Perhaps you have seen the new Oklahoma license plates with the original state flag which features the number 46. The plates are red (not red enough for OU and not orange enough for OSU). According to an article in the Oklahoman August 8, the plate has small icons of American bison, wind turbines, Skydance Bridge, Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, a red-tailed hawk, Route 66 and Pops sculpture, Sacred Rain Arrow statue, waving wheat, and Golden Driller. Of those, the Fergusons might only recognize the wheat and red-tailed hawk. However, the Fergusons laid the foundation that made icons of progress possible.
The Fergusons worked to create unity between Indian and Oklahoma Territories to create the state of Oklahoma. The big “46” celebrates the fruition of this work as Oklahoma became the 46th state of the union. Representatives from Oklahoma and Indian Territories crafted a constitution and President Teddy Roosevelt declared Oklahoma a state on Nov. 16, 1907.
Another aspect of the new license plate is the Commerce Department’s new official slogan “Image That”. “In 2020, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce announced the new branding and said the tagline “Imagine That” conveys the hopeful idea that Oklahoma is a state that surprised people by defying expectations, providing countless opportunities and inviting audiences to dream of their own personal potential.' Mrs. Ferguson writes in her book that she felt sorry for those who came later and did not have a chance to experience the excitement of the land runs and “a brand new state”. Oklahoma is a land where “if you can imagine it, you can build it.”
“The star-46 logo flag was adopted as the official state flag four years after statehood. This new license plate replicates that look. This flag was eventually replaced by another version in 1925 that is nearly identical to the one that flies today.”
The American bison on the license plate might have been a surprise to the Fergusons. Almost all bison had been killed by 1882, so they may have never seen one. Now, Oklahoma has more than 7000 bison. However, the stars and the clouds over the bison would make the Fergusons feel right at home.
So, the new Oklahoma license plates evoke some remembrances of the Fergusons and illustrate some of the progress that the foundation they laid allowed enterprising Oklahomans to start building.