 km²). Its volume is much smaller than the Missouri and Ohio rivers, with a mean discharge of about 40,000 cubic feet per second (1,100 m³/s). (Full article...)

List of selected articles
Cherokee Ed Galloway's Totem Pole Park Dust Bowl Oklahoma City bombing Comanche University of Oklahoma The Outsiders (novel) Trail of Tears Woody Guthrie Folk Festival Golden Driller University of Tulsa Indian Territory Blue Whale of Catoosa Oklahoma! Oklahoma State University Northeastern State University Oklahoma State Capitol Great Salt Plains Lake

Spotlight city -

Downtown El Reno

El Reno (/ɛl rinoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 16,989, marking a change of 1.55% from 16,729, recorded in the 2010 census. The city was begun shortly after the 1889 land rush and named for the nearby Fort Reno. It is located in Central Oklahoma, about 25 miles (40 km) west of downtown Oklahoma City. (Full article...)

List of spotlight cities
Tulsa, Oklahoma Oklahoma City Muskogee, Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma Sand Springs, Oklahoma McAlester, Oklahoma Coweta, Oklahoma Durant, Oklahoma Enid, Oklahoma Ardmore, Oklahoma Bartlesville, Oklahoma Edmond, Oklahoma Moore, Oklahoma Drumright, Oklahoma Ponca City, Oklahoma Tahlequah, Oklahoma Ada, Oklahoma Cushing, Oklahoma Jenks, Oklahoma Shawnee, Oklahoma Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

Selected picture

Credit: Katsrcool
Automobile Alley Historic District, an upscale urban neighborhood in Oklahoma City.

Featured content

Featured articles: Black Seminoles • Chickasaw Turnpike • Jim Thorpe • Oklahoma • Tulsa, Oklahoma • Woody Guthrie • Oklahoma City bombing • Brad Pitt

Featured lists: Oklahoma birds • Tallest buildings in Tulsa • List of tallest buildings in Oklahoma City • List of birds of Oklahoma • List of Oklahoma Sooners football seasons • List of Oklahoma Sooners head football coaches • List of Oklahoma Sooners in the NFL Draft

State facts

Nickname:The Sooner State
Capital and largest city: Oklahoma City
Governor: Kevin Stitt (R)
Total area: 181,196 square kilometers (69,960 square miles)
Population (2020 census): 3,959,353
Date admitted to the Union: November 16, 1907
Senators: Markwayne Mullin (R), James Lankford (R)
Representatives: Kevin Hern (R), Josh Brecheen (R), Frank Lucas (R), Tom Cole (R), Stephanie Bice (R)

State symbols

The Scissortail Flycatcher, Oklahoma's state bird

Mammal: Bison
Bird: Scissor-tailed flycatcher
Fish: White bass
Floral emblem: Mistletoe
Flower: Oklahoma Rose
Grass: Indian grass
Insect: Honeybee
Tree: Redbud
Fossil: Allosaurid dinosaur
Rock: Rose Rock
Soil: Port Silt Loam
Song: Oklahoma!
Beverage: Milk

Selected biography -

Edwards in 1966

Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American filmmaker, producer, and screenwriter. Often thought of as primarily a director of comedies, he also directed several drama, musical, and detective films. Late in his career, he took up writing, producing and directing for theater. He received an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of his writing, directing and producing an extraordinary body of work for the screen.

Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio scripts before turning to producing and directing in television and films. His best-known films include Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Days of Wine and Roses (1962), A Shot in the Dark (1964), The Great Race (1965), 10 (1979), Victor/Victoria (1982), Blind Date (1987), and the hugely successful Pink Panther film series with British actor Peter Sellers. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies

Did you know -

... that the U.S. state of Oklahoma was not allowed to ban Sharia law?
... that the morning show on an Oklahoma TV station was such a "local phenomenon" that the president of ABC acquiesced to them not airing Good Morning America?
... that the three costliest tornadoes in Oklahoma's history hit the same town in 2013, in 1999 and in 2003?
... that Joe Eddins helped conservative Oklahoma enact universal preschool?
... that Ken Selby walked along U.S. Route 66 from Oklahoma City to Tulsa at the age of 73?
... that after Cora Victoria Diehl was elected as the first woman to hold office in Oklahoma Territory, county records had to be recovered with dynamite when the incumbent refused to concede?

General images -

The following are images from various Oklahoma-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Poor mother and children during the Great Depression. Elm Grove, Oklahoma (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 2Regional map of Oklahoma (from Geography of Oklahoma)
Image 3Köppen climate types of Oklahoma, using 1991-2020 climate normals. (from Geography of Oklahoma)
Image 4Map of the United States with Oklahoma highlighted (from List of municipalities in Oklahoma)
Image 5Map of Indian Territory (Oklahoma) 1889. Britannica 9th ed. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 6Gushers brought in many of Oklahoma's early oil fields—this one on February 21, 1922, near Okemah. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 7Map showing British territorial gains following the Treaty of Paris in pink, and Spanish territorial gains after the Treaty of Fontainebleau in yellow. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 8The Great Plains (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 9US 1822 (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 10Oklahoma topographical map (from Geography of Oklahoma)
Image 11The Coronado Expedition 1540–1542 (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 12The Republic of Texas. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 13Cartoonist's rendering of Theodore Roosevelt's initial reaction to the Oklahoma Constitution. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 14Allen Wright, a Choctaw minister, scholar and chief, is credited as the state's founding father for creating the state's name in 1865. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 15Routes to Indian Territory taken by the Five Civilized Tribes, often known as the Trail of Tears. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 16The modern United States, with Louisiana Purchase overlay (in green) (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 17Spiro Mounds on the Arkansas River in eastern Oklahoma. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 18Geographic map of Oklahoma (from Geography of Oklahoma)
Image 19Oklahoma and Indian Territory, 1890s (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 20American Indian Movement poster from civil rights era (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 21The Dust Bowl ravaged the Oklahoma Panhandle and nearby areas in the 1930s. (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 22Caddoan Languages (from History of Oklahoma)
Image 23Flag of Oklahoma (from History of Oklahoma)

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WikiProject Oklahoma	Oklahoma State Highways	Missing articles on Oklahoma newspapers	Taskforce Tulsa

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Article requests : Julius Jones (death row inmate): A death row inmate in Oklahoma
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