From the tectonic formation of Oklahoma's varied landscape to the recovery and renewal following the Oklahoma City bombing, this readable book includes both the well-known and the not-so-familiar of the state's people, events, and places. W. David Baird and Danney Goble offer fresh perspectives on such widely recognized history makers as Sequoyah, the 1889 Land Run, and the Glenn Pool oil strike. But they also give due attention to Black Seminole John Horse, Tulsa's Greenwood District, Coach Bertha Frank Teague's 40-year winning streak with the Byng Lady Pirates, and other lesser-known but equally important milestones. The result is a rousing, often surprising, and ever-fascinating story--From the publisher.

Prologue : The land and its influences -- Oklahoma's ancient communities -- The first people -- Europeans encounter Oklahoma -- American explorers in Oklahoma -- The Southeastern Indians -- Indian removals -- The five republics -- Indian territory at war -- Rejuvenation and reconstruction -- New exiles in Oklahoma -- The promised land : Oklahoma territory -- The end of Indian territory -- The twin territories -- Politics through the 1920s -- The economy : the fat years -- A new society -- The Great Depression and global war -- The politics of maturity -- A mature economy -- The strains of social maturity -- Epilogue : The time in between -- Appendix : See history for yourself.