Roach History Classes

04/19/2022

in 1995, a truck bomb exploded outside the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, OK. 168 people lost their lives and hundreds more were injured. View the video clips to learn more about this day and how the victims are honored: https://www.c-span.org/classroom/document/?1880.

02/28/2022

The 1st Kansas Colored Infantry Regiment served in the Union Army and was the first Black unit to see combat during the American Civil War (in 1862). Major General James G. Blunt had high praise for these Black men who fought with him during the Battle of Honey Springs in 1863:
“Much credit is due to all of them for their gallantry. The First Kansas particularly distinguished itself. They fought like veterans and preserved their line unbroken throughout the engagement. Their coolness and bravery I have never seen surpassed. They were in the hottest of the fight and opposed Texas troops [that were] twice their number—whom they completely routed.”
This decisive victory led to Union control of a large part of Indian Territory.

Photo of reenactors from “The Battle of Honey Springs” film, which is now available to view at Honey Springs Battlefield and Visitor Center near Checotah, OK (a Pantheon Digital Production with Inasmuch Foundation – written and directed by Bryan Beasley)

12/07/2021

80th year Memorial

We pause to commemorate National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. It is an important day to remember and honor American service members and civilians who were killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. On the morning of December 7, 1941, the USS Oklahoma (BB-37) received the brunt of the initial attacks. Struck by multiple torpedoes, the ship capsized. Many men were trapped inside or killed by flying debris. Except for the USS Arizona, the USS Oklahoma lost the most casualties of all ships in the harbor that day. It is a day that will live in infamy.

Photo of the USS Oklahoma dated Sept. 1940 (21256.40.1701, USS Oklahoma Memorial Association Collection, OHS)

01/08/2021

How weird is this?

A Missouri woman who was believed to be the last remaining widow of a Civil War soldier has died

12/18/2020

On December 18, 1963, Brad Pitt was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma. Pitt is an acclaimed actor and producer who started acting in 1987. His first leading role came in the 1992 film, “A River Runs Through It” (pictured here). In the years since, he has won two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes, and numerous other honors/awards. Pitt’s successful career continues to the present day.

(2012.201.TP0316.0143, Oklahoma Publishing Company Photography Collection, OHS)

12/15/2020

Today is Bill of Rights Day, marking the 229th anniversary of the document’s ratification.

A parchment document with 12 proposed constitutional amendments was created in September of 1789, and copies were sent to the states for ratification. By December 15, 1791, enough states had ratified the document, and it became what we now call the Bill of Rights.

This founding document has only been on permanent display at the National Archives Museum since 1952. Before the National Archives was established in 1934, the Department of State kept the federal government’s official records, but unlike the Declaration, which had been on display, the Bill of Rights remained in storage.

When the Department of State moved from New York to Philadelphia, the Bill of Rights went too. In 1800. it came to the new capital of Washington, DC, and stayed there--only briefly being removed to Leesburg, VA, in 1814 when the British burned the capitol city.

Throughout the 19th century, the document was stored in various offices and eventually made its way to the Old Executive Office Building. There, it was sewn into a large binder with other ratified amendments.

The National Archives was established in 1934, and on March 16, 1938, it acquired historic federal documents from the Department of State. Conservators removed the Bill of Rights from its binder and put it on display in the Rotunda—you can still see the holes from where it was originally sewn in.

After the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the document was crated and stored in a safe area in case of an emergency evacuation, and in 1947, the Bill of Rights left Washington, DC, for the first time in 133 years as part of the Freedom Train exhibit that traveled across the country.

On November 22, 1952, the document was sealed in a helium-filled glass case and a few weeks later, on December 15, it was put on permanent display with the Declaration and the Constitution, which had been transferred to the National Archives from the Library of Congress just two days before.

Except for the renovation of the National Archives Building from 2001 to 2003, when the document was placed in a new state-of-the-art case, the Bill of Rights has remained on exhibit in the Rotunda.

You can read a full transcript of the full document and all 27 amendments here: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights-transcript

Image: Photo from the National Archives. The Bill of Rights on display on the Freedom Train, October 20, 1948.

12/06/2020

Tomorrow we will pause to commemorate National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. It is an important day to remember and honor American service members and civilians who were killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. On the morning of December 7, 1941, the USS Oklahoma (BB-37) received the brunt of the initial attacks. Struck by multiple torpedoes, the ship capsized. Many men were trapped inside or killed by flying debris. Except for the USS Arizona, the USS Oklahoma lost the most casualties of all ships in the harbor that day. Be sure to follow Pearl Harbor National Memorial, where you can watch a live stream of their commemoration event tomorrow at 7:45 a.m. (11:45 a.m. here in Oklahoma).

Photo of the USS Oklahoma dated Sept. 1940 (21256.40.1701, USS Oklahoma Memorial Association Collection, OHS)

12/04/2020

On December 4, 1906, Tessie “Lushanya” Mobley was born near Ardmore, present-day Oklahoma. Lushanya became a world-famous opera singer and was known as the “Songbird of the Chickasaws.” She even sang at the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1937. Learn more at bit.ly/Lushanya.

(20288.92.81.313, Chickasaw Council House Museum Collection, OHS)

12/03/2020

On December 3, 1895, Te Ata (also known as Mary Frances Thompson Fisher) was born in Emet, present-day Oklahoma. Te Ata was a Chickasaw storyteller and her name means “Bearer of the Morning.” At the height of her career, Te Ata traveled extensively—she even performed for U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and for the King and Queen of Great Britain. Her talent and dedication helped to promote an appreciation of Native American traditions around the world. Learn more at bit.ly/TeAtaFisher.

Photos feature a young Te Ata with her sister Lena and Te Ata as an adult (20288.71.198.2 / 20829.18, OHS Photograph Collection)

12/01/2020

11/20/2020

On November 20, 1900, Chester Gould was born in Pawnee, Oklahoma Territory. Gould was a cartoonist and is best known as the creator of the “Dick Tracy” comic strip. He wrote and illustrated this classic comic strip from 1931 until his retirement in 1977. Learn more at bit.ly/ChesterGould.

(2012.201.B0226.0024, Oklahoma Publishing Company Photography Collection, OHS)