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The first Oklahoma State Flag adopted in 1911 displayed a white star, edged in blue, centered on a field of red. Inside the star, the number 46 was shown, reference to Oklahoma as the 46th state to enter the union in 1907.

In 1925 a new flag was adopted, essentially the same as today’s state flag. This new blue flag displays an Osage warrior’s shield made from buffalo hide and decorated with seven eagle feathers hanging from the lower edge. The shield is decorated with six white crosses, representing stars and high ideals.

Superimposed over the shield are symbols of peace from two cultures: the calumet or ceremonial peace pipe from the Native American people, and the olive branch, from the Euro American people settling in the territory.

The flag design was revisited in 1941, adding the word OKLAHOMA in white letters below the shield. For this and more information on the Oklahoma State Flag, please visit the Netstate.com site.

The Scissor-tailed Flycatcher is the Oklahoma State bird. Scissortails are easily identified by their long, deeply forked tail, which the bird opens and shuts like a pair of scissors during flight.

Scissor-tailed flycatchers spend their winters in Central and South America, returning to North America to nest and raise young. Scissortails can be seen in Oklahoma from early April to late October, on open prairies dotted with trees, along tree-lined country roads, and even in small towns, where they perch on telephone lines, flagpoles and fences.

Scissortails are famous for their “sky dance”, a popular sight along roadsides during spring and early summer. After climbing to about 100 feet in the air, the male plunges down in an erratic, zig-zag course while uttering a rolling, cackling call. This elaborate courtship display is performed by the male to attract the attention of potential mates.

I found a wealth of information on the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher on the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. I’d also like to mention two beautiful sites with bird photo galleries and much more: Birds of Oklahoma and the Backyard Bird Cam Blog by Pat Velte, who kindly provided the Scissortail picture. Thank you Pat!

Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain …

In 1953, the song Oklahoma! was declared the official song of the State of Oklahoma. It is the title song of the well known 1943 musical created by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, the most successful team in musical theater history.

Oklahoma! was the first Broadway show to integrate the music, songs and dances as an essential part of the story; it immediately gained an immense popularity followed, after more than a decade, by the release of its screen version directed by Fred Zinnemann (1955).

The story is set around the time Oklahoma was preparing for statehood, and it’s the tale of a farm girl who falls in love with a cowboy and then must fend off the advances of a villainous suitor.

Two versions of Oklahoma! currently exist: the widescreen Todd-AO version, and the simultaneously shot CinemaScope version. Both versions are offered in the 50th anniversary double DVD edition.

The world’s first parking meter was installed in Oklahoma City on July 16, 1935.

Carlton Cole Magee, who had invented and patented it, started the Magee-Hale Park-O-Meter Company to manufacture his parking meters. These early parking meters were produced at factories in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma.

From that early beginning, the use of parking meters by municipalities, colleges and universities, and private parking facilities has increased to the point that today, in the United States alone, there are an estimated five million parking meters in use.

Based on this number, if every parking meter collected only 25 cents per day, the gross revenues generated by parking meters in the U.S. for one day would be 1.25 million dollars ($1,250,000).

For more information on the history of parking meters, you can visit The Parking Meter Page.

Wagon trains, groups of covered wagons, were used to convey people and supplies to the West before the coming of the railroad. Wagon trains were used by pioneers traveling to new territories, or by professional wagoners carrying goods between the cities and the settlements.

A typical covered wagon was the Conestoga, large enough to transport up to seven metric tons, and drawn by four to eight horses. On the prairies of the Middle West and on the Great Plains, the Prairie Schooner was the preferred wagon. It was much lighter and about half the size of a Conestoga, and rarely needed more than two or four horses.

Wagon trains were organized with an almost military discipline: the order of wagons both on the trail and in camp was strictly regulated. At night the wagons were drawn into a circular corral, and a guard was kept to prevent possible surprise attacks.

The image shows the “Wagon Train” oil painting by Dustin Lyon.