Interstate 44 (I-44) is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Falls, Texas, at a concurrency with U.S. Route 277 (US 277), US 281, and US 287; its eastern terminus is at I-70 in St. Louis, Missouri. I-44 is one of five Interstates built to bypass US 66; this highway covers the section between Oklahoma City and St. Louis. Virtually the entire length of I-44 east of Springfield, Missouri, was once US 66, which was upgraded from two to four lanes from 1949 to 1955. The section of I-44 west of Springfield was built farther south than US 66 in order to connect Missouri's section with the already completed Will Rogers Turnpike, which Oklahoma wished to carry their part of I-44.
Wichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita Counties. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 102,316, making it the 39th-most populous city in Texas.
Vernon is a city and the county seat of Wilbarger County, Texas, United States. and as of the 2010 Census had a population of 11,002.
The Cotton Bowl is an outdoor stadium in Dallas, Texas, United States. Opened in 1930 as Fair Park Stadium, it is on the site of the State Fair of Texas, known as Fair Park.
On Tuesday, April 10, 1979, a widespread and destructive outbreak of severe weather impacted areas near the Red River between Oklahoma and Texas. Thunderstorms developed over West and North Central Texas during the day within highly unstable atmospheric conditions following the northward surge of warm and moist air into the region, producing large hail, strong winds, and multiple tornadoes. At least 22 tornadoes were documented on April 10, of which two were assigned an F4 rating on the Fujita scale; four of the tornadoes caused fatalities.
Midwestern State University is a public liberal arts university in Wichita Falls, Texas. In 2020 it had 5,141 undergraduate students. It is the state's only public institution focused on the liberal arts.
A destructive tornado outbreak struck a wide swath of the Southern and Eastern United States as well as Canada on November 15 and 16, 1989. It produced at least 40 tornadoes and caused 30 deaths as a result of two deadly tornadoes. The most devastating event was the Huntsville, Alabama F4 tornado, which killed 21 on the afternoon of November 15. Nine more fatalities occurred at a single elementary school by an F1 tornado on November 16 in Newburgh, New York, although further survey revealed that this might have been a downburst instead. This outbreak also produced the most tornadoes in a single day in New Jersey, later tied on April 1, 2023. Several other significant tornadoes were reported across 15 states.
Cessna Stadium is a stadium on the campus of Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It opened in 1946 and served as the home of the football team until the program was discontinued in 1986. It is currently home of the Wichita State Shockers track and field team. The Kansas Board of Regents approved demolition of the stadium in April 2020. Only the east stands were demolished. The rest of the stadium is supposed to be demolished after the 2024 track and field season.
The largest tornado outbreak on record to occur during the month of January struck the Midwestern and Southern United States between January 21–23, 1999. The outbreak mostly took place across the Mississippi River Valley. Over the course of roughly two days, 128 tornadoes touched down across the region, resulting in widespread damage. Nine people were killed by the tornadoes. The outbreak is best known for an F3 that struck Little Rock, Arkansas, killing three people.
The Oil Bowl is a high school football all-star game in Wichita Falls, Texas. The game began in 1938, originally between East and West Texas high school football all-stars. In 1945, the game began pitting teams from Oklahoma and Texas, and continued in that format until 2012. In 2013, a dispute concerning the disposition of Oklahoma's share of the game's charitable proceeds led the Oklahoma Coaches Association to withdraw from the game, and the 2013 game matched two Texas teams. For the years in which Texas and Oklahoma teams played, the overall record was 46–19–1 in favor of Texas.
S.H. Rider High School was a public school in Wichita Falls, Texas, United States. It was part of the Wichita Falls Independent School District. The school opened in 1961 and served students in grades nine through twelve.
The 1905 Snyder, Oklahoma, tornado was a powerful tornado that struck the town of Snyder, Oklahoma, in Kiowa County on Wednesday, May 10, 1905. The event was one of the worst natural disasters ever to hit the state of Oklahoma. The cyclone killed 97 people, making it the second most deadly tornado in Oklahoma history. The tornado was part of a larger, multiple-day tornado outbreak that hit several states across the Midwestern United States, including Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri.
KTWF is a radio station licensed to Scotland, Texas serving the Wichita Falls, Texas area with a classic hits format. The station is owned and operated by LKCM Radio Group. KTWF's studios are located on Call Field Rd in the southwest portion of Wichita Falls. The transmitter site is about seven miles north of Archer City, Texas.
The 1979 Easter flood was one of the most costly and devastating floods to ever occur in Mississippi, United States, with $500–700 million in damages. It was the result of the Pearl River being overwhelmed by severe rain upstream. Floodwaters sent the Pearl River 15 feet above flood stage. More than 17,000 residents of Jackson, Flowood, Pearl, Richland, and other settlements in the Jackson metropolitan area were forced from their homes. The flooding of the Pearl River placed most of the streets of Jackson, the state's capital city, under several feet of water. This flood resulted from a storm system that was the same storm system that, just a few days earlier, produced the Red River valley tornado outbreak that is particularly well-known because of the devastating Wichita Falls, Texas tornado that killed 42, injured over 1,700, left an estimated 20,000 homeless, and caused, in 1979 dollars, approximately $400 million in damages.
The History of Lawton, Oklahoma refers to the history of the southwestern Oklahoma city of Lawton, Oklahoma. Lawton's history starts with opening of American Indian reservation lands in the early 1900s and has seen population and economic growth throughout the 20th Century due to its proximity with Fort Sill.
The 1976 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in August 1976 and concluded with the championship game on December 11 at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas. The Montana State Bobcats defeated the Akron Zips 24–13 in the Pioneer Bowl to win their only Division II national title.
The 1977 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began in August 1977 and concluded with the championship game on December 10 at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas. The Lehigh Engineers defeated the Jacksonville State Gamecocks 33–0 in the Pioneer Bowl to win their first Division II national title.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Wichita Falls, Texas, USA.
The 2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football team represented Texas A&M University–Commerce in the 2018 NCAA Division II football season. They were led by head coach Colby Carthel, who was in his sixth season at Texas A&M–Commerce. The Lions played their home games at Memorial Stadium and were members of the Lone Star Conference.
The 2021 Texas–Permian Basin Falcons football team represented the University of Texas of the Permian Basin (UTPB) in the 2021 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the Lone Star Conference (LSC). The Falcons were led by sixth-year head coach Justin Carrigan. The Falcons played their home games at Ratliff Stadium in Odessa, Texas, with one home game played at Grande Communications Stadium in Midland.
