Oklahoma City Sights and Memorial

Article & Photos By Harlee Roads aka Nita Stephens

A few months ago we rode to Oklahoma City for the annual Harley Owners Group (HOG) rally. Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city in the state. It is an important livestock market, featuring some of the top cattle in the world. It is known for its Cowboy and American Indian heritage. Upon arrival we toured The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. It was established in 1955, and the museum

collects, preserves and exhibits an internationally renowned collection of Western art and artifacts.  It encompasses more than 200,000 square feet of display space and the collection includes over 2,000 works of western art. A visit to the museum is definitely worth your time.

A motorcycle rally of any kind always has a party spot. In Oklahoma City that is The Bricktown Entertainment District. It is a unique area filled with many restaurants,

nightclubs, sports shops, attractions, and even a canal with sightseeing boats. Located in the heart of downtown, Bricktown was once a warehouse neighborhood until the early 1980’s when it was beautifully restored. It is a hot spot for tourists and a fun place for the entire family. While in Bricktown, we chose Toby Keith’s, I Love This Bar & Grill fordinner. The crowd proved it was a popular place and it didn’t disappoint.  The restaurant provided good food, music and plenty of Toby honky tonk memorabilia.  He is one of the states’ famous music residents and his home town is Clinton,Oklahoma.

Oklahoma City holds another distinction in that it is on the original Route 66 highway. Every Route 66 state has its own unique sights and special contributions to this past era, but Oklahoma has tried to hang onto as many as possible.  It still preserves its history with art deco buildings and a few of the old local diners and cafes. Oklahoma has about 400 miles of Route 66 roads and has more miles of the original  path left than any other Route 66 state. Other states have allowed interstates to replace the old Route, while virtually all of the Mother Road remains intact in Oklahoma.

It is unfortunate but one of the distinctive sights of Oklahoma City today is the Oklahoma National Memorial and Museum, which stands where the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building once stood.  At 9:02 am on April 19, 1995, one of the most destructive acts of domestic terrorism in our country’s history occurred.  A massive homemade bomb concealed in a rental truck was exploded in front of the building. The Murrah building was destroyed and more than 100 nearby buildings suffered severe damage.  The greatest loss that day was the lives of 168 people including 19 children.  More than five hundred others were injured.
Oklahomans rallied together to rebuild and the Outdoor Symbolic Memorial on the Murrah Building site was dedicated by President Clinton on April 19, 2000, the fifth

anniversary of the bombing.  Its purpose is to honor the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were changed forever on that day.
By February, 2001, the Memorial Museum, a 30,000 square foot interactive learning center was dedicated.  This Museum tells the story of the attack.
The entrances to the outdoor Memorial are the Gates of Time, two huge granite gates which frame the moment of the destruction. The East

Gate represents 9:01 a.m., the innocence of the city before the attack. The West Gate represents 9:03 a.m., the moment we were changed forever.
On the east end of the Memorial stands the only remaining walls from the Murrah Building. The Survivor Wall, as it is called, reminds us of those who survived the terrorist attack. More than 600 names are inscribed on granite salvaged from the Murrah Building. There is a reflecting pool between the Gates of Time, occupying what once was N.W.Fifth Street.  The water is shallow, flows gently and provides a peaceful setting. The 168 lives lost that day are represented by nine rows of chairs sitting on a grassy knoll.

The nine rows represent the floors of the Murrah building.  Each chair holds the name of the person killed on that floor.  Nineteen smaller chairs stand for the children who died on that day.
There is an eighty year old Elm tree that stands on the grounds that is called, The Survivor Tree.   It was situated in the parking lot the day of the attack.  The tree survived the violence and lives today as a symbol of resilience and courage.
A Park Ranger gave a very informative and inspiring talk under the Survivor Tree while we were touring the Memorial. The Ranger purposely never mentioned the bombers names in her speech because she did not want to give them any publicity. As it should be, she only recognized the heroes, the deceased and the injured from that day.
As the inscription inside the Museum and on The Gates of Time reads, “We come here to remember those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever. May all who leave here know the impact of violence. May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity.”
As we left Oklahoma City, I came away with a great sense of pride in our country and how we handle adversity. We are a resilient lot and will continue to be, even though we have suffered three more domestic attacks since the Oklahoma City bombing, I am humbled and reminded that Americans can no longer claim exemption from terrorism.

(Harlee Roads is also known as Nita Stephens.  She and her husband, Jay live in Arlington, TX.  They have now logged over 100,000 miles through 49 states on their Harley Davidson.)

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