Resource Type

Degree Department

Building 3001: Home of the "Gooney Bird" (open access)

Building 3001: Home of the "Gooney Bird"

Article describes the history of Building 3001 at Tinker Air Force Base, where Oklahoman workers produced thousands of C-47 military aircraft during World War II. The building was nicknamed the "Gooney Bird" after the Albatross, clumsy on the ground but beautiful in flight.
Date: Autumn 2013
Creator: Allin, Lawrence Carroll
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Janet St. James Article (open access)

Janet St. James Article

This article is a short biography of former TV journalist Janet St. James describing her career, including her work reporting on the Oklahoma City Bombing and covering police and medical stories in Dallas. It also highlights some aspects of St. James' life and her thoughts about journalism.
Date: December 3, 2018
Creator: Burns, Brady; Owens, Brittany; Reyes, Blanca & Maxwell, Bailey
System: The UNT Digital Library
Notes and Documents, Summer 2015 (open access)

Notes and Documents, Summer 2015

Notes and Documents column including Katie Bush's "The Oklahoma City Motorcycle Club," a short article describing the historical impact of the Oklahoma City Motorcycle Club and including various historic photographs related to the club.
Date: Summer 2015
Creator: Bush, Katie
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Building and Promoting Their Place: The Clegerns of ‘89 (open access)

Building and Promoting Their Place: The Clegerns of ‘89

Article discusses the Clegern family and sheds light on a crucial time in the growth of three different Oklahoma cities. William Clegern and his son, Harry, were entrepreneurs who found opportunity in the 1889 Land Run. In addition, they influenced the development of Oklahoma City, Edmond, and Henryetta.
Date: Spring 2014
Creator: Clegern, Wayne M.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Notes and Documents, Fall 2013 (open access)

Notes and Documents, Fall 2013

Notes and Documents column including Tara Damron's "In the Shadows of the Century Chest: Message to Future Generations," which describes the history and contents of the Century Chest, a time capsule that was buried on April 22, 1913, through the unique partnership of the First Lutheran Church and the Oklahoma Historical Society. The Century Chest was opened on April 22, 2013 and will be preserved by the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Date: Autumn 2013
Creator: Damron, Tara
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Brother Bankers: Frank P. and Hugh M. Johnson, Founders of the First National Bank and Trust Company of Oklahoma City (open access)

Brother Bankers: Frank P. and Hugh M. Johnson, Founders of the First National Bank and Trust Company of Oklahoma City

Article explores the parallel paths in Oklahoma banking history of brothers F. P. and H. M. Johnson. The brothers came from Mississippi to Oklahoma and made names for themselves in their own banking ventures across the state before teaming up to create the First National Bank and Trust Company in Oklahoma City.
Date: Winter 2010
Creator: Hightower, Michael J.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Penn Square: The Shopping Center Bank that Shook the World, Part 1 - Boom (open access)

Penn Square: The Shopping Center Bank that Shook the World, Part 1 - Boom

Article describes the history of Penn Square Bank, including the planning and strategies of its organizers and its booming success gained from the thriving growth of the oil and gas industries during the 1960s-1980s. Michael J. Hightower focuses on the rise of the Oklahoma City bank in Part 1 of a two-part article.
Date: Spring 2012
Creator: Hightower, Michael J.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Penn Square: The Shopping Center Bank that Shook the World, Part 2 - Bust (open access)

Penn Square: The Shopping Center Bank that Shook the World, Part 2 - Bust

Article continues the history of the Penn Square Bank from Part 1, introducing the problems and practices that led to the bank's financial downfall. Michael J. Hightower examines the impact the bank's "bust" had on the oil industry and the financial community.
Date: Summer 2012
Creator: Hightower, Michael J.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Judge Royce H. Savage (open access)

Judge Royce H. Savage

Article asserts that despite the controversy surrounding Judge Royce Savage's retirement from the Northern District Court, the judge's reputation for case management and dedication to pretrial conferences remains intact.
Date: Spring 2011
Creator: Kellough, William C.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
“A Romantic Modernist”: William Wayne Caudill and the Work of Caudill Rowlett Scott in Oklahoma (open access)

“A Romantic Modernist”: William Wayne Caudill and the Work of Caudill Rowlett Scott in Oklahoma

Article describes Oklahoma-born architect William Wayne Caudill's career and his contributions to architecture in Oklahoma.
Date: Spring 2014
Creator: Kline, Susan Allen & Savage, Cynthia
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
"One Who Was Trusted": E. L. Mitchell of Western Oklahoma, Part One (open access)

"One Who Was Trusted": E. L. Mitchell of Western Oklahoma, Part One

This article is the first part of a two-part work. It begins a thorough biography of Elza Leon "E. L." Mitchell and relates his significance in western Oklahoma politics and journalism.
Date: Autumn 2014
Creator: Lambert, Paul F.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Notes and Documents, Summer 2014 (open access)

Notes and Documents, Summer 2014

Notes and Documents column including a short article honoring Linda Williams Reese and Mary Jane Warde, two of the inductees into the Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame in 2013. It also includes "The Story of the Location of the Capital" that was written by Thomas F. Mechan in 1913 and provides an account of Oklahoma politics during the state's early days.
Date: Summer 2014
Creator: Lambert, Paul F.; Bass, Elizabeth M. B.; McMechan, Thomas F. & Williams, Chad
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
West Edwards Days: African Americans in Territorial Edmond (open access)

West Edwards Days: African Americans in Territorial Edmond

Article describes the nearly forgotten African American community centered around West Edwards Street in territorial Edmond.
Date: Summer 2019
Creator: Lehman, Christopher P.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Class, Race, and Jack Walton's Mayoralty of Oklahoma City (open access)

Class, Race, and Jack Walton's Mayoralty of Oklahoma City

Article discusses the mayoral campaign and tenure of John C. "Jack" Walton as the mayor of Oklahoma City. Quincy R. Lehr explores the way Walton navigated a politically tumultuous time and gained the support of labor leaders and African American citizens in Oklahoma City before his controversial governorship.
Date: Summer 2011
Creator: Lehr, Quincy R.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Sooner Doughboys: University of Oklahoma Students Describe Their Experiences in the Great War (open access)

Sooner Doughboys: University of Oklahoma Students Describe Their Experiences in the Great War

Article explores the experiences of University of Oklahoma students and former students who fought in World War I through letters sent to the President of the university and contextual information.
Date: Spring 2017
Creator: Levy, David W.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
The 1969 Oklahoma City Garbage Strike (open access)

The 1969 Oklahoma City Garbage Strike

Article covers the Oklahoma City worker's strike in 1969 when sanitation workers, mostly African Americans, went on strike for higher wages and better working conditions. The article expounds on the reasons for the strike, the attention it received locally and nationally from African American politicians and organizations, and the results of the resolve of the strikers and their supporters.
Date: Winter 2010
Creator: Lowitt, Richard, 1922-2018
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
The Enigma of Mike Monroney (open access)

The Enigma of Mike Monroney

Article provides an overview of the political career of Almer Stillwell "Mike" Monroney, who served the people of Oklahoma in the US House of Representatives and US Senate from 1939 until 1966. The author characterizes Monroney as a level-headed moderate attempting to continue his tenure in office amidst a shift to the conservative right in Oklahoma politics.
Date: Spring 2013
Creator: Lowitt, Richard, 1922-2018
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Witness on Trial: Bishop W. Angie Smith at the Church Trial of James J. Stewart (open access)

Witness on Trial: Bishop W. Angie Smith at the Church Trial of James J. Stewart

The third of a three-part article, this article adds a new perspective to the ongoing study of Bishop W. Angie Smith of The Methodist Church. The author evaluates the bishop's testimony on his own behalf during the trial of James J. Stewart, the minister who accused him of wrongdoing.
Date: Spring 2010
Creator: Martin, A. W., Jr.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Camp Fire Girls versus Boy Scouts: A Friendly Game of Urban Forest-Building (open access)

Camp Fire Girls versus Boy Scouts: A Friendly Game of Urban Forest-Building

Article explains the friendly rivalry between the Camp Fire Girls and the Boy Scouts as the groups worked to improve the urban landscape in Oklahoma City.
Date: Summer 2014
Creator: Nelson, Darin
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Oklahoma City's McKinley Park: The Little Park that Raised a Ruckus (open access)

Oklahoma City's McKinley Park: The Little Park that Raised a Ruckus

Article recounts how the relationship between the public and private sectors led to the creation of McKinley Park to benefit the surrounding community in Oklahoma City.
Date: Winter 2012
Creator: Nelson, Darin
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
A Will of Iron: Dr. M. L. Peter and the Oklahoma City-County Health Department (open access)

A Will of Iron: Dr. M. L. Peter and the Oklahoma City-County Health Department

Article explores M. L. Peter's career in public health and contributions to the Oklahoma City community. Peter served for fifteen years as director of the Oklahoma City-County Health Department, bringing polio vaccination clinics and improved sanitation practices to the Oklahoma City Area.
Date: Winter 2016
Creator: Peter, Stephen B.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Unforgotten Trailblazer: Nancy O. Randolph Davis (open access)

Unforgotten Trailblazer: Nancy O. Randolph Davis

Article presents a biography of equal education and civil rights activist, Nancy O. Randolph Davis. In her roles as a student, a teacher, and a NAACP Youth Council Sponsor, Nancy O. Randolph Davis fought for equality for African American young people and made possible the advancement of Oklahoma's civil rights movement.
Date: Winter 2012
Creator: Pollard, Gloria J.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Dean A. McGee: Genius with Guts (open access)

Dean A. McGee: Genius with Guts

Article examines the philanthropic contributions of Dean A. McGee, geologist and partner in the Kerr-McGee Corporation, to Oklahoma City and Oklahoma in general.
Date: Summer 2014
Creator: Pryse, JA
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History
The Victory Loan Flying Circus in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, May 2-3, 1919 (open access)

The Victory Loan Flying Circus in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, May 2-3, 1919

Article chronicles the two days that the Flying Circus spent in Oklahoma City and Tulsa in 1919 and emphasizes the impact of its exhibitions on the future of aviation in the state.
Date: Summer 2019
Creator: Roesler, Alan L.
System: The Gateway to Oklahoma History