Oklahoma's Native Son | |
---|---|
Artist | Harold T. Holden |
Year | 2005 |
Location | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. |
35°23′45″N97°35′46″W / 35.395814°N 97.596097°W Coordinates: 35°23′45″N97°35′46″W / 35.395814°N 97.596097°W |
Oklahoma's Native Son is a 2005 bronze sculpture of Will Rogers by Harold T. Holden, installed outside the Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Commissioned by the Oklahoma City Airport Trust to commemorate the completion of the airport's terminal renovation project, the artwork depicts Rogers astride his horse Teddy and weighs 2,500 lbs. [1] [2]
Oklahoma is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New Mexico on the west, and Colorado on the northwest. Partially in the western extreme of the Upland South, it is the 20th-most extensive and the 28th-most populous of the 50 United States. Its residents are known as Oklahomans and its capital and largest city is Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma City, officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and is the 8th largest city in the Southern United States. The population grew following the 2010 census and reached 681,054 in the 2020 census. The Oklahoma City metropolitan area had a population of 1,396,445, and the Oklahoma City–Shawnee Combined Statistical Area had a population of 1,469,124, making it Oklahoma's largest municipality and metropolitan area by population.
Rogers is a city in Benton County, Arkansas, United States. Located in the Ozarks, it is part of the Northwest Arkansas region, one of the fastest growing metro areas in the country. Rogers was the location of the first Walmart store, whose corporate headquarters is located in neighboring Bentonville. Daisy Outdoor Products, known for its air rifles, has both its headquarters and its Airgun Museum in Rogers.
El Reno is a city in and county seat of Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 16,989, marking a change of 1.55% from 16,729, recorded in the 2010 census. The city was begun shortly after the 1889 land rush and named for the nearby Fort Reno. It is located in Central Oklahoma, about 30 miles (48 km) west of downtown Oklahoma City.
Norman is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, behind the state capital, Oklahoma City. It is 20 miles south of OKC.
Vinita is a city and county seat of Craig County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,743, a decline of 11.22 percent from the figure of 6,469 recorded in 2000.
Seminole is a city in Seminole County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 7,488 at the 2010 census. Seminole experienced a large population growth in the 1920s due to an oil boom.
Ponca City is a city in Kay County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The city was named after the Ponca tribe. Ponca City had a population of 25,387 at the time of the 2010 census- and a population of 24,424 in the 2020 census.
Bartlesville is a city mostly in Washington County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 37,290 at the 2020 census. Bartlesville is 47 miles (76 km) north of Tulsa and 18 miles (29 km) south of the Kansas border. It is the county seat of Washington County. The Caney River runs through Bartlesville.
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa metropolitan area, a region with 1,023,988 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Tulsa County, the most densely populated county in Oklahoma, with urban development extending into Osage, Rogers, and Wagoner counties.
William Penn Adair Rogers was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory, and is known as "Oklahoma's Favorite Son". As an entertainer and humorist, he traveled around the world three times, made 71 films, and wrote more than 4,000 nationally syndicated newspaper columns. By the mid-1930s, Rogers was hugely popular in the United States for his leading political wit and was the highest paid of Hollywood film stars. He died in 1935 with aviator Wiley Post when their small airplane crashed in northern Alaska.
Will Rogers World Airport, a.k.a.Will Rogers Airport or simply Will Rogers, is a passenger airport located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, about 6 miles (10 km) southwest of the city's downtown area. It is a civil-military airport on 8,081 acres of land. Although the official IATA and ICAO airport codes for Will Rogers World Airport are OKC and KOKC, it is common practice to refer to it as "WRWA" or "Will Rogers".
Vance Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in southern Enid, Oklahoma, about 65 mi (105 km) north northwest of Oklahoma City. The base is named after local World War II hero and Medal of Honor recipient, Lieutenant Colonel Leon Robert Vance Jr.
Central Oklahoma is the geographical name for the central region of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is also known by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism designation, Frontier Country, defined as the twelve-county region including Canadian, Grady, Logan, Oklahoma, Cleveland, McClain, Payne, Lincoln, Pottawatomie, Seminole, Okfuskee, and Hughes counties.
The Federal Transfer Center (FTC Oklahoma City) is a United States federal prison for male and female inmates in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice, and houses offenders and parole violators who have yet to be assigned to a permanent prison facility. Most inmates who enter the federal prison system come through the facility.
The Tulsa metropolitan area, officially defined as the Tulsa metropolitan statistical area is a metropolis in northeastern Oklahoma centered around the city of Tulsa and encompassing Tulsa, Rogers, Wagoner, Osage, Creek, Okmulgee and Pawnee counties. It had a population of 1,023,988 according to the 2021 U.S. census estimates.
The 137th Special Operations Wing is a unit of the Oklahoma Air National Guard located at Will Rogers Air National Guard Base, Oklahoma. If activated to federal service, the wing is gained by Air Force Special Operations Command. During World War II, its predecessor, the 404th Fighter Group, flying Republic P-47 Thunderbolts, provided close air support to troops following the Operation Overlord, the Normandy landing until the close of the war. The wing is entitled to the honors won by the group by temporary bestowal.
The 185th Special Operations Squadron is a unit of the Oklahoma Air National Guard's 137th Special Operations Wing, located at Will Rogers World Airport, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The 185th is the only National Guard unit to be equipped with the MC-12W. The unit is known as the "Sooners". Famous unit alumni include former Vietnam prisoner of war Brig. Gen. James Robinson "Robbie" Risner and Astronaut Captain Fred Wallace Haise Jr., Apollo 13 Lunar Module Pilot.
Iron Feathers is an outdoor 1990 sculpture by Rand Elliott, installed outside Oklahoma City's Will Rogers World Airport, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The steel pipe artwork was dedicated on April 13, 1990.
The Ballerina is a 9-foot (2.7 m) bronze sculpture by Mike Larsen, installed in Oklahoma City's Civic Center Music Hall, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The statue commemorates the legacy of Yvonne Chouteau, Rosella Hightower, Moscelyne Larkin, Majorie Tallchief, and Maria Tallchief, five Native American women ballet dancers named "Oklahoma's treasures" by former Governor Frank Keating. The sculpture was unveiled in 2007.