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Tribes and Trails in Oklahoma

Cowboy Trails

The cattle drive has been immortalized in numerous movies and television shows over the years, but I experienced the trail like nowhere else at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center in Duncan.

The overpopulation of cattle in Texas after the Civil War meant the cows needed to be driven north right through Oklahoma to Abilene, Kansas, then as far west as the railroad traveled. The goal was to deliver beef to hungry masses “back East.” Cowboys and trail hands did the dirty work.

“The Chisholm Trail was about 1,000 miles. The journey took about 100 days. Cowboys earned about a dollar a day,” said Stacy Moore, the center’s executive director.

Groups shouldn’t miss the wonderful film depicting a cattle run. They’ll experience the trail’s smells, dust, thundering hooves, weather — a splash of rain in their faces — beauty and loneliness.

The town of Lawton has several interesting museums ideal for groups, such as the field artillery, air defense and fort history museums at Fort Sill; the Comanche National Museum and Cultural Center; and the Museum of the Great Plains.

The Comanches were called “Lords of the Plains.” One of their leaders was Geronimo.

“See where Geronimo was held as a prisoner of war, and visit his and his family’s grave sites on post,” said Tanna Vu, tourism director, Lawton-Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce.

 

Oil Barons

Some say Ponca City is all about cowboys, Indians and oil.

“What’s really fun about Ponca City is we capture every bit of that,” said Rich Cantillon, president-CEO of the Chamber of Commerce. Cantillion says oil barons did much for local communities and six Native tribes call Ponca City home.

Standing Bear was one of America’s first civil rights leaders and petitioned federal officials to recognize Native Americans as human beings. There’s a Ponca City museum dedicated to him.

“It’s a great place for groups because we tailor-make their experience, whether it’s young people or seniors, or if they only have a set time to visit,” said T.L. Walker, executive director of the Standing Bear Foundation.

Pioneer women had to be tough to survive the West. The Pioneer Woman Museum in Ponca City pays homage to them and to Oklahoma’s many other outstanding women in many fields.

“Our mandate is to tell the history of women’s experiences in Oklahoma and to showcase pioneering women in all aspects of life,” said Keith Fagan, the museum’s historical interpreter. Just outside the museum is the iconic 30-foot-tall bronze statue of the typical pioneer woman.

During my trip through the state, I visited several homes of Oklahoma oil barons that are open to tourist groups. The E.W. Marland mansion, on 26 acres in Ponca City, has 55 rooms in Mediterranean Revival style. Marland founded Marland Oil, which became Conoco, then ConocoPhillips. The oilman later became a U.S. congressman and Oklahoma governor.

“We’re the No. 1 tourist attraction in northern Oklahoma and southern Kansas,” said David Keathly, museum director. “This is something you won’t see anywhere else in Oklahoma or the Southwest.”

Another oil baron, Frank Phillips, created a nature preserve, ranch and retreat that he called Woolaroc — for woods, lakes and rocks — which groups can tour during a visit to the area.

“You’ll drive two miles on the ranch road and spot varied wildlife as you approach the museum,” said Kenneth Meek, museum director. “Woolaroc Lodge today is much like it was when Phillips stayed here, with original furnishings. The museum’s 55,000 square feet of exhibit space features Western art, trophy animals, pottery, sculptures, cowboy materials and a huge stash of Colt firearms.”

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