Oklahoma

Oklahoma Land Run anniversary: What to know about rocky history, Bricktown sculpture updates

Published

2 years ago

April 22, 2024

Oklahoma Land Run anniversary: What to know about rocky history, Bricktown sculpture updates

Over 130 years ago this month, thousands of settlers rushed to stake their claim of 160 acres in the so-called “unassigned lands” of Oklahoma territory, marking the beginning of what would eventually become the state of Oklahoma.

That event, which started on April 22, 1889, is also a source of generational trauma for many Oklahoma tribal members, who are reminded by the 1889 Oklahoma Land Run of their ancestors’ forcible removal here. There are 39 federally recognized tribes based in Oklahoma today, many of whom were granted or sold land that was a fraction of the areas they previously occupied for centuries.

Since their removal, they have endured decades of hardship, from boarding schools where students were forced to cut their hair, only speak English and were often abused, to continued loss of land through government allotments and subsequent land runs, and suppression of tribal sovereignty.

Here’s what to know about the 1889 land run, how it originated, and the effects it still has today.

Oklahoma Land Rush: Where did ‘Unassigned Lands’ come from?

The land, nearly 1.9 million acres, was deemed open for settlement 23 years after the Five Tribes (Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee/Creek, and Seminole) signed new treaties with the United States in 1866, according to the Oklahoma Historical Society.

The tribes ceded portions of their land — along with agreeing to end slavery, allow railroads to enter the area and grant former slaves full tribal citizenship — after signing treaties with and fighting for the Confederacy during the Civil War.

Much of that land was used to remove other tribes to the area, the Oklahoma Historical Society said, including the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche and others.

But a large portion of land in the center of the state remained empty, and was eventually deemed “unassigned.” There were campaigns to open the land up for settlement, but because of stipulations in 1866 treaties with the Creek and Seminole, the land was supposed to be used only for re-settlement of other native tribes.

But in 1889, the Creek and Seminole tribes presented proposals to relinquish any claim they previously had on the land, placing the land in the public domain.

The legal basis for opening the Oklahoma District, now called the Unassigned Lands, came

So in 1889, in the U.S. Congress amended the Indian Appropriations Bill to authorize President Benjamin Harrison to proclaim the two-million-acre region open for settlement. That spring, would-be settlers flooded the area in preparation, and on April 22, 1889, guns and cannons went off at noon, marking the “opening” of Oklahoma for non-native settlement.

Changes coming near Oklahoma City land run monument

For decades, the land run has been celebrated and even re-enacted at elementary schools. But those events have drawn protest from groups like the Society to Protect Indigenous Rights and Indigenous Treaties (SPIRIT), and many schools have stopped the practice.

But a permanent, bronze, larger-than-life monument to the land run stands tall in Lower Bricktown. A set of 45 statues depicts the event, stretching 365 feet across the southern end of the Bricktown Canal.

The monument, created by Oklahoma artist and citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Paul Moore, has been the recipient of protest since 2007 when SPIRIT formed to oppose centennial statehood celebrations.

The group again protested the monument and its heroic depiction of land run participants during the summer of 2020 and the racial reckoning which was bringing down monuments across the nation that honored people like Christopher Columbus and Confederate Army generals.

The group met with Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, who rejected a proposal to tear down the monument completely but helped connect the group with the late city arts liaison Robbie Kienzle.

Since then, the group and the city have been working together to provide more context to the monument, specifically from the perspective of indigenous peoples. A report was presented in 2022 to the Oklahoma City Arts Commission — compiled by mother-and-son Anita Fields, who is Osage and Muscogee, and Yatika Fields, who is Osage, Muscogee and Cherokee — which determined the monument is one-sided and “hurtful” to Oklahoma’s Indigenous communities.

Randy Marks, Oklahoma City’s Arts Program Planner, said the city expects to announce within the next three months a Request for Proposals for a “cultural exhibit” that will be adjacent to the land run monument.

“The exhibit will convey an indigenous perspective on the indigenous cultural and historical context leading up to and including the land run event,” Marks said.

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Oklahoma

Three Big 12 Transfers Oklahoma State Is Reportedly Interested In

Published

11 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Three Big 12 Transfers Oklahoma State Is Reportedly Interested In

PORTAL TRACKER

Oklahoma State’s newly constructed staff got on the board Saturday, picking up portal commitments on offense and special special teams, so how about some defense?

Three Big 12 defenders have been linked with Oklahoma State via the transfer portal over the past few days, including a pair of former OK Preps standouts. Here’s a look.

Kanijal Thomas, CB, Kansas State

Thomas is an Oklahoman, playing his high school ball at Del City. He visited Stillwater on Saturday, according to On3.

He was a redshirt sophomore for the Wildcats in 2025, playing in seven games as a true freshman in 2023 before an injury saw his sophomore season end two games in.

Thomas played in eight games at K-State in 2025, finishing the year with five tackles, a PBU and a forced fumble. According to PFF, he gave up four catches for 21 yards this season on seven targets.

Now listed at 5-foot-11, 186 pounds, Thomas was a three-star prospect coming out of Del City in the 2023 class. He picked K-State over offers from OSU, Texas Tech, Iowa State and others.

Maurion Horn, CB, Texas Tech

Another Oklahoma kid, Maurion Horn has spent the past four seasons in Lubbock, where he has played in 30 games during that time. According to 247Sports, Horn will visit Stillwater on Monday.

He started all of Tech’s games in 2024, finishing that season with 56 tackles, three tackles for loss and five pass breakups. He played in seven games and dealt with some sort of injury, appearing on Tech’s availability report in Weeks 4, 14 and 15.

Horn has been targeted 88 times in his career, per PFF, where he has allowed just 47 catches.

He was a four-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class out of Broken Arrow. He ended up picking Tech over offers from OSU, OU, Texas, Baylor, Arkansas and others.

Braylon Rigsby, Edge, Texas Tech

Listed at 6-foot-2, 275 pounds, Braylon Rigsby will join his Texas Tech teammate in Stillwater on Monday, according to 247Sports.

He’s played in 26 games across the past two seasons in Lubbock, accumulating 25 tackles and three tackles for loss during that time.

Per PFF, Rigsby has 21 QB pressures in his career to go with two QB hits.

He hails from Woodsville, Texas, which is near the Louisiana border. Rigsby was a three-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, coming in as the No. 861 player in the 247Sports Composite ranking.

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Oklahoma

Capture of Nicolas Maduro: What it could mean for Oklahoma

Published

23 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Capture of Nicolas Maduro: What it could mean for Oklahoma

Elite Delta Force captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife about 2 a.m. Saturday morning.

It happened in the Caracas, the capitol of Venezuela.

Social media posts how strikes ordered by President Trump into Venezuela and its military bases.

News 9 political analyst Scott Mitchell said the relationship between the U.S. and Latin America has not always been smooth and adds so many dominos will fall as a result.

“Venezuela is the beachhead for our adversaries that’s Cuba and Russia and China and Iran and it looks as if this latest situation where that they were assembling Iran swift attack boats that was sort of the last straw,” said Mitchell.

Retired war correspondent Mike Boettcher said the planning on capturing Maduro began in mid-December.

He adds Venezuela is a massive oil supplier whose oil has been taken off the market for years because of sanctions.

He has concerns about what comes next.

“That disrupts a lot of things.It even has an effect on the war in Ukraine, as Russia, you know, has used higher oil revenue because Venezuela’s oil was off the market.Oil prices went up.It helps fund the war in Ukraine,” said Boettcher.

The ramifications could even reach Oklahoma.

“China gets a 30 percent discount on the oil.If Venezuela goes for a more legitimate government and the sanctions are lifting, then they’re flooding the oil markets and that means bad news for the Oklahoma economy,” added Mitchell.

Following the capture of Maduro, President Trump said the U.S. will take control of the oil reserves in Venezuela.

Sources also say there are plans from the current administration to recruit American companies to invest billions of dollars in their oil industry.

A verified video shows the current state of Venezuela after the military operation.

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Oklahoma

Oklahoma State expected to lose talented EDGE to transfer portal

Published

1 week ago

December 29, 2025

Press Room

Oklahoma State expected to lose talented EDGE to transfer portal

Oklahoma State EDGE Kyran Duhon plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, On3 has learned. Duhon was a member of the 2024 recruiting class.

Duhon spent one year at Oklahoma State, logged 16 total tackles (eight solo) across nine games. He began his career at UTEP, where he had a productive true freshman season, Duhon finished 2024 with 43 total tackles, including seven sacks and two PBUs.

At UTEP, his one season there resulted in second team All-Conference USA honors. He was also named to the On3 True Freshman All-America Team as well as the the Conference USA All-Freshman team.

However, Duhon’s stay in Stillwater didn’t go as expected. Oklahoma State finished the season with a 1-11 record, which included the Cowboys firing longtime head coach Mike Gundy after a 1-2 start. Doug Meacham was named interim head coach but ended the year 0-9.

Eric Morris has since been named as the program’s next head coach. He comes from North Texas, which finished with an 11-2 record and a trip to the American Conference championship game this past season. However, it doesn’t appear that Duhon will be sticking around during the changing of the guard at Oklahoma State this offseason.

Before college, Duhon was the No. 1,706 overall player in the class, and was recruited as the the No. 165 linebacker during the cycle, per the Rivals Industry Rankings, which is a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He was ranked as the No. 242 overall player out of Texas.

Once the NCAA transfer portal opens on Jan. 2, players can officially enter their names in the NCAA transfer portal and go on to initiate contact with their preferred schools. The portal will be open for 15 days and close on Jan. 16.

Notably, players who are on teams competing in the national championship game are allowed five extra days to make their portal decision. The College Football Playoff championship game will be played on Jan. 19, so the players on those teams will be allowed until Jan. 24 to enter the portal and choose their next school.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.

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