Today is Oatmeal Muffins Day and also Look For An Evergreen Day. And it is the Anniversary of the First Christmas Greeting from Space. In 1958 the first Christmas greeting (a recording from President Dwight Eisenhower) was broadcast from space by a satellite launched a day earlier. 10 years later another Christmas greeting was broadcast from space by the astronauts of Apollo 8 as they circled the moon on Christmas Eve.1968.The next couple of weeks are a vacation for me so I may not get to this site to update it. Just in case I don't, I wish a Merry Christmas (or Happy Holidays if you prefer) to all the visitors.
Now, it is off to see what is in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The photos are: 1) the Oklahoma City skyline; 2) the Oklahoma State Capitol Building; 3) Horses of the Oklahoma Land Run Monument; 4) water taxis on the Bricktown Canal; 5) the Myriad Botanical Gardens; 6) the Survivor Tree at the Oklahoma City National Memorial; 7) the Field of Empty Chairs at the Oklahoma City National Memorial; and 8) sunset over Lake Hefner in northwest Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's estimated population as of 2006 was 537,734, with a 2007 estimated population of 1,192,989 in the metropolitan area. In 2007, the Oklahoma City-Shawnee Combined Statistical Area had a population of 1,262,027 residents.
Besides Oklahoma County, the sprawling city extends into Canadian, Cleveland, and Pottawatomie counties. It was founded during the Land Run of 1889.
In 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was bombed by a disaffected U.S. Army veteran. With the Oklahoma City bombing resulting in 168 deaths, Timothy McVeigh caused the most destructive act of domestic terrorism in United States history, and the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Besides Oklahoma County, the sprawling city extends into Canadian, Cleveland, and Pottawatomie counties. It was founded during the Land Run of 1889.
In 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was bombed by a disaffected U.S. Army veteran. With the Oklahoma City bombing resulting in 168 deaths, Timothy McVeigh caused the most destructive act of domestic terrorism in United States history, and the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Oklahoma City was first settled on April 22, 1889, when the area known as the "unassigned lands" (that is, land in Indian territory that had not been assigned to any tribes) was opened for settlement in an event known as "The Land Run". Some 10,000 homesteaders settled the area now known as Oklahoma City, and within 10 years the population had doubled. By the time Oklahoma was admitted to the Union in 1907, Oklahoma City had supplanted Guthrie, the territorial capital, as the population center and commercial hub of the new state. Thanks to political and commercial savvy of such early city leaders as John Shartel, Anton Classen and Henry Overholser, Oklahoma City had become an attractive Victorian city with an efficient trolley system, a major regional commercial center, a railway hub and had attracted several large meat packing plants to Stockyards City (Oklahoma) along with other industry. The city, now with a population of 64,000, put in a petition to become the new state capital. A popular vote was held, with Governor Charles N. Haskell as one of the strongest advocates for Oklahoma City's candidacy, which Oklahoma City won. The Oklahoma State Capitol was established at NE 23rd street and Lincoln Boulevard. The capitol was long known for its lack of a dome, which could not be added by the time the building was completed in 1919 due to lack of funds. A dome was finally added to the building in 2002.
The new city continued to grow at a steady rate until December 4, 1928, when oil was discovered in the city. Oil wells popped up everywhere, even on the south lawn on the capitol building, and the sudden influx of oil money within the city and throughout the state greatly accelerated the city's growth. While those who had made money during this early oil boom largely escaped the Depression, the majority of Americans and Oklahomans were not so lucky. By 1935, rural migrants and unemployed workers had built a massive shanty town (or "Hooverville" after president Herbert Hoover) on the south bank of the North Canadian River. The river often flooded, bringing disease and misery to the people living there. As part of the "New Deal", the Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps greatly reduced the level of the river to prevent flooding (a move which would later become a problem for city leaders stuck with a nearly empty river) and built one of the first experiments with public housing in the country.
The Second World War and the resultant war industries brought recovery to the nation and Oklahoma City, and the post war period saw Oklahoma City become a major hub in the national Interstate Highway System. Additionally, Tinker Air Force Base in Midwest City became the largest air depot in the country in the post war period, a fact which made Oklahoma City the likely target for a possible Soviet nuclear strike. As the civil rights era dawned, downtown Oklahoma City became the site of a revolution in civil rights tactics. History teacher Clara Luper and some of her students from nearby Douglass High School led the first "sit in" in American history to desegregate the lunch counter at a downtown department store in 1958. When they succeeded, the tactic was adopted throughout the country, notably by the young activists of SNCC.
From February 3 to July 29, 1964, Oklahoma City was subjected to eight sonic booms per day in a controversial experiment known as the Oklahoma City sonic boom tests. The intent was to quantify the sociological and economic costs of a supersonic transport aircraft. The experiment resulted in 15,400 damage claims. The persistence of the experiment and the 94% rejection rate of damage claims led to turmoil at all levels of government and embroiled Senator Mike Monroney's office in a battle with the Federal Aviation Administration. The embarrassment over the Oklahoma City experiments partially contributed to the demise of the Boeing 2707 SST project seven years later.
As the 1960s continued, however, Oklahoma City began to decline. By 1970, "white flight" and suburbanization had drained the life from the central business district and the surrounding areas. The oil beneath the city had begun to dry up, and property values declined. The city leaders then engaged in a disastrous program of "urban renewal" which succeeded primarily in demolishing much of the aging theater district and the impressive Biltmore Hotel. The city had planned to build a massive shopping mall called "The Galleria" downtown, but money for renewal ran out before they could construct more than the parking garage for it. This left downtown OKC in even worse shape than it had been in, with vacant lots where Victorian brownstones once stood. The 1970s and 1980s were periods of stagnation for Oklahoma City proper (and was the case for almost all major cities in the United States) and periods of affluence and explosive development for the suburbs. With the exception of The Myriad Gardens (discussed below) very little was done to improve the inner city or the central business district during this time, even as the oil boom of the late 1970s brought a flood of money into the area.
By 1992, the city was in such dire need of improvement that it was losing jobs, population, and even air carriers to more attractive cities. With this in mind, Mayor Ron Norrick pushed through a massive plan for capitol improvements throughout Downtown called the Metropolitan Area Projects, or MAPS. MAPS called for a five-year, one-cent sales tax to fund a new ballpark, a canal through Bricktown, a new central library, a large indoor arena, renovations to the fairgrounds and the civic center, and a series of low water dams on the North Canadian River to make it attractive and accessible to small boats. Though still stinging from the failure of "urban renewal", the people of Oklahoma City passed the measure, eventually raising over 1 billion dollars for improvements to the city and bringing life back to the central city. As Oklahoma City moves through the twenty-first century, new changes continue to bring population, jobs, entertainment, and improvement. in 2004 a new Dell call center brought over 250 jobs, and plans to employ over 19,000 more jobs in the future. 2005 brought Oklahoma their first major league Basketball franchise, the OKC/New Orleans Hornets, followed by becoming the permanent home of the renamed Seattle NBA franchise, now the OKC Thunder, in 2008. Many other corporations are finding OKC their home and the population is once again increasing at a very high rate. Oklahoma City has a new skyscraper coming soon. Devon energy is building a 57 story skyscraper.
In the midst of this atmosphere of optimism and change, Timothy McVeigh drove a rented truck full of explosives to the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. The explosion killed 168 people (including 19 children) and injured thousands, as well as damaging and destroying many surrounding buildings. Until the attacks of September 11, it was the largest terrorist attack on American soil, and it remains the single largest domestic terrorist attack in American history. The site is now home to the Oklahoma City National Memorial. Oklahoma City has recovered and rebuilt since then, and it is now difficult to see evidence of the attack in the surrounding areas.
The new city continued to grow at a steady rate until December 4, 1928, when oil was discovered in the city. Oil wells popped up everywhere, even on the south lawn on the capitol building, and the sudden influx of oil money within the city and throughout the state greatly accelerated the city's growth. While those who had made money during this early oil boom largely escaped the Depression, the majority of Americans and Oklahomans were not so lucky. By 1935, rural migrants and unemployed workers had built a massive shanty town (or "Hooverville" after president Herbert Hoover) on the south bank of the North Canadian River. The river often flooded, bringing disease and misery to the people living there. As part of the "New Deal", the Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps greatly reduced the level of the river to prevent flooding (a move which would later become a problem for city leaders stuck with a nearly empty river) and built one of the first experiments with public housing in the country.
The Second World War and the resultant war industries brought recovery to the nation and Oklahoma City, and the post war period saw Oklahoma City become a major hub in the national Interstate Highway System. Additionally, Tinker Air Force Base in Midwest City became the largest air depot in the country in the post war period, a fact which made Oklahoma City the likely target for a possible Soviet nuclear strike. As the civil rights era dawned, downtown Oklahoma City became the site of a revolution in civil rights tactics. History teacher Clara Luper and some of her students from nearby Douglass High School led the first "sit in" in American history to desegregate the lunch counter at a downtown department store in 1958. When they succeeded, the tactic was adopted throughout the country, notably by the young activists of SNCC.
From February 3 to July 29, 1964, Oklahoma City was subjected to eight sonic booms per day in a controversial experiment known as the Oklahoma City sonic boom tests. The intent was to quantify the sociological and economic costs of a supersonic transport aircraft. The experiment resulted in 15,400 damage claims. The persistence of the experiment and the 94% rejection rate of damage claims led to turmoil at all levels of government and embroiled Senator Mike Monroney's office in a battle with the Federal Aviation Administration. The embarrassment over the Oklahoma City experiments partially contributed to the demise of the Boeing 2707 SST project seven years later.
As the 1960s continued, however, Oklahoma City began to decline. By 1970, "white flight" and suburbanization had drained the life from the central business district and the surrounding areas. The oil beneath the city had begun to dry up, and property values declined. The city leaders then engaged in a disastrous program of "urban renewal" which succeeded primarily in demolishing much of the aging theater district and the impressive Biltmore Hotel. The city had planned to build a massive shopping mall called "The Galleria" downtown, but money for renewal ran out before they could construct more than the parking garage for it. This left downtown OKC in even worse shape than it had been in, with vacant lots where Victorian brownstones once stood. The 1970s and 1980s were periods of stagnation for Oklahoma City proper (and was the case for almost all major cities in the United States) and periods of affluence and explosive development for the suburbs. With the exception of The Myriad Gardens (discussed below) very little was done to improve the inner city or the central business district during this time, even as the oil boom of the late 1970s brought a flood of money into the area.
By 1992, the city was in such dire need of improvement that it was losing jobs, population, and even air carriers to more attractive cities. With this in mind, Mayor Ron Norrick pushed through a massive plan for capitol improvements throughout Downtown called the Metropolitan Area Projects, or MAPS. MAPS called for a five-year, one-cent sales tax to fund a new ballpark, a canal through Bricktown, a new central library, a large indoor arena, renovations to the fairgrounds and the civic center, and a series of low water dams on the North Canadian River to make it attractive and accessible to small boats. Though still stinging from the failure of "urban renewal", the people of Oklahoma City passed the measure, eventually raising over 1 billion dollars for improvements to the city and bringing life back to the central city. As Oklahoma City moves through the twenty-first century, new changes continue to bring population, jobs, entertainment, and improvement. in 2004 a new Dell call center brought over 250 jobs, and plans to employ over 19,000 more jobs in the future. 2005 brought Oklahoma their first major league Basketball franchise, the OKC/New Orleans Hornets, followed by becoming the permanent home of the renamed Seattle NBA franchise, now the OKC Thunder, in 2008. Many other corporations are finding OKC their home and the population is once again increasing at a very high rate. Oklahoma City has a new skyscraper coming soon. Devon energy is building a 57 story skyscraper.
In the midst of this atmosphere of optimism and change, Timothy McVeigh drove a rented truck full of explosives to the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. The explosion killed 168 people (including 19 children) and injured thousands, as well as damaging and destroying many surrounding buildings. Until the attacks of September 11, it was the largest terrorist attack on American soil, and it remains the single largest domestic terrorist attack in American history. The site is now home to the Oklahoma City National Memorial. Oklahoma City has recovered and rebuilt since then, and it is now difficult to see evidence of the attack in the surrounding areas.
Today's Jumble (12/19/08):
INGGA = AGING; DUGOH = DOUGH; LOOTIN = LOTION; TOMELE = OMELET
CIRCLED LETTERS = GNOHTINOT
What the indifferent student said when he got a zero on the test.
"NOTHING TO (IT)"
Today in history:
324 - Licinius abdicates his position as Roman Emperor.
1154 - Henry II of England is crowned at Westminster Abbey.
1490 - Anne of Brittany is married to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor by proxy.
1606 - The Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery depart England carrying settlers who, at Jamestown, Virginia, found the first of the thirteen colonies that became the United States.
1776 - Thomas Paine publishes one of a series of pamphlets in the Pennsylvania Journal titled The American Crisis.
1777 - American Revolutionary War: George Washington's Continental Army goes into winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
1828 - Nullification Crisis: Vice President of the United States John C. Calhoun pens the South Carolina Exposition and Protest, protesting the Tariff of 1828.
1835 - The first issue of The Blade newspaper is published in Toledo, Ohio.
1907 - A group of 239 coal miners die during a mine explosion in Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania.
1912 - William H. Van Schaick, captain of the steamship General Slocum which caught fire and killed over 1,000 people, is pardoned by U.S. President William Howard Taft after three-and-a-half-years in Sing Sing prison.
1916 - World War I: Battle of Verdun - On the Western Front, the French Army successfully holds off the German Army and drives it back to its starting position.
1920 - King Constantine I is restored as King of the Hellenes after the death of his son Alexander I of Greece and a plebiscite.
1924 - The last Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost is sold in London, England.
1932 - BBC World Service begins broadcasting as the BBC Empire Service
1941 - World War II: Adolf Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the German Army.
1961 - India annexes Daman and Diu, part of Portuguese India.
1967 - Prime Minister of Australia Harold Holt is officially presumed dead.
1972 - Apollo program: The last manned lunar flight, Apollo 17, crewed by Eugene Cernan, Ron Evans and Harrison Schmitt, returns to Earth.
1975 - John Paul Stevens appointed as a justice of The United States Supreme Court.
1981 - Sixteen lives are lost when the Penlee lifeboat goes to the aid of the stricken coaster Union Star in heavy seas.
1983 - The original FIFA World Cup trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, is stolen from the headquarters of the Brazilian Football Confederation in Rio de Janeiro.
1984 - The Sino-British Joint Declaration, stating that the People's Republic of China would resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and the United Kingdom would restore Hong Kong to China with effect from July 1, 1997 is signed in Beijing by Deng Xiaoping and Margaret Thatcher.
1986 - Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev releases Andrei Sakharov and his wife from internal exile in Gorky.
1994 - Rolls-Royce announces its future cars will feature V12 engine which will be produced by BMW.
1995 - The United States Government restores federal recognition to the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indian tribe.
1997 - SilkAir Flight 185 crashes into the Musi River, near Palembang in Indonesia, killing 104.
1997 - Titanic is released in theaters. This movie would become the most financially successful movie in U.S. history, grossing approximately $1.8 billion worldwide.
1998 - Lewinsky scandal: The United States House of Representatives forwards articles I and III of impeachment against President Bill Clinton to the Senate.
2000 - The Leninist Guerrilla Units wing of the Communist Labour Party of Turkey/Leninist attack a Nationalist Movement Party office in Istanbul, killing one person and injuring three.
2001 - A record high barometric pressure of 1085.6 hPa (32.06 inHg) is recorded at Tosontsengel, Khövsgöl Province, Mongolia.
2001 - Argentine economic crisis: December 2001 riots - Riots erupt in Buenos Aires after Domingo Cavallo's corralito measures restrict the withdrawal of cash from bank deposits.
1154 - Henry II of England is crowned at Westminster Abbey.
1490 - Anne of Brittany is married to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor by proxy.
1606 - The Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery depart England carrying settlers who, at Jamestown, Virginia, found the first of the thirteen colonies that became the United States.
1776 - Thomas Paine publishes one of a series of pamphlets in the Pennsylvania Journal titled The American Crisis.
1777 - American Revolutionary War: George Washington's Continental Army goes into winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
1828 - Nullification Crisis: Vice President of the United States John C. Calhoun pens the South Carolina Exposition and Protest, protesting the Tariff of 1828.
1835 - The first issue of The Blade newspaper is published in Toledo, Ohio.
1907 - A group of 239 coal miners die during a mine explosion in Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania.
1912 - William H. Van Schaick, captain of the steamship General Slocum which caught fire and killed over 1,000 people, is pardoned by U.S. President William Howard Taft after three-and-a-half-years in Sing Sing prison.
1916 - World War I: Battle of Verdun - On the Western Front, the French Army successfully holds off the German Army and drives it back to its starting position.
1920 - King Constantine I is restored as King of the Hellenes after the death of his son Alexander I of Greece and a plebiscite.
1924 - The last Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost is sold in London, England.
1932 - BBC World Service begins broadcasting as the BBC Empire Service
1941 - World War II: Adolf Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the German Army.
1961 - India annexes Daman and Diu, part of Portuguese India.
1967 - Prime Minister of Australia Harold Holt is officially presumed dead.
1972 - Apollo program: The last manned lunar flight, Apollo 17, crewed by Eugene Cernan, Ron Evans and Harrison Schmitt, returns to Earth.
1975 - John Paul Stevens appointed as a justice of The United States Supreme Court.
1981 - Sixteen lives are lost when the Penlee lifeboat goes to the aid of the stricken coaster Union Star in heavy seas.
1983 - The original FIFA World Cup trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, is stolen from the headquarters of the Brazilian Football Confederation in Rio de Janeiro.
1984 - The Sino-British Joint Declaration, stating that the People's Republic of China would resume the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and the United Kingdom would restore Hong Kong to China with effect from July 1, 1997 is signed in Beijing by Deng Xiaoping and Margaret Thatcher.
1986 - Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev releases Andrei Sakharov and his wife from internal exile in Gorky.
1994 - Rolls-Royce announces its future cars will feature V12 engine which will be produced by BMW.
1995 - The United States Government restores federal recognition to the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indian tribe.
1997 - SilkAir Flight 185 crashes into the Musi River, near Palembang in Indonesia, killing 104.
1997 - Titanic is released in theaters. This movie would become the most financially successful movie in U.S. history, grossing approximately $1.8 billion worldwide.
1998 - Lewinsky scandal: The United States House of Representatives forwards articles I and III of impeachment against President Bill Clinton to the Senate.
2000 - The Leninist Guerrilla Units wing of the Communist Labour Party of Turkey/Leninist attack a Nationalist Movement Party office in Istanbul, killing one person and injuring three.
2001 - A record high barometric pressure of 1085.6 hPa (32.06 inHg) is recorded at Tosontsengel, Khövsgöl Province, Mongolia.
2001 - Argentine economic crisis: December 2001 riots - Riots erupt in Buenos Aires after Domingo Cavallo's corralito measures restrict the withdrawal of cash from bank deposits.
2 comments:
Thank you drdad for this wonderful visit to OK City. I recognized it right away in the first pictures. The history is fascinating too and well done. Thank you so much. My family always considered Lawton a well kept secret. OKC is well kept too, just not a secret. It's a beautiful city as well.
Thank you. Have a Merry Christmas.
Dr. Dad,
Happy New Year!
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