Today in Oklahoma History
McVeigh convicted for Oklahoma City bombing
Monday, June, 2, 1997 – Timothy McVeigh, a former U.S. Army soldier, is convicted on 15 counts of murder and conspiracy for his role in the 1995 terrorist bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. More...
National Defense Act of 1920 Forms 45th Infantry Division
Friday, June, 4, 1920 – Following World War I, the National Defense Act of 1920 created the authority to form the 45th Infantry Division from the four states of Oklahoma, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. The division was organized in 1923, and Oklahoma members camped together for the first time at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, in 1924. more...
First Shopping Cart
Friday, June, 4, 1937 – The first shopping cart was introduced by Sylvan Goldman in Oklahoma City more...
Bodamer's Fight
Wednesday, June, 8, 1870 – Lt. John A. Bodamer and 25 men of Company F, 10th Cavalry, were escorting a large ox train from Fort Dodge to Camp Supply, about 80 miles south. Near the edge of Indian territory, about 100 Cheyennes attacked. Bodamer corralled the wagons and fought off the Indians until nightfall, then dispatched Pvt. William Edmonson to Camp Supply for reinforcements. Narrowly escaping capture, Edmonson reached the post at 11 p.m. When Capt. Nicholas Nolan arrived the next morning, the Cheyennes were gone. During the fight Bodamer and his men killed three Cheyennes and wounded ten. Two soldiers, a Cpl. Freeman and a Pvt. Winchester, were wounded. more...
State Seal Moved
Saturday, June, 11, 1910 – In the dead of night on June 11, 1910, the official state seal of the State of Oklahoma was moved from Guthrie to Oklahoma City.
McVeigh executed for OKC Bombing
Monday, June, 11, 2001 – Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for the bombing after being convicted of, among other things, murdering federal law enforcement officials. He was executed by lethal injection at a U.S. penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. more...
Oklahoma Spaceport Receives License
Monday, June, 12, 2006 – The Licensing and Safety Division of the Commercial Space Transportation Division of the FAA Carole Flores signs the Launch Site Operator License for Oklahoma Space Industry Development Authority. more...
Girl Scout Murders
Monday, June, 13, 1977 – In 1977, Oklahoma and the entire nation were shocked when three young Girl Scouts were found murdered at Camp Scott near Locust Grove. Eight-year-old Lori Farmer, 10-year-old Doris Milner of Tulsa and 9-year-old Michelle Guse of Broken Arrow had been beaten and sexually assaulted. Gene Leroy Hart was arrested for the crime but never proved guilty. The case remains open. more...
Battle of the J.R. Williams
Wednesday, June, 15, 1864 – American Civil War -- Site of the civil war naval battle. Confederate Indian forces, led by Cherokee Brig. Gen. Stand Watie, forced aground and captured Union Steamboat J. R. Williams with cargo valued at $120,000 on June 15, 1864. Southern troops included Choctaws, Chickasaws, Creeks, and Seminoles. more...
The 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Time Capsule
Saturday, June, 15, 1957 – A new gold and white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was buried in a time capsule in downtown Tulsa, OK more...
Tulsa Time Capsule Unearthed
Friday, June, 15, 2007 – The 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Time Capsule was unearthed in Tulsa as part of the Oklahoma Centennial celebration. more...
Parking Meters
Sunday, June, 16, 1935 – Oklahoma City became the first city in the U.S. to make use of parking meters. more...
SONIC America's Drive-In
Thursday, June, 18, 1953 – Troy Smith opens his first Top Hat Drive-In in Shawnee, OK, featuring an intercom speaker system for ordering and Carhop delivery service. Later Top Hat will be re-named SONIC Drive-In, and become the nation's largest chain of drive-in restaurants.
Barry Switzer Resigns
Tuesday, June, 20, 1989 – Barry Switzer resigned as the head football coach of the University of Oklahoma on this day. Switzer left Oklahoma with a career record of 157 / 29 / 4. more...
Buffalo Creek
Sunday, June, 21, 1874 – At Buffalo, Oklahoma, Maj. Charles E. Compton, 6th Cavalry, with a detachment of Company G, 6th Cavalry, and a detachment of Company A, 3rd Infantry, were on the road from Camp Supply to Fort Dodge as a mail escort. Just south of Buffalo Creek they were attacked by about 30 Cheyennes, who wounded one soldier and one civilian. Two Cheyennes were thought to be wounded. more...
Stand Watie Surrender
Friday, June, 23, 1865 – On this day, Brigadier General Stand Watie was the last Confederate General to surrender at the end of the Civil War. More...
Wiley Post Flies Around The World
Tuesday, June, 23, 1931 – On this day, Wiley Post and his navigator, Harold Gatty, left Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York in the Winnie Mae with a flight plan that would take them around the world, making fourteen stops along the way in Newfoundland, England, Germany, the Soviet Union, Alaska, Alberta, Canada and Cleveland, Ohio before returning to Roosevelt Field. They arrived back on July 1 after traveling 15,474 miles in the record time of 8 days and 15 hours and 51 minutes. more...
Korean War
Sunday, June, 25, 1950 – The U.S. joined a United Nations force to North Korea to withdrawal from South Korea. more...
Route 66 Decommissioned
Thursday, June, 27, 1985 – US 66 was officially decommissioned (that is, officially removed from the United States Highway System) on June 27, 1985 after it was decided the route was no longer relevant and had been replaced by the Interstate Highway System. more...
Platt National Park
Friday, June, 29, 1906 – Platt National Park was designated on this day in 1906. Now named the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, the park preserves partially forested hills of south-central Oklahoma near Sulphur. more...
Congressional Act Defines 'Indian Country'
Monday, June, 30, 1834 – On this day Congress passed the final Indian Intercourse Act. In addition to regulating relations between Indians living on Indian land and non-Indians, this final act identified an area known as "Indian country". This land was described as being "all that part of the United States west of the Mississippi and not within the states of Missouri and Louisiana, or the territory of Arkansas" This is the land that became known as Indian Territory. more...