EXTRA! - Cake walks and sack races

Oklahoma Historical Society sent this bulletin at 07/26/2023 05:00 AM CDT

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Four boys, walking down a dirt road with fishing poles over their shoulders, 1935

History Center Research Museums & Sites Preservation Publications

July 26, 2023

Families play a game walking in a circle near the Rose Hill school in Perry during Family Fun Day held in the summer

Family Fun Day at the Cherokee Strip Museum

Experience Family Fun Day at the Cherokee Strip Museum and Rose Hill School (CSM) in Perry on Saturday, August 5, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Bring the whole family to enjoy this free admission day with activities like cake walks, apple peeling, sack races, rope-making demonstrations, living history gunfights, and live banjo music. The Rose Hill schoolmarm will hold short class sessions, a petting zoo will be on-site, and a fun photo station will be set up at the jail.

3 men gathered around a wagon wheel working to fit a metal rim on the wooden wheel

Wheelsetting demonstration taking place at Family Fun Day

On August 5, during Family Fun Day, the Saltfork Craftsmen will hold a Blacksmithing and Wheelsetting Demonstration in the blacksmith shop from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Guests can enjoy watching the craftsmen work and have an opportunity for safe, hands-on experiences.

The team of expert blacksmiths will demonstrate the wheelwright’s craft. Tom Nelson, CSM’s resident blacksmith, will show the special skills involved in constructing heavy wheels, including the finishing touch of adding a metal ring or “tire” to tighten the wheel and ensure its stability.

Family Fun Day is an educational event that is free to attend, but donations are appreciated. The Cherokee Strip Museum and Rose Hill School is located at 2617 West Fir St. in Perry. For more information, please call 580-336-2405.

Jennifer Rogers Etcheverry stands beside the Will Rogers Memorial statue, with a commemoration wreath

Wreath-laying ceremony and flyover at Will Rogers Memorial Museum

On Friday, August 11, at noon, the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore will host a wreath-laying ceremony and flyover to mark the anniversary of the August 15, 1935, death of Will Rogers and Wiley Post in an Alaskan plane crash.

Jennifer Rogers Etcheverry (pictured above), Will Rogers’s great-granddaughter, will be joined by several generations of descendants of Will’s sisters, Sallie Rogers McSpadden and Maud Rogers Lane, for the wreath-laying rite. Boy Scouts will lead in the flag salute. As the wreath is placed, Fran Moore will sing the National Anthem, and “Taps” will be played by Noah Grantham.

The public is welcome to join the family as they place the wreath at the tomb in the shadow of the statue of Rogers on his horse Soapsuds. The wreath laying will be followed by a fly-over by pilot Tom Egbert, a Will Rogers Roper docent.

A historical photograph of a sewing class at the Chilocco Indian School. Three rows of girls working at sewing stations, some with machines

Photograph of the girls' sewing classroom at the Chilocco Indian School, Newkirk, OK. The two students closest to the camera are Ginn Johnson (right) and Anna Harjoe (left) (19494.50, Ruby Smith Collection, OHS).

American Indian Boarding Schools workshop

The Oklahoma History Center will host a workshop on Saturday, August 5, focusing on American Indian boarding schools in Oklahoma. A 2022 report from the US Department of the Interior detailed the assimilationist policies and inherent abuse that the schools employed for decades. The report identified more than 400 schools across 37 states that operated between 1819 and 1969, including 76 in Oklahoma.

From 10–11:30 a.m., Dr. Farina King (Diné) will give an overview of the history of American Indian boarding schools in the state through a spatial lens while building on her work with the “Mapping Tahlequah History” project at Northeastern State University. This project demonstrates the value of citizen-led history to historical analysis.

From 12:30–2 p.m., Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) archivist Mallory Covington will provide an overview of the American Indian records at the OHS, emphasizing documents related to Indian boarding schools.

The sessions with King and Covington are open to researchers, students, educators, and the general public.

A session for educators only will take place from 2–3:30 p.m. It will focus on bringing this topic into the classroom and connecting it to social studies standards OKH 5.1, WG.3.3, and USH.1.3.

The sessions will be available in person at the Oklahoma History Center and virtually via Microsoft Teams. The workshop is free, but registration is required. A lunch break will take place from 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m., but lunch is not provided. Those attending virtually will receive a confirmation email with a link before the event.

Register for the workshop

OKIE Karaoke banner with an image of a group of country Western singers, a microphone and the logos of OKPOP and HistoryOffCenter

SING YOUR HEART OUT!

“OkieKaraoke” History OffCenter event at Cabin Boys Brewery in Tulsa

The Oklahoma Historical Society will host “OkieKaraoke” on Wednesday, August 9, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. inside Cabin Boys Brewery at 1717 E. 7th St., Tulsa, in the Pearl District. The public is invited to show up in their best Oklahoma-themed gear to sing their favorite Oklahoma songs—inspired by the creatives who will be featured in OKPOP!

This event is part of the OHS’s History OffCenter series, which focuses on immersive, engaging experiences. With an emphasis on community outreach, this series features programs that explore a variety of Oklahoma history topics and historical eras.