Celebrating memory and space: three case studies of centennial projects to commemorate Oklahoma's history

Abstract

In 2007, Oklahoma celebrated its centennial with many different events and functions. To commemorate the anniversary, lawmakers established the Oklahoma Centennial Commission. They set out to find and fund projects throughout the state. The projects created by the commission make use of different forms of memory and space. They contribute to the creation of an Oklahoma identity that celebrates the state's history. This thesis comprises three case studies that examine three different and unique projects created by the Centennial Commission. Each describes the development of the project and then analyzes the historical and spatial themes used. All three studies make use of extensive field observations to interpret these themes. The findings of this work indicate that the Oklahoma Centennial Commission succeeded in helping to create an Oklahoma identity and used many different themes of memory and space to accomplish this.