A Very OK Podcast

As traffic increased on the Mother Road, restaurants were opened to give people the sustenance they needed to get to their destinations. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss a few of the historic restaurants, both closed and still-thriving, located on Route 66 in Oklahoma. Their guest is Kathy Anderson, president of the Billboard Museum Association. She talks about her art...

Two of Oklahoma’s most influential entertainers came from Erick, a small town located near the Texas border on Route 66. Sheb Wooley recorded a famous novelty song in 1958 and was the star of the TV series “Rawhide,” in addition to appearing in over 80 movies. Roger Miller became known as one of country music’s most influential songwriters, winning 11 Grammys in 1964 and 1965. He also wrote the To...

Both the book and the movie The Grapes of Wrath are classics that portray a difficult period in American history. The story of the Joad family from Sallisaw, Oklahoma, caused some people to sympathize with the plight of migrant farmers while others saw it as a mischaracterization of reality. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss the history surrounding the circumstances dep...

Almost every town along Route 66 in Oklahoma has a unique building or structure that tells the story of each community and the people who made Route 66 a special highway. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss a few of the theaters, gas stations, restaurants, bridges, and jails that have shaped our experience of The Mother Road through the decades. Their guests are Lynda Oza...

Recorded live at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore, this episode covers Will Rogers’ life and career from growing up on his family’s ranch in the Cherokee Nation to dining with kings and presidents. A born showman, he took his uncanny talent with a rope to greatest stages in the world and then translated that success to the silver screen in Hollywood. His homespun humor and political co...

Paved roads were the exception instead of the norm in the early 20th century. As the Good Roads movement gained traction in the U.S., Tulsa resident Cyrus Avery advocated for a network of highways connecting major cities. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn explore Cyrus Avery’s work building roads in Oklahoma and his influence on the creation of the Main Street of America, Route...

After the US declared war on Spain in 1898, Secretary of War Russell Alger organized three volunteer cavalry regiments “to be composed exclusively of frontiersmen possessing special qualifications of horsemen and marksmen...” The First US Volunteer Cavalry regiment came to be known as the Rough Riders. Led by Colonel Leonard Wood and Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, the Rough Riders played a...

November 2025 marks the 20th anniversary of the Oklahoma History Center. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn explore the political twists and turns in the eight-year journey to complete the Oklahoma Historical Society’s flagship building across from the State Capitol. They also discuss the people along the way who helped the dream become a reality. Their guest is Don Beck, award-...

Having dominated the political landscape since statehood, the Democratic Party in Oklahoma was upended by a Republican landslide in 1920. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn examine the conditions that led to the changing of the guard including a tepid response to the League of Nations proposal from President Wilson, the economy after World War I, and the first national election...

Have you ever stopped to think about the history behind the names of rivers, streets, towns, and even state parks in Oklahoma? In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn take listeners on a journey to uncover some of the interesting and unusual stories behind places you may know or may have never heard of in the state. Their guests are Nicole Harvey, director of the Oklahoma History Cen...

From the earliest days of Indian Territory through the 1950s, Oklahoma had strict laws prohibiting the sale of alcohol, but they were usually lightly enforced. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Matthew Pearce trace Oklahoma’s history with alcohol regulation and the social and political forces that shaped the state’s relationship with booze. Their guest is Congresswoman Stephanie Bice, who au...

In 1833, Congress authorized a new regiment in the Army that would combine the skills of Regular Army soldiers with the frontier savvy of the Rangers. The First Dragoon Regiment was tasked with being the first U.S. envoy to make contact with the Plains Indian tribes to negotiate for peace. The 500-person strong Dragoon unit set out in June 1834 to fulfill their mission, but their journey was fraug...

In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss the origins of the Seminole Nation in Florida, how the Seminole Wars with the United States starting in 1817 led to their forcible removal to Indian Territory, and how the Civil War reduced the size of their reservation by over 1.7 million acres. They also delve into the impact of the discovery of the Greater Seminole Oilfield in 1923....

Oklahoma's first state flag was a white star on a red field designed by Ruth Clement. The flag never gained favor and by the 1920s red flags held a negative connotation due to the nationwide Red Scare. In 1924, the Daughters of the American Revolution held a contest to design a new state flag and Louise Fluke's winning entry was adopted on April 2, 1925. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob...

From the earliest days after the 1889 Land Run to the modern era, leaders in Oklahoma City have prioritized the sequestration of green space for recreation and rest. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss the push to create Oklahoma City's parks by people such as Daniel Stiles, G.G. "Gristmill" Jones, and Anton Classen. They also talk about how parks evolved from areas of pa...

One of Oklahoma’s first members of Congress, Dick T. Morgan, was a man of faith with a heart geared toward helping his fellow citizens, first in his native state of Indiana and later in Oklahoma. Through his law practice, he helped people navigate the complexities of land claims in the territorial era while planting churches and establishing Sunday schools. During his time in Congress, he advocate...

Born in Virginia and raised by his mother in the Cherokee Nation, Robert Owen was a seminal figure in Oklahoma’s early history. He was elected as one of Oklahoma’s first U.S. senators in 1907 where he championed progressive and populist causes in the nation’s capital. Utilizing his background as a bank owner in Muskogee, he was the Senate author of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which created th...

During his career, guitarist Jesse Ed Davis played with over 100 major artists, including Bob Dylan, the Allman Brothers, John Lennon, and Rod Stewart. His first brush with notoriety was playing with Conway Twitty in Oklahoma City, and he honed his chops with Taj Mahal after moving to Los Angeles. Jackson Browne credits Davis’s guitar solo on “Doctor, My Eyes” with helping that song to become a Bi...

During World War I, it was common for the German military to tap Allied communications lines along the western front. Seeking to find a way to communicate that could not be interpreted by the enemy, the commander of the 36th Infantry’s 142nd Regiment enlisted Choctaw soldiers to send messages in their native language. The result led to successful operations in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, which ul...

After gold was discovered in California in 1848, Americans flocked to the west coast to make their fortunes. In 1849, Congress instructed Captain Randolph Marcy to find a suitable passage from Fort Smith to Santa Fe by traveling south of the Canadian River. Guided by Delaware scout Black Beaver, Marcy and the first wagon train reached their destination in June 1849. In this episode, Trait Thompson...

Since statehood, numerous elected officials have found themselves on the wrong side of the Oklahoma Legislature’s good graces, which resulted in impeachment charges being filed. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss Oklahoma’s constitutional requirements for impeachment, some of the officials who have been impeached in the state over the years, and the charges leveled again...

From 1953 to 1957, University of Oklahoma football coach Bud Wilkinson and his Sooners won 47 games in a row, an NCAA record. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss Coach Wilkinson and his leadership skills, the players who made the winning streak possible, and a few of the significant games along the way. Their guest is Berry Tramel, a 46-year veteran sports journalist who...

Crowds came by the thousands to Municipal Auditorium in Oklahoma City to see the first television images in Oklahoma at a demonstration sponsored by WKY Radio on November 13, 1939. Despite television being a financial drain on broadcasters who had tried it before, E.K. Gaylord believed Oklahoma deserved it, so he applied for a license and was granted the first station in Oklahoma. On June 6, 1949,...

Oklahoma was a state for almost thirty years before the state park system was created. Thanks to federal funds and free labor provided by the Civilian Conservation Corps, seven new state parks were constructed starting in 1935. In this episode, Trait Thompson and Dr. Bob Blackburn discuss the political conditions that led to Oklahoma creating the State Park Commission, the invaluable work of the C...

In February 1824, the general-in-chief of the Army authorized the abandonment of Fort Smith and the creation of a new fort in the southwest. Col. Matthew Arbuckle selected a site near the Three Forks and named it Cantonment Gibson. Its mission was to protect white settlers, work for peace between tribes in the region, and establish a diplomatic relationship with Plains tribes. A few months later,...