This is my tenth year of blogging, having started in February 2015. In April 2015 I posted my first piece about the 1995 Oklahoma City Murrah Federal Building terrorist bombing that killed 168 people. The New York City World Trade Center attack in 2001 far exceeded the human toll of the Murrah attack, but for such a relatively small city and state, it was devastating for us who live in Oklahoma.
At precisely 9:02 a.m., the bomb exploded.
FBI.GOV
Within moments, the surrounding area looked like a war zone. A third of the building had been reduced to rubble, with many floors flattened like pancakes. Dozens of cars were incinerated and more than 300 nearby buildings were damaged or destroyed.
The human toll was still more devastating: 168 souls lost, including 19 children, with several hundred more injured.
It was the worst act of homegrown terrorism in the nation’s history.
Although I was born and raised in Tulsa (the second largest city in the state) Oklahoma City played an important role in my life. I attended medical school and residency there at the University of Oklahoma Medical Center. It was where my husband and I lived the first seven years of our marriage and had our first child. By 1995 we had been in Tulsa several years, but still had friends and extended family in Oklahoma City.
Since that first post, I have published several others about the event, all illustrated by photos taken at what is now a memorial and museum dedicated to the victims and survivors. I thought I had said all I had to say about it.
But as I looked through other photos, I found some that portray the essence of the event differently, so am sharing those here. Maybe this will be my final post on the subject, I’m not sure.
Will Rogers, Cowboy Philosopher
Will Rogers, a native of Oklahoma, was one of the world’s best-known public figures, as an actor, writer, humorist, pundit, speaker, and philanthropist. In his long-running newspaper column, he frequently made politicians and current events the subject of his dry humor. He lived from 1879 until he died in an airplane crash in 1935.
In this sketch published soon after the bombing, David Simpson, editorial cartoonist for the Tulsa World, made Rogers the subject, reacting to the headline of the Murrah Federal Building bombing in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. Echoing a phrase Rogers often used in his writing, the artist titled the sketch
All I know is what I read in the papers.
Will Rogers
The newspaper sold reprints of the sketch, which I purchased, framed, and photographed. It still hangs on a wall in my home.
Several years later, Mr. Simpson was fired from the newspaper for an accusation of plagiarism involving an unrelated cartoon.
Eric Fischl, Man with Child
photos Dr. Aletha, 2015
When sculptor Eric Fischl saw a television image of fireman Chris Fields carrying a child from the Murrah Building after the bombing, he saw a similarity to this statue he had completed in 1992. He was so moved by the connection he donated the sculpture to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art where I saw it and took these photos. About the fireman image and the sculpture he said,
“It’s an image you don’t see much-a man with a child. The man is walking and you don’t know if he is walking toward something or away from something.”
I cropped the photos to keep this blog post “family-friendly”. Go to this link to see a photo of the full statue, warning-nudity
You can see the Pulitzer prize-winning photo of firefighter Chris Fields holding Baylee Almon(who died) at this link, but I warn you it is graphic and heartwrenching.
Cynthia Daignault-Oklahoma
photos by Dr. Aletha, 2022
Artist Cynthia Daignault was a senior in high school in 1995, isn’t from Oklahoma, and didn’t live here. But she heard about the bombing in Oklahoma City and it left an impression on her.
She eventually visited the Oklahoma National Memorial and Museum. When she started an art project of 100 paintings to represent 100 years of history, she chose the Murrah building bombing for the year 1995.
About this painting, she wrote,
“I wanted to create contemplation, quiet thoughtfulness, and sadness.”
I saw and photographed this image at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.
At this link you can view photographs of the damaged Murrah Building that inspired Daignault’s painting; warning-these images are disturbing
Oklahoma City bombing
A Boy Reading with a Dog
photos by Dr. Aletha, 2015
I found this statue at Washington Irving Memorial Park in Bixby, Oklahoma, about 110 miles from the site of the Murrah Building. Despite my online searching, I didn’t find the artist’s name or the name of the statue. I call it A Boy Reading with a Dog. The sign reads
Dedicated to the children who perished in the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Building.
Nineteen children died in the Murrah Building bombing, most were in the onsite daycare center.
An Invitation from Dr. Aletha
If you ever come to Oklahoma, please take the time to visit the site of the Murrah Building, now the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. The outdoor Memorial is free and always open. There is a nominal charge for the museum operated by a private nonprofit foundation, not a government entity.
I will never forget the Oklahoma City bombing
That day in Oklahoma City showed some of the best in our state and our country as people, some with no training , risked their lives to help rescue people who were injured and trapped inside. Firefighters and police came from all over the United States to help. People donated food and first aid supplies.…
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Thank you so much for sharing these remembrances with me. If this is the first time you have heard about the event, I hope it will inspire you to learn more.
A reminder about copyright. Just because something is on the internet doesn’t make it ok to borrow and use it without permission. The photos in this piece are mine and the original art belongs to the artists. So, if you want to share, please do. Just give credit to the original sources.
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