Your Oklahoma vacation awaits
R ichard Gamble Miller (18901970), longtime journalist and columnist, was encouraging Oklahomans to take staycations long before the word entered our vocabulary circa 2005.
In his “Smoking Room” column from The Oklahoman on July 10, 1960, Miller expressed his vacation observations:
It’s strange but true. The grass appears greener across the fence or over the next ridge, for livestock, and much the same applies to people, too. When going on a three-day weekend or a week’s vacation, too many of us decide we can have a better time, view more scenery, find more challenging springboards and paddle better boats in an adjoining state, rather than use and enjoy almost identical facilities right a home. RGM has observed this tendency for the last 30 years, and we cannot figure out the answer.
Plenty of people around here can tell all about playground centers in Arkansas, Missouri, Colorado and New Mexico, but never have experienced the pleasures provided by Lake Murray, Lake Texoma, Quartz Mountain, Roman Nose, Beavers Bend, Tenkiller Lake and other home resorts.
It is much the same story when it comes to Oklahoma’s museums of art and history. Plenty of folks who read this stuff can stand up and recite creditable pieces about museums in Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Colorado, New Mexico, New York, Virginia, Massachusetts and Texas, but never have taken the time to view the wonder of the Oklahoma Historical Society museum (the Oklahoma History Center) in this city, the Philbrook and Gilcrease museums in Tulsa, the Stovall museum (the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History) in Norman, the Panhandle museum (No Man’s Land Historical Museum) in Goodwell, the Creek museum (Creek Council House Museum) in Okmulgee, the Pioneer museum (Pioneer Woman Museum) in Ponca City, and the Municipal Art Gallery (the Oklahoma Museum of Art) in Oklahoma City ...
Miller’s column extols the beauty of Oklahoma’s state parks and lodges, the lakes with fishing, swimming, hiking and camping — amenities that are available by traveling a couple of hours or less from anywhere in the state.
... RGM urges our people to visit the state’s own parks and lodges. Food and rooms on the firstclass level cost no more in state parks than in resorts in other states. And you can keep just as cool in state parks, or get just as good a suntan, as you can anywhere else — and at less cost.
Fiftyseven years later, Richard Miller’s words about the opportunities to experience the beauty and the history of our great state are still true and the Oklahoma Tourism Department’s website at http://www.travelok.com offers tools to plan your own Oklahoma staycation.