The Oklahoma State Quarter

It is Oklahoma's turn to have the state memorialized on a quarter. Since Oklahoma was the 46th state, we get to be way down at the bottom of the list, though. Begun back in 1999, the US Mint's 50 State Quarters Program has released a new state quarter every 10 weeks.

Here's a full breakdown of the quarter selection process and as well as the details on the final selection:

Oklahoma's State Quarter is slated to be released in January of 2008, with a prototype to be revealed at the centennial celebration in 2007.

Was it you that designed that prototype? The Oklahoma Centennial Commission took design submission ideas from anyone and everyone, the image to be forever associated with Oklahoma on our quarter.

Submissions were mailed, and here were the initial rules and details for the design submissions:

• Submissions must have been postmarked by March 31, 2006.
• Design ideas needed to be in essay form, a narrative description of why the design is suitable for Oklahoma and its residents.
• Essay submission couldn't be longer than 100 words.
• No drawings, artwork or graphics were accepted.
• No submissions were returned, and the State of Oklahoma retained all ownership rights whether the design was used or not.
• All submissions included name and address. Name and address didn't count toward 100 word length.

Here were some stated possibilities of allowed ideas from the Centennial Commission:

• Oklahoma Landmarks
• Landscapes
• Historically Significant Buildings
• Symbols of Oklahoma Resources or Industries
• Oklahoma Official Flaura or Fauna
• State Icons

And here were some that were not allowed:

• Head-and-Shoulder Portraits or Bust of Any Person Living or Dead
• Controversial Symbols or Subjects
• State Flag or State Seal
• Logos or Depictions of Commercial, Private, Educational, Civic, Religious, Sports or Organizations Whose Membership is Not Universal
• Copyrighted Material

Ten finalists were then announced, and the first round of online voting began.

Initial Voting Results

After the conclusion of the initial online voting, Governor Brad Henry's office announced the 5 winners. The 5 choices with the highest vote totals were submitted to various national committees and organizations.

The winners were:

• With 43,720 votes, the design that featured the state outline in the upper left, an oil derrick to the right, a calumet in the middle and the Pioneer Woman statue on the lower left received the largest support.
• With 42,118 votes, the design that prominently features the scissortail flycatcher finished a narrow 2nd.
• With 39,659 votes, the design featuring the Pioneer Woman statue in the middle with an oil derrick to her left and a windmill to her right came in 3rd.
• With 34,819 votes, the design featuring the Pioneer Woman statue and oil derrick upon a state outline background came in 4th.
• And with 29,375 votes, the design with the state outline background behind a calumet and the Pioneer Woman statue rounded out the top 5.

Go to Page 2 for more on the process and the eventual final decision...

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