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Learning 115-year-old lessons
The Turkey Creek School is the original one-room schoolhouse, built in 1896, 10 miles southwest of Enid. Like all historic buildings in the Humphrey Heritage Village, the schoolhouse is open to the public during the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center’s open hours. Field trips to Turkey Creek School are available and offer an in-depth day of learning designed to replicate a 1910 one-room schoolhouse experience. Orthography and the study of penmanship are just part of the activities led by schoolmarms that teach youngsters what school was like for students over 100 years ago. For more information about visiting or scheduling a field trip to Turkey Creek School, call the museum’s education department at 580-237-1907.
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Spend a Day at Rose Hill School
The Rose Hill school stands on the grounds of the Cherokee Strip Museum in Perry. It is a one-room country school originally built northeast of Perry in 1895. The A Day at Rose Hill School program for third- and fourth-grade students from all over the state is designed to be an enlightening and educational experience where they learn what life was like for young people in 1910. Call 580-336-2405 today to learn what dates are available for the coming school year!
A comprehensive Teacher's Guide is available for educators wishing to prepare for their trip to the Rose Hill School. The guide includes information about what to bring for lunch, sample lessons from 1910, and activities to augment the experience for students before and after their visit.
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EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
Learn with the Oklahoma Historical Society
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OHS Native American History resources
Learn about Native history and culture through exhibits, collections, and resources. The Oklahoma Historical Society has multiple resources for discovering Oklahoma’s Native history, culture, stories, and people.
Visit the Native American history page on the OHS website to explore our archives, newspapers, oral histories, podcast episodes, historic places, noted landmarks, and educational tools. You can also read about Oklahoma’s remarkable Native actors, performers, artists, musicians, writers, historians, and athletes.
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“Back to School” online membership special!
Oklahoma Historical Society museums and historic sites are great places to learn about history. In August 2025, OHS Family memberships will be available for $50 instead of $75. This offer is only valid online; memberships must be purchased through the Oklahoma History Center Museum Store website. OHS Family memberships include unlimited free admission to all OHS museums and historic sites and many other benefits. This offer will conclude on Sunday, August 31.
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Remembering Governor George Nigh
Before he became lieutenant governor and later governor of the state, George Patterson Nigh (1927–2025), a young legislator from McAlester, introduced House Bill 1094. This bill proposed that the title song "Oklahoma!" from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical be designated as the new state song. To support this initiative, Nigh enlisted the help of Ridge Bond, a McAlester native who had played the role of Curly in Oklahoma! on Broadway, along with a choir from the Oklahoma College for Women in Chickasha. They performed "Oklahoma!" on the House floor during the debate, which was met with cheers and applause. The measure passed the House on April 28 and the Senate on May 6. After Governor Johnston Murray signed the bill, "Oklahoma!" officially became the state song on September 5, 1953. (22638.1.6, Oklahoma Historical Society).
See the George Nigh Collection and search for George Nigh on The Gateway to Oklahoma History.
Listen to A Very OK Podcast episodes "A Conversation Between Governors," recorded November 11, 2023, and "Oklahoma in the 1950s," recorded November 17, 2021 with guest, former Oklahoma Governor George Nigh.
Hear John Erling's Voices of Oklahoma interview with former Oklahoma Governor George Nigh, recorded on May 1, 2009.
Read about the life of George Patterson Nigh in The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.
Visit the OHS/Google Arts and Culture story Oklahoma! The Musical's Impact on the State to learn about the history of our state song, the development of the songs for the musical, and its ongoing popularity.
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LISTEN TO THE LATEST
“God, I need a drink.”
From the earliest days of Indian Territory through the 1950s, Oklahoma had strict laws prohibiting the sale of alcohol, but they were usually lightly enforced. In this latest episode of A Very OK Podcast, Trait Thompson and Dr. Matthew Pearce trace Oklahoma’s history with alcohol regulation and the social and political forces that shaped the state’s relationship with booze. Their guest is Congresswoman Stephanie Bice, who authored new laws which modernized alcohol policies during her tenure in the state senate.
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Upcoming OHS exhibits, events and programming |
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ENID
Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy
The Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center will host the traveling exhibit Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy through Saturday, August 30.
Told from the point of view of Sansei (third generation) Japanese Americans, Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy is an exhibition of eight artists whose work reflects on the effect of EO9066 as it resonated from generation to generation.
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OKLAHOMA CITY
Beyond the Sash exhibit opening
With six Miss America winners to its name, Oklahoma has long been a powerhouse in the world of pageantry. Opening on Saturday, August 30, Beyond the Sash: Reflections on Oklahoma Pageants is a new exhibit at the Oklahoma History Center Museum that explores the depth and variety of the state’s pageants and cultural representation. It opens to the public on Saturday, August 30, in the Sam Noble Gallery of the Oklahoma History Center Museum.
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KINGFISHER
Parlor Jams with Wayne Cantwell
On the last Saturday of August, September, and October, from 1 to 3 p.m., The Chisholm will present a series of jam sessions with Wayne Cantwell, in the parlor room of Horizon Hill, the home of Territorial Governor A. J. Seay. For more information, contact the museum at 405-375-5176.
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GUTHRIE
Finding the Butterfield: A Journey Through Time in Indian Territory author talk and book signing with Susan Dragoo
Join the Oklahoma Territorial Museum and Carnegie Library in Guthrie on Thursday, August 28, at 6 p.m., for an author talk and book signing with Susan Dragoo. She will discuss and sign copies of her book Finding the Butterfield: A Journey Through Time in Indian Territory (2024).
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Follow the OHS website calendar to learn about our events and programs at OHS museums and historic sites across the state! Our calendar constantly changes with the latest programs and activities, from seasonal events to celebrations, exhibits, films, educational classes, and workshops. |
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Connect with the Oklahoma Historical Society on social media—where you can learn more about Oklahoma history and get up-to-date information about events and exhibits across the state!
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Masthead image: The surface of a wooden desk in the Turkey Creek one-room schoolhouse in the Humphrey Heritage Village. A McGuffey's® Fourth Eclectic Reader, a penmanship booklet, an ink blotting paper, a quill pen, and ink bottle are arranged on the antique desk top. |
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