From staff reports The City of Lawton invites the community to the McMahon Memorial Auditorium on Aug. 1 to commemorate the town’s founding 123 years ago.
Festivities will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a reception in the lobby featuring light refreshments and a cake-cutting ceremony, led by the oldest male and female Lawtonians. Refreshments will be available while supplies last.
The auditorium doors will open at 6 p.m. for a historical presentation. This year, following previous themes of historical cultures in 2022 and historical buildings in 2023, the focus will be on a notable historical figure: Mattie Beal and her family.
At 6:30 p.m. Mayor Stan Booker will present awards for Outstanding Citizen, Outstanding Organization, Outstanding Youth Organization, the Lawton Award in Excellence, the Imminent Impact Award, and the Living Heritage Award. Nominations for those awards can be submitted at swokarts.com; forms for nominating the oldest Lawtonian are available on the same website.
The observance will conclude at 8 p.m.
The event is being coordinated by Jason Poudrier, arts and humanities administrator, who can be contacted at (580) 581-3470.
Lawton was founded Aug. 6, 1901.That was the time when the last of the Indian lands in the Oklahoma Territory, the Kiowa-Comanche- Apache reservation, was opened by the federal government for settlement.