I moved to Tulsa exactly 14 months ago, but I haven’t begun to explore anything beyond Tulsa. I’ve enjoyed the scenery along the Muskogee Turnpike and I-40 on the few trips I’ve made back to Arkansas, but I haven’t even driven through most of the small towns. My family is spread all over Arkansas, so I’m fairly familiar with many small towns all around the state. I cannot say the same about Oklahoma yet, but I will eventually! There may not be “much to see” but small towns are where I’m most comfortable (except for Tulsa because I love it here). Kelsey’s post last week about state parks only made me even more excited to go travel across my new home state!
I’ve peeked at the Oklahoma Collection she featured last week, and I will post more about it in the future, but today I’m sharing a few post cards from across Oklahoma that are in our Post Card Collection. Particularly, I have chosen these because I’d like to visit them specifically, hopefully over the winter break, and see if I can find any semblances. I think it will be fun to return to this post in January with a follow up post. I know it’s only October, but it’s fun to plan!
I really hope this is still standing!
At some point in the past Medford had a First National Bank. Google Maps doesn’t show any bank with that name now, but I hope the building has been preserved and repurposed. Medford is in north central Oklahoma, about two hours from Tulsa.
Wakita, Oklahoma, is actually only 20 minutes northwest of Medford, though I image it has changed a lot since this photo was taken. Google Maps even informed me that Wakita is notable for its feature in the movie Twister, and there’s even a museum dedicated to it. As a new museum professional, you know I’m going to see that!
I’m super curious to see if this building is even still standing, let alone still an airport and cafe
Out in the panhandle, Guymon, OK, is the county seat of Texas County; at 11,000 people, it’s bigger than I thought it was, but that’s comparable to Batesville, AR, where I lived for many years. This post card shows the “Airport Administration Building and Cafe” and I am really curious to see if it’s still around in any form, or what the airport in Guymon might even look light. My Dad used to joke about the Batesville “International Airport” so I imagine Guymon’s is pretty close.
Visiting Medford, Wakita, and Guymon will totally include a stop at Boiling Springs too! Road trip!
Much closer to home is Drumright, Oklahoma; it’s about 45 minutes southwest of Tulsa, so I might drive out there on a weekend before Christmas break, just to see it. Drumright began as an oil boom town, which is likely when this picture was taken. I briefly scanned the map for a Broadway St/Rd/Blvd/Ave and didn’t see it, but I’ll look more closely before I go.
These four post cards are only a tiny fraction of the whole collection, which ranges well beyond Oklahoma or even the U.S. If you would like to see the Post Card Collection or any of the many others we hold, please contact us at speccoll@utulsa.edu for arrangements. We are currently open only to TU students, faculty, and staff by appointments made at least 24 hours in advance. You are also welcome to browse our Catalog and Digital Collections and request photocopies or digital scans of materials through the same email. Kelsey and I fulfill requests as quickly as possible, but especially large requests or a high volume of requests may take up to 4-6 weeks. We are happy to help you as best we can and we hope that you stay safe and healthy!