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Pioneer Monuments in Oklahoma
Item 8 of 15

One of several monuments erected to mark Oklahoma's statehood centennial in 2007. While most other centennial monuments focus on the excitement of Oklahoma land rushes, local artist Harold T. Holden sculpted a homesteading family to stand in front of the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center.


Bronze statue of man holding plow, woman in prairie gown, and young girl holding a rag doll

The Homesteaders plaque

Bronze plaque listing sculptor and donors

To celebrate Oklahoma’s 2007 statehood centennial, Larry and Dolores McClure commissioned a bronze monument in honor and memory of their pioneer family. It was dedicated September 16, 2007 in front of Enid’s new Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center. It was sculpted by popular local artist Harold T. Holden.

Harold T. "H" Holden grew up in Enid. "H" Holden sculpted a series of statues depicting the history of the Cherokee Strip in Oklahoma and Kansas. Holden attended Oklahoma State University and the Texas Academy of Art in Houston. He was elected into membership in the Cowboy Artists of America in 2012.

Holden's better-known Boomer (located in Stride Bank Center Plaza in Enid) portrays a man riding a galloping horse, rushing to stake his land claim. In contrast, The Homesteaders focuses on a white settler family. Like rural Kansas, Montana and Wyoming pioneer monuments of the 1980s, it emphasizes settlers’ hard work and persistence. Rather than emphasizing white men’s use of horse-drawn technology, however, Enid’s homesteaders labor with hand tools amid a presumably abundant harvest. Where 1950s pioneer family monuments’ emphasis on strapping young sons, The Homesteaders highlights feminine nurturance and the persistence of family ties: the mother holds her young daughter’s hand, who in turn grasps a rag doll. Although The Homesteaders suggests the hard work required to survive on the southern Plains, like other western-themed artworks that appear throughout Enid, it also reassures viewers that--despite the diverse Indian tribes that persisted in Oklahoma--white cultural traditions are here to stay.

Harold T. Holden--Western Artist. Accessed February 9th, 2024. https://hholden.com/index.cfm.

Harold T. Holden, Cowboy Artists of America. Accessed February 9th, 2024. https://cowboyartistsofamerica.com/harold-t-holden/.

Page, David. "Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center opens in Enid, Oklahoma." Journal Record (Oklahoma City, OK) April 4th, 2011.

Prescott, Cynthia Culver. Pioneer Mother Monuments: Constructing Cultural Memory. Norman, Oklahoma. University of Oklahoma Press, 2019.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Photo by Cynthia C. Prescott

Photo by Cynthia C. Prescott