News Release

Commemorating Washita Battlefield’s 25th Year in the National Park Service

Date: November 4, 2021

CHEYENNE, Oklahoma: On November 13, 2021 Washita Battlefield National Historic Site will be commemorating its 25th year in the National Park Service. An outdoor ceremony will be held in collaboration with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribe to honor the memory and protection of this sacred place.

The event is open to the public and will start at 1 PM Central Time and will take place right behind the park visitor center. Join us to honor the continued preservation of this significant time and place in our nation’s history. Light refreshments will be provided.
 

25th Commemoration Ceremony
Saturday, November 13, 2021
Starting at 1 PM CT
Washita Battlefield National Historic Site Visitor Center
18555 Hwy 47A, Ste. A Cheyenne, OK 73628

Washita Battlefield National Historic Site became a park unit due to the efforts and dedication of several people who recognized the importance of preserving this site’s historical and cultural heritage.

Since its inception as a park unit, Washita Battlefield NHS has offered many opportunities for education and contemplation of this nation’s history. The park not only highlights the attack itself, but the events leading up to it and the effects still felt today by generations after.

Educational programs are offered for current and future generations to learn about this pivotal period for the Southern Great Plains tribes, and to learn from the conflict arising from cultural differences in a rapidly changing world. Today, ranger-led and self-guided tours of the battlefield trail inform visitors of the battle of the Washita, in-classroom and at-park school visits help youth understand the struggles of societies trying to maintain their cultural identity, and outreach events in person and online allow people from all over the world to learn the history and significance of this sacred place.

This year, in honor of its 25th year as a park unit, Washita Battlefield NHS will be offering and participating in more outreach events for the public to learn from and show respect to the lives lost here.