Yukon Historical Society

12/25/2025

🎄 Wishing You a Merry Christmas from the Yukon Historical Society 🎄

As we celebrate this joyful season, we are reminded of the generations who came before us—families, traditions, and faith that helped shape Yukon into the community we cherish today.

From our historic Main Street to our rich Czech heritage and hometown pride, we are grateful for everyone who supports preserving Yukon’s story and passing it on to future generations.

May your Christmas be filled with warmth, reflection, and time with loved ones. We look forward to continuing to celebrate and preserve Yukon’s history with you in the coming year.

✨ Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! ✨

11/11/2025

🇺🇸 Happy Veterans Day from the Yukon Historical Society! 🇺🇸
Today, we pause to honor and thank all the brave men and women who have served our nation with courage and dedication. Your sacrifice has preserved the freedoms we cherish and the history we strive to preserve.

We proudly salute our veterans—past and present—for their service to our country and our community.

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.” – Ronald Reagan

10/11/2025

Come check us out!

Since the first time I lived in Oklahoma City, I loved going over to Yukon. The main reason in 1995 was that Yukon had a $1 movie theater. My wife and I were scrimping by so we could see a movie, get popcorn and a drink for next to nothing. After we'd go see a cheap flick, we'd stay in Yukon and loo...

07/10/2025

During the 1930s, the drought-stricken Southern Plains endured the devastating hardships of the Dust Bowl era. Relentless dust storms swept through the region at the height of the Great Depression, compounding economic despair and affecting every part of daily life. Illnesses like “Dust Bowl pneumonia” became tragically common, claiming many lives.

Yukon, Oklahoma, was not spared. This photograph captures a massive dust storm rolling over Yukon on June 4, 1937.
(Courtesy of Betty Sackett.)

07/05/2025

06/13/2025

🎥 Check out the NEW video from the Yukon Historical Society!

Beautifully produced by Austin Ehlers & Andre Graves, and narrated by our Society President Alan Ridgeway — this video highlights the rich history of Yukon and the people who helped shape it.

A big thank you to everyone who made this possible. 👏

👉 Give it a watch and share with friends who love Yukon history!

05/28/2025

These Yukon farmers are “shocking” wheat, a traditional term for gathering and bundling wheat in the fields.

Even today, wheat farming remains a vital part of the agricultural landscape in Yukon and Canadian County.

Some farms stretch for miles, with many passed down and worked by multiple generations of the same families.

05/22/2025

This circa 1910 photograph captures a period of growth in Yukon.

Along the north side of what is now Main Street, between Fourth and Fifth Streets, narrow passageways once separated individual businesses—most of which have since been closed off.

The Mulvey brothers appear to have transformed this stretch into a thriving emporium, an early version of a shopping mall.

Odie Mulvey’s wife, Fannie Elizabeth White Mulvey, was a local schoolteacher.

05/04/2025

Isaac “Ike” Simmons and his wife, Belle Hamilton Simmons, stand to the left in this photograph, with their son Sewell on the far right.

In the historic Land Run of 1889, Ike staked his claim to a quarter section of land and built the family home near what would later become the intersection of Surrey Hills Boulevard and Mustang Road.

Belle’s parents and siblings, drawn by the same promise of new beginnings, filed claims on neighboring parcels. The Hamiltons came from diverse roots—Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, and New York—but their chapter on the frontier was short-lived.

With their early passing, their land passed into the hands of the Simmons family, weaving the two legacies together on the Oklahoma prairie.

(Courtesy of Mike Schulte.)

04/17/2025

Glen Cornwell 👉 (pictured on the right) was a founder of the Yukon Round Up Club 🤠.

He arrived in Oklahoma Territory in 1898 🐎, first settling in Frisco, then moving to Yukon in 1910 🏡.

From 1927 to 1935, he was Yukon’s Chevrolet dealer 🚗.

In 1937, he partnered with Walter Neal to launch the Yukon Livestock Auction 🐄, also known as the Yukon Sale Barn.

(Courtesy of Shirley Davis.)

03/17/2025

A.N. Spencer donated land for the construction of churches.

In the 1890s, the Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, and Christian congregations established Yukon’s first four churches.

The First Baptist Church was the first to be built in 1891. This photo, taken in 1912, shows the church as it stood at that time.