Boomer - Enid, OK
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 36° 23.657 W 097° 52.789
14S E 600456 N 4028264
"The statue of “Boomer,” once mounted beside the Cherokee Strip Conference Center and put into storage last fall, was remounted Monday on the southeast corner of Enid Event Center." ~ NewsOK
Waymark Code: WMZMAV
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 11/30/2018
Views: 7
County of statue: Garfield County
Location of statue: S. Independence Ave. & W. Cherkoee Ave., Enid
Old Location: 123 W. Maine Ave., Cherokee Strip Conference Center, Enid
Artist: Harold T. Holden, 1940 - , sculptor
Founder: House Bronze
"The Boomer statue, sculpted by Kremlin artist H.T. Holden, and underwritten by NBC Bank, was unveiled June 16, 1987.
'“It was put up to memorialize the history of the Cherokee Strip land run. It was H.T. Holden’s first public work of art,” Wofford said. “It became the official symbol of the Cherokee Strip land run. In 1993, it was commemorated on a U.S. postage stamp. It is on the south end of the Square by the (Cherokee Strip) Conference Center." ~ Enid News & Eagle,
Plaque Text:
BOOMER
Sculpted by
HAROLD T. HOLDEN
Commissioned by
OAKWOOD NATIONAL BANK
As a Gift to
THE CITIZENS OF ENID
Proper Description: "A male rider on horseback at full gallop. He holds the reins in his proper left hand and flag stakes in his proper right hand. He wears cowboy boots, spurs, trousers that tuck into his boots, a vest, long-sleeved jacket, collarless shirt and a full-brimmed hat. Saddled on the horse are saddle bags, a coffee pot, cup and a revolver. A lasso rope hangs from the saddle on the proper left side." ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum
"Boomers is the name given to settlers in the Southern United States who attempted to enter the Unassigned Lands in what is now the state of Oklahoma in 1879, prior to President Grover Cleveland opening them to settlement by signing the Indian Appropriations Act of 1889 on March 2, 1889. Boomers preceded by a decade the Sooners, settlers who entered the Unassigned Lands just prior to the April 22, 1889 official opening.
"The term "Boomer" relating to Oklahoma refers to participants in the "Boomer Movement," white settlers who believed the Unassigned Lands were public property and open to anyone for settlement, not just Indian tribes. Their belief was based on a clause in the Homestead Act of 1862 which said that any settler could claim 160 acres (0.65 km2) of "public land." Some Boomers entered the Unassigned Lands and were removed more than once by the United States Army. Charles C. Carpenter was the earliest leader of the Boomer movement, succeeded by David L. Payne, who was succeeded by William L. Couch.
"After its founding in 1890, the University of Oklahoma adopted "Boomers" as the nickname of their football team, after having first tried "Rough Riders." In 1908, the name was changed to "Sooners", the current team name." ~ Wikipedia