- Oklahoma Fast Facts -

What is now the state of Oklahoma was acquired by the United States in 1803 as part of the Louisiana Purchase. The purchase did not include "No Man's Land," the Oklahoma panhandle, which would be acquired later. Jefferson, in giving his reasons for purchasing Louisiana, mentions the desiribility of placing the Indians by themselves at some distance from the whites. To summarize, the transfers of the title to the lands which form Oklahoma west to the 100th meridian were: Indians by living and hunting there; France by occupation and assuming control (1718); France to Spain (1763) by treaty; Spain to France (1800) by secret treaty; France to the United States (1803) by sale. Panhandle of Oklahoma: Spain by exploration (1541), then settlement at Santa Fe (1605); Spain to Mexico (1821), independence; Mexico to Texas, independence; Texas to the United States, annexation. Census maps created by the USGenWeb Census Project show the evolution of the purchased land, the creation and shrinking of the Indian Territory, and formation of the state of Oklahoma.

Oklahoma was admitted to the union as the 46th state on November 16, 1907. Its 69,899 square miles of land is divided into 77 counties. It is bounded on the east by Missouri and Arkansas, on the north by Kansas, on the northwest by Colorado, on the far west by New Mexico, and on the south and near-west by Texas. The capital, and largest city, is Oklahoma City.

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