Everyone’s invited to celebrate Oklahoma City’s 125th birthday by attending an open house at City Hall on Tuesday, April 22. The event will feature free birthday cake, tours of City Hall, history lessons, a Spokies bike tour and children’s activities during the Festival of the Arts.
City Hall is located at 200 N Walker in downtown Oklahoma City.
“We invite everyone to join us in historic City Hall as we celebrate 125 years of Oklahoma City history and as we set the stage for growth and prosperity in the next 125 years,” Mayor Cornett said. “We’ve come a long way since our first provisional mayor, land run proponent William L. Couch, was elected into office in 1889.”
Free birthday cake will be served in the second floor lobby of City Hall between 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. and a giant birthday card will be hung in the lobby for all to sign. The City’s first motorized fire rig, a fully restored 1910 engine, will be on display on City Hall’s east plaza.
Free architectural tours of historic City Hall will be offered every hour on the hour from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tours will begin from the building’s second floor lobby.
People of all ages can join the Director of the Oklahoma Historical Society, Dr. Bob Blackburn and local architect Jim Loftis at 2 p.m. in the City Council Chamber for a captivating historical presentation and illustration of Oklahoma City history. Blackburn will present the historical information as Loftis draws the storyline using paper and markers.
The annual Festival of the Arts will celebrate the City’s birthday all week with children’s art activities inspired by Oklahoma City’s history. The activities take place in the Children’s Art Field at the Myriad Botanical Gardens for just $2. The festival runs 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.
People who prefer to learn about Oklahoma City’s history from a bike can register for a free Spokies bike history tour of downtown. The tour is open to people age 16 and older and will leave from the Spokies stand at the downtown library at 6 p.m. on April 22. Bikes will be provided.
For more information, call 297-2578 or log on to www.okc.gov.
Brief snapshot of Oklahoma City’s history from 1889 -1910
(Adapted from the Oklahoma Historical Society)
Oklahoma City sprang into existence on April 22, 1889, when approximately 50,000 participants of the Land Run of 1889 claimed town lots and quarter sections in the area known as the Unassigned Lands. On that date, an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 settlers came to Oklahoma Station (later Oklahoma City) to establish homes and businesses.
William L. Couch served as the first provisional mayor of Oklahoma City and Charles F. Colcord as the first police chief. When Couch resigned on November 11, 1889, Sidney Clarke became acting mayor until an election could be held. Andrew J. Beale was elected mayor on November 27, 1889. Oklahoma City was incorporated on July 15, 1890 and William J. Gault became the City’s first non-provisional mayor.
From 1889 to the 1910s city leaders and builders turned the railroad watering stop into a bustling commercial and transportation hub. Henry Overholser, a prominent early settler, had six prefabricated, two-story, wooden buildings transported to Oklahoma City in the early months of its development. He built the first opera house and constructed a palatial home, the Overholser House, on the outskirts of town.
Contact: Kristy Yager
297-2550 / 863-2831
Kristy.yager@okc.gov
