Capital city of Oklahoma, United States
About Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City, often shortened to OKC, is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is the 21st-most populous U.S. city and 8th largest in the Southern United States, with a population of 681,054 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Oklahoma County, with the city limits extending into Canadian, Cleveland, and Pottawatomie counties; however, areas beyond Oklahoma County primarily consist of suburban developments or areas designated rural and watershed zones. Oklahoma City ranks as the tenth-largest city by area in the United States when including consolidated city-counties, and second-largest when such consolidations are excluded, after Houston. It is also the second-largest state capital by area, after Juneau, Alaska. The Oklahoma City metropolitan area, with an estimated 1.49 million residents, is the largest metropolitan area in the state and 42nd-most populous in the country.
History
Oklahoma City was settled on April 22, 1889, when the area known as the "Unassigned Lands" was opened for settlement in an event known as "The Land Run". On April 26 of that year, its first mayor was elected, William Couch. Some 10,000 homesteaders settled in the area that would become the capital of Oklahoma. The town grew quickly; the population doubled between 1890 and 1900. Early leaders of the development of the city included Anton H. Classen, John Wilford Shartel, Henry Overholser, Oscar Ameringer, Jack C. Walton, Angelo C. Scott, and James W. Maney. By the time Oklahoma was admitted to the Union in 1907, Oklahoma City had surpassed Guthrie, the territorial capital, as the new state's population center and commercial hub. Soon after, the capital was moved from Guthrie to Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City was a significant stop on U.S. …
Geography
Oklahoma City lies along one of the primary corridors into Texas and Mexico and is a three-hour drive from the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The city is in the Frontier Country region in the state's center, making it ideal for state government. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 620.79 square miles (1,607.8 km2), of which 601.11 square miles (1,556.9 km2) is land and 19.23 square miles (49.8 km2) is water. The city has annexed 480 net acres under the leadership of Mayor David Holt. Oklahoma City lies in the Sandstone Hills region of Oklahoma, known for hills of 250 to 400 feet (80 to 120 m) and two species of oak: blackjack oak (Quercus marilandica) and post oak (Q. stellata). The northeastern part of the city and its eastern suburbs fall into an ecological region known as the Cross Timbers. …
Culture
The Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center is the new downtown home for the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. The museum features visiting exhibits, original selections from its collection, a theater showing various foreign, independent, and classic films each week, and a restaurant. OKCMOA is also home to the most comprehensive collection of Chihuly glass in the world, including the 55-foot Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower in the Museum's atrium. The art deco Civic Center Music Hall, which was renovated most recently in 2023, has performances from the Oklahoma City Ballet, the Oklahoma City Opera, the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, and also various concerts and traveling Broadway shows. …
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