American Historical Ephemera and Early Photography

11 3/4 x 3 1/4 in. silver gelatin photograph on 14 x 5 5/8 in. mount with faded label to lower left reading, "Copyright applied for. F. S. Barde. Guthrie. Ok."

Featured in this panoramic photograph is a large room filled with delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Guthrie, Oklahoma.

The Enabling Act, allowing Oklahoma to become a state, was passed by Congress and signed by President Roosevelt on 16 June 1906. That fall, elections were held in the "Twin Territories" that would form the single state, and 112 delegates were chosen to attend the Constitutional Convention.

The convention opened soon after the elections took place, on 20 November 1906, and adjourned on 15 March 1907. Some of the major players included William H. Murray, who presided over the convention, Peter Hanraty, of the labor organization, and Charles N. Haskell, the majority floor leader. The delegates ultimately crafted a document that was put to a public vote for approval before it could be made official. The Oklahoma Constitution was approved by a majority of 71 percent in September 1907.

Frederick Samuel Barde (1869-1916) was a newspaper journalist and naturalist. He authored multiple reports for the state game and fish warden and started work on a novel about Oklahoma history before his rather early death at the age of 47.