EXTRA! - Playing Favorites

PLAYING FAVORITES

“Zach Frame Plays Your Favorites” Kilgen Organ performance

The Oklahoma History Center will host its first Kilgen Organ performance of the season when Zach Frame performs on Monday, September 25, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The concert’s theme is “Zach Frame Plays Your Favorites.” Tickets are $10 for Oklahoma Historical Society members and $20 for nonmembers. Doors will open at 6 p.m., and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. 

Frame holds the distinction of being the first recipient of the George Wright Memorial Fellowship from the American Theatre Organ Society in 2003. He was fortunate to become the Organ Piper’s featured organist, where he continues to entertain nightly at the three-manual, thirty-rank theatre pipe organ. Frame has been privileged to work on several recording projects as an engineer. Most recently, he worked on Dan Minervini’s album, Where or When, recorded on the Hardman Studio Wurlitzer in Great Falls, Virginia. In April 2018, Frame released his first album on the Organ Piper’s Wurlitzer entitled It’s About Time.

COMING ON OCTOBER 5

Fireside Chat with the Governors

On Thursday, October 5, at 10 a.m., the Guthrie Scottish Rite Masonic Center in Guthrie will host a fireside chat with Oklahoma’s governors.  Proceeds from the event will benefit the Oklahoma Territorial Museum in Guthrie, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2023.

Oklahoma Historical Society Seeks Nominations for Annual Awards Program

The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) is now accepting nominations for its annual awards program. Recipients of these awards will be honored at the OHS Awards Banquet to be held Thursday, March 21, 2024, at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City.

The OHS is seeking nominations for the following awards:

• Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame: This honor recognizes distinguished and long-term contributions to Oklahoma history through demonstrated excellence.
• Bruce T. Fisher Award: This award recognizes the significant contribution of an individual or organization for history-related projects, including exhibits, short-form publications, collections care, film, programming, and digital projects completed in the previous year with a budget under $20,000.
• Linda Williams Reese Award: This award recognizes the outstanding dissertation or thesis on Oklahoma history completed in the previous year. It includes a $500 award.
• Joseph B. Thoburn Award: This is awarded to a junior or senior in high school who exhibits outstanding achievements in the presentation or interpretation of state and local history. It includes a $500 scholarship.
• William D. Pennington Award: This award acknowledges an outstanding social studies teacher—one who makes a lasting impact on students and provides remarkable support for Oklahoma National History Day projects.

To nominate an individual or a history project, please click here, or on the button below to download the nomination form specific to the award. Current members of the OHS Board of Directors and current employees of the OHS and its museums, sites, and affiliates are not eligible. The completed form must be submitted no later than October 20, 2023, to larry.odell@history.ok.gov or mailed to Larry O’Dell, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, Oklahoma City, OK 73105.

LISTEN TO THE LATEST

Making History on the Gridiron

In this episode of A Very OK Podcast, learn about the 1956 Frederick Bombers—the first integrated high school football team to win a state championship in the United States. They were coached by Dean Wild, who previously led the Watonga Eagles to a state championship in 1948.

The 1956 Bombers, with 12 Black players and 27 white players, were undefeated that year (14–0) and beat Okmulgee Dunbar 33–0 in the Oklahoma Class B state championship game. Coach Wild’s decision to integrate the team two years after the Brown v. Board of Education decision was unpopular with some local leaders in the Jim Crow era. However, the players developed a special bond that lasted for decades since that magical season. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn speak to Danny Griffin, a Frederick Bombers running back who was one of five players from the original 1956 team to advance to the All-Area Southern Oklahoma team in the same year. Danny recounts his memories of growing up in Frederick and tells stories about his talented teammates.

FINDING THE SWEET SPOT

Cinnamon Roll Social

The Fort Towson Historic Site will host a Cinnamon Roll Social on Saturday, September 30, from 10 a.m. to noon. The event is free, and everyone is invited.

Guests will enjoy cinnamon rolls cooked on-site in cast iron Dutch ovens under the cooling shade of walnut trees. The sutler store will provide a backdrop that brings to mind a time when soldiers worked, drilled, and received their sustenance at the military outpost. Guests will be invited to tour the museum, explore the grounds and learn about the significant impact of the fort. The informal event will be a time for community members, legislators, and Oklahoma Historical Society staff to get to know one another and share ideas to better the community.

For more information, call 580-873-2634 or email fttowson@history.ok.gov. The Fort Towson Historic Site is located at 896 N 4375 Rd. in Fort Towson.

PIECE BY PIECE

Potholder Quilt workshop

On Saturday, September 30, at 10 a.m., Hunter’s Home will hold a potholder quilt workshop to teach visitors about the origins of the craft. Participants will make a single square of a potholder quilt to take home. Potholder quilts were popular in the 19th century. They are made with each quilt block individually bound, and the individual pieces are stitched together to form a quilt.

You don’t need to make any reservations, but regular admission fees apply. For more information, call 918-456-2751. Hunter’s Home is at 19479 E. Murrell Home Rd. in Park Hill. It is Oklahoma’s only remaining pre-Civil War plantation home.