1.
Oklahoma
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Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central United States. Oklahoma is the 20th-most extensive and the 28th-most populous of the 50 United States, the states name is derived from the Choctaw words okla and humma, meaning red people. The name was settled upon statehood, Oklahoma Territory and Indian Territory were merged, on November 16,1907, Oklahoma became the 46th state to enter the union. Its residents are known as Oklahomans, or informally Okies, and its capital, a major producer of natural gas, oil, and agricultural products, Oklahoma relies on an economic base of aviation, energy, telecommunications, and biotechnology. In 2007, it had one of the economies in the United States, ranking among the top states in per capita income growth. Oklahoma City and Tulsa serve as Oklahomas primary economic anchors, with nearly two-thirds of Oklahomans living within their metropolitan statistical areas. With small mountain ranges, prairie, mesas, and eastern forests, most of Oklahoma lies in the Great Plains, Cross Timbers, interior Highlands—a region especially prone to severe weather. The name Oklahoma comes from the Choctaw phrase okla humma, literally meaning red people, equivalent to the English word Indian, okla humma was a phrase in the Choctaw language used to describe Native American people as a whole. Oklahoma later became the de facto name for Oklahoma Territory, and it was approved in 1890. Oklahoma is the 20th-largest state in the United States, covering an area of 69,898 square miles and it is one of six states on the Frontier Strip and lies partly in the Great Plains near the geographical center of the 48 contiguous states. It is bounded on the east by Arkansas and Missouri, on the north by Kansas, on the northwest by Colorado, on the far west by New Mexico, much of its border with Texas lies along the Southern Oklahoma Aulacogen, a failed continental rift. The geologic figure defines the placement of the Red River, the Oklahoma panhandles Western edge is out of alignment with its Texas border. The Oklahoma/New Mexico border is actually 2.1 to 2.2 miles east of the Texas line, the border between Texas and New Mexico was set first as a result of a survey by Spain in 1819. It was then set along the 103rd Meridian, in the 1890s, when Oklahoma was formally surveyed using more accurate surveying equipment and techniques, it was discovered the Texas line was not set along the 103rd Meridian. Surveying techniques were not as accurate in 1819, and the actual 103rd Meridian was approximately 2.2 miles to the east and it was much easier to leave the mistake than for Texas to cede land to New Mexico to correct the surveying error. The placement of the Oklahoma/New Mexico border represents the true 103rd Meridian, cimarron County in Oklahomas panhandle is the only county in the United States that touches four other states, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado and Kansas. Its highest and lowest points follow this trend, with its highest peak, Black Mesa, at 4,973 feet above sea level, situated near its far northwest corner in the Oklahoma Panhandle. The states lowest point is on the Little River near its far southeastern boundary near the town of Idabel, Oklahoma, which dips to 289 feet above sea level
2.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
3.
Oklahoma's 2nd congressional district
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Oklahomas Second Congressional District is one of five United States Congressional districts in Oklahoma and covers approximately one-fourth of the state in the east. The district borders Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Texas, historically, the district has supported conservative Democrats, and was reckoned as a classic Yellow Dog Democrat district. Urban voters represent a third of the district, the district is represented by Republican Markwayne Mullin, becoming only the second Republican after Tom Coburn to hold the seat since 1921. The district borders Kansas to the north, Missouri and Arkansas to the east, some of the principal cities in the district include Miami, Claremore, Muskogee, Tahlequah, Okmulgee, McAlester, and Durant. According to the 2000 U. S. Census, the district is 35.51 percent urban,23.95 percent non-white, the district has a higher percentage of Native Americans than any other congressional district in Oklahoma. Its representative, Markwayne Mullin, is one of two Native Americans currently serving in Congress, the district shifted Republican most notably in electing Tom Coburn, who vacated the seat due to a self-imposed term limit pledge. It has since held by Brad Carson and Dan Boren. In 2012 the 2nd has again elected a Republican to the House and current Rep is Markwayne Mullin, the districts Democratic leanings stem partly from historic migration patterns into the state. The Little Dixie region of the district imported the people and culture of southern states such as Mississippi after Reconstruction, voter registration in Little Dixie runs as high as 90 percent Democratic. Additionally, Native Americans in the region tend to vote for Democratic candidates, historically this is where Democratic presidential candidates perform best in the state. Bill Clinton easily carried the district in 1992 and 1996, however, the district has been swept up in the growing Republican trend in Oklahoma. George W. Bush received 59 percent of the vote in district in 2004. John McCain received 66 percent of the vote in district in 2008. Muskogee has produced six representatives, more than any city in the district. Tahlequah has produced three representatives, the second most of any city in the district, oklahomas congressional districts List of United States congressional districts Martis, Kenneth C. The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress, the Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
4.
Muscogee
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The Muscogee, also known as the Creek and the Creek Confederacy, are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands. Originally from Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, and northern Florida, Muscogee people were relocated in the early 19th century to Indian Territory, Alabama, Louisiana. Their languages, Muscogee and Hitchiti-Mikasuki, belong to the Eastern Muskogean branch of the Muscogean language family, the Muscogee are descendants of the Mississippian culture peoples, who built earthwork mounds at their regional chiefdoms located throughout the Mississippi River valley and its tributaries. Early Spanish explorers encountered ancestors of the Muscogee when they visited Mississippian-culture chiefdoms in the Southeast in the mid-16th century, the Muscogee were the first Native Americans considered to be civilized under George Washingtons civilization plan. The result was a weakening of the Creek Nation and the ceding of Creek lands to the US. During the Indian Removal of the 1830s, most of the Muscogee Confederacy were forcibly relocated to Indian Territory, at least 12,000 years ago, Native Americans or Paleo-Indians lived in what is today the Southern United States. Paleo-Indians in the Southeast were hunter-gatherers who pursued a range of animals, including the megafauna. During the time known as the Woodland period, from 1000 BCE to 1000 CE, locals developed pottery, the Mississippian culture arose as the cultivation of maize from Mesoamerica led to population growth. Increased population density gave rise to urban centers and regional chiefdoms, stratified societies developed, with hereditary religious and political elites, and flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from 800 to 1500 CE. The early historic Muscogee were descendants of the builders of the Mississippian culture along the Tennessee River in modern Tennessee, Georgia. They may have related to the Tama of central Georgia. At the time the Spanish made their first forays inland from the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, many centers of the Mississippians were already in decline. The region is best described as a collection of moderately sized native chiefdoms interspersed with autonomous villages. After Cabeza de Vaca, a castaway who survived the ill-fated Narváez expedition, returned to Spain, Hernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the first expedition into the interior of the North American continent. De Soto, convinced of the riches, wanted Cabeza de Vaca to go on the expedition, from 1540–1543, de Soto explored through present-day Florida and Georgia, and then westward into the Alabama and Mississippi area. The areas were inhabited by historic Muscogee Native Americans, de Soto brought with him a well-equipped army. He attracted many recruits from a variety of backgrounds who joined his quest for riches in the Americas, as the de Soto expeditions brutalities became known to the indigenous peoples, they decided to defend their territory. The Battle of Mabila was a point for the de Soto venture, the battle broke the back of the Spanish campaign
5.
Cleburne County, Alabama
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Cleburne County is a county of the U. S. state of Alabama. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,972 and its name is in honor of Major General Patrick R. Cleburne, of Arkansas. The eastern side of the county borders the state of Georgia, Cleburne County was established on December 6,1866, by an act of the state legislature. The county was made from territory in Benton, Randolph, in 1867, Edwardsville was made the county seat. An election was held in 1905 to move the county seat to Heflin, the result of that election, which agreed to move the seat, was appealed to the Supreme Court, who decided on July 1,1906, to uphold the election results. Heflin is still the county seat, Heflin was at one point thought of as a hub for nearby farmers to send their cotton. Shortly after the Civil War, a group of investors created the town of Fruithurst in Cleburne County as part of a wine-growing project. Fruithurst became a boomtown shortly thereafter, according to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 561 square miles, of which 560 square miles is land and 0.9 square miles is water. It is the fourth-smallest county in Alabama by land area and second-largest by total area, Cleburne County is home to Alabamas highest natural point on Cheaha Mountain which is part of the southernmost mountain range in the Blue Ridge Mountains. S. The population density was 27 people per square mile, there were 6,718 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 94. 0% White,3. 3% Black or African American,0. 30% Native American,0. 1% Asian,0. 1% Pacific Islander,1. 0% from other races, and 1. 1% from two or more races. 2. 1% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race,25. 1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11. 2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the family size was 2.99. In the county, the population was out with 23. 7% under the age of 18,7. 8% from 18 to 24,24. 6% from 25 to 44,28. 1% from 45 to 64. The median age was 40.6 years, for every 100 females there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.9 males, the median income for a household in the county was $36,077, and the median income for a family was $41,585. Males had an income of $39,709 versus $26,229 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,490, about 11. 6% of families and 17. 1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24. 0% of those under age 18 and 13. 7% of those age 65 or over
6.
Quapaw
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The Quapaw people are a tribe of Native Americans that coalesced in the Midwest and Ohio Valley. The Quapaw are among the Siouan-speaking peoples west of the Mississippi, the Quapaw are federally recognized as the Quapaw Tribe of Indians. Since their removal west to Indian Territory in 1834, their base has been in present-day Ottawa County in northeastern Oklahoma. The number of enrolled in the tribe is 3,240. The Quapaw Tribe of Native Americans are headquartered in Quapaw in Ottawa County, Oklahoma, the 13, 000-acre Quapaw tribal jurisdictional area includes the Tar Creek Superfund site, which has been listed by the Environmental Protection Agency for clean-up of environmental hazards. The Quapaw people elect a council and the tribal chairman. The governing body of the tribe is outlined in the resolutions of the tribe. The Chairman is John L. Berrey, of the 3,240 enrolled tribal members,892 live in the state of Oklahoma. Membership in the tribe is based on lineal descent, the tribe operates a Tribal Police Department and a Fire Department, which handles both fire and EMS calls. They issue their own vehicle tags and have their own housing authority. The tribe owns two smoke shop and motor fuel outlets, known as the Quapaw C-Store and Downstream Q-Store and they have two casinos, the Quapaw Casino and the Downstream Casino Resort, both located in Quapaw, these generate most of the revenue for the tribe. In 2012 the Quapaw Tribes annual economic impact was measured at more than $225,000,000 and they also own and operate the Eagle Creek Golf Course and resort, located in Loma Linda, Missouri. The traditional Quapaw language is part of the Dhegiha branch of the Siouan language family, classes in the Quapaw language are taught at the tribal museum. An online audio lexicon of the Quapaw language created by breaking apart old recordings of Elders is available, other efforts at language preservation and revitalization are being undertaken. The Quapaw participated in the first annual Dhegiha Gathering in 2011, the Osage language program hosted and organized the gathering, held at the Quapaw tribes Downstream Casino. Language-learning techniques and other issues were discussed and taught in workshops at the conference among the five cognate tribes, the Annual Dhegiha Gathering was held in 2012 also at Downstream Casino. The Quapaw host cultural events throughout the year, primarily held at the tribal museum and these include Indian dice games, traditional singing, and classes in traditional arts, such as finger weaving, shawl making, and flute making. In addition, Quapaw language classes are held there, the tribes annual dance is during the weekend of the Fourth of July
7.
Osage Nation
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The Osage Nation is a Midwestern Native American tribe of the Great Plains who historically dominated much of present-day Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, and Oklahoma. The tribe developed in the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys around 700 BC among other groups in its language family. It migrated west of the Mississippi after the 16th century due to wars with Iroquois invading the Ohio Valley from New York, the term Osage is a French version of the tribes name, which can be roughly translated as warlike. The Osage people refer to themselves in their indigenous Dhegihan Siouan language as Wazhazhe, at the height of their power in the early 19th century, the Osage had become the dominant power in the region, feared by neighboring tribes. The tribe controlled the area between the Missouri and Red rivers]], the Ozarks to the east and the foothills of the Wichita Mountains to the south and they depended on nomadic buffalo hunting and agriculture. The missionary Isaac McCoy described the Osage as a fierce, courageous, warlike nation. In the Ohio Valley, the Osage originally lived among speakers of the same Dhegihan language stock, such as the Kansa, Ponca, Omaha, researchers believe that the tribes likely became differentiated in languages and cultures after leaving the lower Ohio country. The Omaha and Ponca settled in what is now Nebraska, the Kansa in Kansas, the Osage were forced to remove to Indian Territory in the 19th century and the majority of their descendants live in Oklahoma. There are 10,000 persons who are members of the federally recognized Osage Nation,6,780 of whom reside in the jurisdictional area, members also live outside the nations tribal land in Oklahoma and in other states around the country, including Kansas. The Osage are descendants of cultures of peoples who had been in North America for thousands of years. Studies of their traditions and language show that they were part of a group of Dhegian-Siouan speaking people who lived in the Ohio River valley area, according to their own stories, they migrated west as a result of war with the Iroquois and/or to reach more game. Scholars are divided in whether they think the Osage and other groups left before the Beaver Wars of the Iroquois, some believe that the Osage started migrating west as early as 1200 CE. They attribute their style of government to effects of the years of war with invading Iroquois. Eventually the Osage and other Dhegian-Siouan peoples reached their historic lands, by 1673, when they were recorded by the French, many of the Osage had settled near the Osage River in the western part of present-day Missouri. They were recorded in 1690 as having adopted the horse The desire to acquire more horses contributed to their trading with the French and they lived near the Missouri River. Together with the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache, they dominated western Oklahoma and they also lived near the Quapaw and Caddo in Arkansas. The Osage held high rank among the old hunting tribes of the Great Plains, from their traditional homes in the woodlands of present-day Missouri and Arkansas, the Osage would make semi-annual buffalo hunting forays into the Great Plains to the west. They also hunted deer, rabbit, and other game in the central
8.
Interstate 40 in Oklahoma
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Interstate 40 is an Interstate Highway in Oklahoma that runs 331 miles across the state from Texas to Arkansas. West of Oklahoma City, it parallels and replaces Old US-66, and east of Oklahoma City, it parallels US-62,266, and 64. Cities along the route include Erick, Sayre, Elk City, Clinton, Weatherford, Oklahoma City and its suburbs, Okemah, Henryetta, Checotah, Interstate 40 enters Oklahoma near Texola, in Beckham County. It crosses the North Fork of the Red River near Sayre and it then cuts across the northwest corner of Washita County before entering Custer County, where it passes through Clinton and Weatherford. After leaving Weatherford, I-40 then runs across the tip of Caddo County before it enters the Oklahoma City Metro Area at Canadian County. I-40 runs through the side of El Reno as it enters the Oklahoma City metro. It then passes through Yukon before entering Oklahoma City city limits, in west Oklahoma City, I-40 has a junction with Interstate 44. It then runs just south of downtown Oklahoma City on a new ten lane section, I-40 then interlines with Interstate 35 at the Dallas Junction complex, forming a concurrency with it for about two miles. After the Dallas Junction, I-40 then passes through Del City and Midwest City on a known as the Tinker Diagonal. In far eastern Oklahoma City, I-40 meets Interstate 240 in a junction before passing through the north side of Shawnee marking the eastern end of the OKC metro area. In Henryetta, I-40 serves as the terminus of the Indian Nation Turnpike. In McIntosh County, it crosses the northernmost arm of Lake Eufaula, near Webbers Falls, I-40 is the southern terminus of the Muskogee Turnpike. It then crosses the Arkansas River before heading around southern Sallisaw, the interstate crosses into Arkansas north of Moffett. West of Oklahoma City, Interstate 40 parallels and replaces Old US-66, US-66 was decommissioned in Oklahoma in 1985. Westbound I-40 traffic was detoured through Gore and Webbers Falls along SH-10, US-64, and SH-100, while traffic was diverted through Porum and Stigler along SH-2, SH-9. Delays of thirty to fifty minutes on the 12-mile westbound detour were typical, the eastbound detour added 40 miles and two hours to the typical trip. Some travelers chose to avoid the area entirely, one Tulsa trucking firm detoured trucks via Springdale, the detour significantly impacted the town of Gore. Local firefighters directed traffic there 24 hours a day, with temperatures approaching 100 °F
9.
African Americans
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African Americans are an ethnic group of Americans with total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. The term may also be used to only those individuals who are descended from enslaved Africans. As a compound adjective the term is usually hyphenated as African-American, Black and African Americans constitute the third largest racial and ethnic group in the United States. Most African Americans are of West and Central African descent and are descendants of enslaved peoples within the boundaries of the present United States. On average, African Americans are of 73. 2–80. 9% West African, 18–24% European, according to US Census Bureau data, African immigrants generally do not self-identify as African American. The overwhelming majority of African immigrants identify instead with their own respective ethnicities, immigrants from some Caribbean, Central American and South American nations and their descendants may or may not also self-identify with the term. After the founding of the United States, black people continued to be enslaved, believed to be inferior to white people, they were treated as second-class citizens. The Naturalization Act of 1790 limited U. S. citizenship to whites only, in 2008, Barack Obama became the first African American to be elected President of the United States. The first African slaves arrived via Santo Domingo to the San Miguel de Gualdape colony, the ill-fated colony was almost immediately disrupted by a fight over leadership, during which the slaves revolted and fled the colony to seek refuge among local Native Americans. De Ayllón and many of the colonists died shortly afterwards of an epidemic, the settlers and the slaves who had not escaped returned to Haiti, whence they had come. The first recorded Africans in British North America were 20 and odd negroes who came to Jamestown, as English settlers died from harsh conditions, more and more Africans were brought to work as laborers. Typically, young men or women would sign a contract of indenture in exchange for transportation to the New World, the landowner received 50 acres of land from the state for each servant purchased from a ships captain. An indentured servant would work for years without wages. The status of indentured servants in early Virginia and Maryland was similar to slavery, servants could be bought, sold, or leased and they could be physically beaten for disobedience or running away. Africans could legally raise crops and cattle to purchase their freedom and they raised families, married other Africans and sometimes intermarried with Native Americans or English settlers. By the 1640s and 1650s, several African families owned farms around Jamestown and some became wealthy by colonial standards and purchased indentured servants of their own. In 1640, the Virginia General Court recorded the earliest documentation of slavery when they sentenced John Punch. One of Dutch African arrivals, Anthony Johnson, would own one of the first black slaves, John Casor
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Okfuskee County
