I was a Canadian trucker. Ran Canada and all USA for 40 years. My favorite loads were the ones going off the beaten path. The people were more social and friendly. Almost everyone had interesting stories to tell. No matter how small the town was, they could talk for hours about its history. I picked up a load of charcoal in the middle of nowhere in the Ozarks. One of the workers wanted to know about Canada and invited me to his home for dinner. well, talk about hillbilly heaven lol. I had one of the best dinner and visit I could remember. What a great family. But seeing those types of things disappearing is a real crime.

I’m originally from Enid. Many of the people who live in these towns work in or around Enid. I have been to every one of these towns. They all originated primarily as farm towns built around their grain elevators.

I am disabled and don't travel much ! but I really enjoy riding along with you !

Shout out from Cherokee Ok. Thanks for featuring our small town. Next time you're near Cherokee check out some of the sights. We have the salt flats that host the only place in the world to dig Hour Glass Selenite Crystals. There is the Great Salt Plains Lake and Devine Waters Artisian Well about 15 min. N.E. of Cherokee. Main Street has the pocket park that's just a cool little park that was put in between two of the downtown buildings when the middle building had to be brought down and there was just an empty gap there. Also thought you might be interested to know that the old hotel you highlighted is a veterans museum.

My father covered the church steeple in sheet metal in 1978 using scaffolding. This was his first job after starting his own Sheet Metal Company.

That big gun "tank" is called a self-propelled howitzer. I saw loads of them in Ft. Sill, OK. Love that state, and I'm from Southern California. Just loved the small towns I saw while in the military.

Thanks for proving to my wife I'm not crazy! I'm always driving through small towns touring their downtowns and every time I see a theater I point it out as well! I'm originally from Eufaula, OK, I vibrant small town, but no theaters, they had two in the fifties.

I’m enjoying these stories, they tell part of why America is the way it is.

I live around the Chickasha area. I have been to Fairview, Hennessey, Okeene, Canton, and Cleo Springs. Love the small towns in my state!

All these towns were wonderful in their heyday when the wheat fields were thriving and the oil fields were booming. There was a German prisoner of war camp just west of Alva by the cemetery and at Freedom it has alabaster caverns where you can go way below ground in the caves. Little Shara state park is out there too with the sand dunes and the great Salt planes state park east of Cherokee. Don’t forget Twister was filmed out there in Wakeeta. Thanks for touring our state 😊. Come back again

I will spend my entire life living a nice peaceful quiet small town life, being considered living in poverty, then spend one day living in a city.

In 1999 and part of 2000, I lived in Claremore and worked in Tulsa. On the weekends I would go for drives out in the country. Even then many of the small towns I drove through looked the ones in your video. The farther away from a large city, the more quiet and desolate looking.The area east of Tulsa, going toward Arkansas has some very nice hills/foothills.

Canton has one of the best walleye lakes in the state,that being Canton lake

If you ever get back to Oklahoma would like to see Lawton. I was born on the army base there in 1958. Fort Sill. My parents then retuned to Colorado when I was about six weeks old.

The grain elevators are always where the railroad tracks are or used to be. The roads are usually named railroad, railway, front, commerce, or named after the railroad. The towns that have a future still have railroad traffic. Where the railroad has left the towns are usually fading.

I live in Tulsa and grew up in Muskogee. The small towns in Oklahoma got hit really hard after Walmart ransacked the state. Local business stopped being prioritized and the small towns died. It’s sad. The small towns surrounding OKC and Tulsa do fine. Sapulpa is a cute one.

Explore Southeast and Southwest - Medicine Park, OK, Davis, OK and McAlester, OK are pretty cool!

My dad 👤 use to take us to small towns thank you God bless you

Unreal, I have never seen these towns in my own state. Thanks, a lot!

thank you for sharing stay safe and comfortable in driving ....

I took a road trip across the US this summer. Unlike many people the big cities weren’t my favorite part, rather the random small towns we passed through. The simplicity is so fascinating

As an okies I love these towns. The grain elevator is neat, however Hutchinson Kansas has the biggest grain elevator at a mile long. Poverty rate in Canton is due to more business than population. Also part of reservations counted differently.

Living in Australia, it's interesting "visiting" these towns.Thanks for sharing.

I live in Fairfax Oklahoma, another little dried up town, in 1970 we had a population of 1800, the town had 3 grocery stores, 2 Barber shops,2 new car dealerships, 2 Dr offices, an otasco and a western auto, 2 restaurant's, and a tastee freeze, and another hamburger grill place,a pool hall, a place called The Big Hill, where you could buy clothes, a boot factory, a dime store, 3 full service gas stations, this being the bible belt there were 9 churches, a train depot for grain and cattle, and a haliburton and several more businesses, there were cars parked all along main street, 2 little city blocks everyday for business, a busy town at one time, but that was back when the oil boom was in effect and the cattle business was profitable, and all that I just mentioned, is all gone, it's a sleepy little town now, hardly any businesses around, this is an old indian community ,and HOLLYWOOD did come to town the summer of 2021 for several months to film a movie, with Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio in it and Martin Scorsese as director, it's about the History of the Osage Indian, theme being, about the oil money they received from the land they owned, which were some of my relatives, 2 of my nieces will be in the movie as extras, it comes out in May supposedly, it's called, Killer of The Flower Moon, our little town was all a buzz for awhile, it was fun,,,,not much is left of Fairfax, but we're still here, may the GREAT SPIRIT in the sky bless you all!🌞🌛🌟🙏

I had to spend many weeks in Nebraska, and it was the most depressing place. There were almost no trees anywhere in or around the city. These roads you're showing here in OK with mature trees on both sides makes such a difference, at least to me.

There's no need American geography book, your audiobook best 👏☺️☺️☺️

I appreciate your filming style and commentary. Always searched for something in a style like this, finding your channel was like finding a treasure. Thanks and have a good journey!

This looks like a day on the road for me! Haha! I provide fumigation and safety equipment for grain elevators. Those big tall structures are used for wheat storage. If you ever get the chance, you should try to have one of those that isn't busy give you a tour. What you don't see is that they go deep into the ground too. Many were also the local nuclear fallout shelter for the town.

Waukomis survives on speeding tickets in their 45mph section.

I live in Broken Arrow, which is a thriving town but will tell you Oklahoma is a well kept secret. These fading towns are more appealing than bustling big cities any day . All these little towns need is some people to care and alittle ingenuity.

Have an excellent week everyone!

I love it when you mention the time that you are driving through the town, please do so more often.

Great your videos, I live in QLD Australia and a lot of these small towns are the same here, slowly declining in population. Love your work

Not only are you a great tour guide, you also provide education. Curious about the "Oklahoma Land Rush" you mentioned, I did some research and learned that it was really quite a big deal, and is why OK is called the Sooner State!

I saw the plane in Jet and I shouted "Tweet! That's a Tweet!" Lol. They made an old T-37 Cessna into their guardian. Way cool.

I moved from Tulsa to Cleveland OK, and the culture change was shocking and well needed. Liveved there an Pawnee City for 6 years, then I needed to move back to Oklahoma City for a job I could not refuse. Miss the small town pace. I would still live in Pawnee today if we had the remote work option.

If an Oklahoma town has a school I consider them blessed… our school was closed in the early 2000’s..

I used to live in Lee's Summit, MO till 2010 when I had to come to India. Now that parents expired and I have no one in family, I wonder how can I make it back to US. And, I loved the South always when I was there 7 years ! ❤ people are humble and more community oriented down South than the mix in the cities. For a simple guy like me, this is always way better, yeah.

That mural was wonderful. Best I've seen on your vids...and that cat in the street seemed like a real laid back southerner lol

Love the Waukomis statue of the man who was holding the windmill blades and looking up to the windmill body. He was anticipating installing the blades. That is a clean, beautiful town.

Looks peaceful, quiet and safe to me..... if people can work remotely now why wouldn't you live here instead of a big city?

Canton, Oklahoma is mentioned in the movie Twister made 26 years ago. A "Twister" movie museum is located in Wakita, Oklahoma.

One of the challenges for a retiree, in these small towns, is access to healthcare.

Nice video, with very simple residential houses. All the towns seemed to have some production and manufacturing units. Although small, but must be giving employment to many in the towns to live a decent life. Thanks 🙏

East Central Oklahoma has many rolling hills like the hill country down by Kerrville and all. The further east you travel the more hills and such. I live in a town off any major interstate in Chickasaw Nation.

I left Dallas area for rural Oklahoma 15 years ago, best decision I made.

I live in the oldest town in Oklahoma, Fort Gibson. About 3500 people live in Ft. Gibson. I’m from Tahlequah, 20 miles east of Ft. Gibson, the headquarters of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma tribe. Tahlequah has about 15,000 people that live in city limits. Coming from a small town and living in a smaller town, I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Very interesting. I love seeing the old towns. The first town was one of the towns my family lived besides Enid. Thanks for the tour!

That San Antonio de Padua church is beautiful, reminds me of St Mary's in Kansas, beautiful big churches in small towns

I've been to Fairview on one of my trips to explore more of Oklahoma. Nice looking towns and interesting things to see if you like rural towns and country side.

I like these videos showing fading places in the united states. What puzzles me is how its difficult to see a person walking even in the down town. From Nairobi, kenya.

On the west side of Cherokee you passed right by a vintage/antique brick silo which deserves more attention. As for the low poverty rates I suspect many are living off oil royalties. Also payments from the US government to indians under treaties may have something to do with it.

That is a tribute to to windmill that allowed water to be pumped for people/ animals/crops

I lived in Fairview when I was a baby. My family moved to Enid by the time I was 3. Your last video showcasing Enid was randomly suggested and I watched it. Pretty nice. If I had boatloads of money I would fix up some of the houses in these towns, build some businesses.

Dang...you didn't make it to Alva. Sad. Its the crux town for all the towns you drove thru. It has the only Walmart between Woodward and Enid, so all the area townies flock there for their needs (including nearby southern Kansas).

Thanks a lot for this. I'm from Europe and rural America fascinates me.

You kept your word: 10 towns shown! As always, sights worthy of reflection, such as, that handsome brick church at the literal end of Goltry--noticed a house made of the same brick in the back, almost certainly the pastor's residence. Except for a cat or two, he's likely alone, with a backyard that is an empty Oklahoma prairie except for windmills in the dim distance. Nearly as lonely as living in a lighthouse.Two of the demographic statistics given in this video are, I believe, the lowest you've shared with us yet: 1) 2.7 poverty rate in Jet; and 2) $57000. avg. house sale price in Carmen. A funny comment about the noticeable lask of even Dollar Generals in these communities. Well, even they need a minimal proximate population base to survive, I'm supposing, and numbers such as 197, 287 and 360 may fall below that minimum. A very natural question for 'outsiders (rhetorically expressed with full respect):' "I wonder how it is to live here."

Rural Oklahoma in 1924 was definitely Bible Belt territory. Interesting that there were enough Catholics in little town of Okeene to build the stunning Saint Anthony of Padua Church. Great to see the old girl getting a new roof.

Land run was the generational wealth alot of other people couldn't get in them days .. born and raised Muskogee Tulsa area..

You have to respect the cats, they own the towns. I love watching these videos. I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life, born in Texas, transplanted several times between Oklahoma, Texas and California. I have lived mostly in Stephen's, Jefferson, Pontotoc and Murray Counties. Most of the towns you show I have never even heard of much less visited.

YOU ARE THE BEST AT THIS!!!!

Great video as always . I always have interest in those Masonic Lodges in rural areas. Just seeing them in the background sparks curiosity .

The bank in Jet looks like one Bonny and Clyde robbed!

Wow! 10 towns in a 35 minute video! Way to hustle! Always interesting to hear the stats on these places. Some you'd think the poverty was high aren't. Looking forward to seeing west Texas!

I'm from Oklahoma and you went thru some good towns. Not even close to the dieing towns in Oklahoma. I've known lot smaller dead towns then the ones you've gone thru. Canton also has a huge sheet rock factory outside of it along with Canton lake. But any town you go thru with silos is known for its farming. Especially in Oklahoma.

Travel videos are a dime a dozen, well made and with excellent narration are your specialty.

I really enjoyed watching this. You do a great job. I’ve lived in or worked in all of these towns. Only suggestion I have is if u had the time to dig a bit more history up on these towns you would find not only farming but railroad, cattle drives, lakes, and Sandhills are just a few things that helped create these towns and even help keep them going.

Thanks for the ride along, I think the old Land Grab found it's end game. Brian down below asks a great question.

So weird to be going through these towns and not once did we see a Dollar general. But Dollar general probably wouldn't even make enough of an investment from the store in these towns to keep them open.

You know why most of these towns had peak population in 1980? Because that was the height of the Oklahoma oil boom period. Those towns had a bunch of oil field workers during that time.

Those houses are so beautiful.Beautifully built.

I love Oklahoma. Have and had relatives in Enid,Fairview,Cleo springs, perry and sand springs.

It’s a little heartbreaking to see how Oklahomas small towns are drying up. The nicest people you will ever meet live in these small towns of this state. I lived in one of the small Oklahoma towns when in the Air Force 1966-1970. Oklahoma deserves better is all I can say.

I enjoyed the ride today. Thank you for sharing.

Love this channel.I lived in Ft.sill Oklahoma from 95 to 99... Military family...

Love my state of Oklahoma. I just want to say it looks like we are in poverty in oklahoma seeing those houses in town, but most the nice houses are sitting on their land outside of town because who wants to build a nice big house in the middle of a little town?

Memories . . lived in Burns Flat twice in the 60's when i was a kid on Clinton-Sherman AFB. Smallest town I ever saw that had a fully operational AF base.

I used to live there I live in Enid now

I live in the city and I like to drive through the state highways and drive through the rural towns with my family on my day off. Take a peek at lakes and state parks. The land is prettier during spring and summer. The brown of fall and winter makes the land look bleak.

Brother I don't know that how normal life in Rural and small towns in the State Texas and Nevada but my dream is to live in those areas for the very quiet circumstances!!! Love 💕💕 USA from India

Interesting thing about Oklahoma: The Central part of the state was settled 4 years before the Northern part of the state (separate land runs). So a town like Hennessey is older than Waukomis (which literally means--"walk home us"--no, not a Kiowa word). So for the first land run entering from Kansas, they had a stroll about 60 miles from the Kansas state line to starting line for the Unassigned lands. I'm suprised no one ever wondered about the Cherokee Outlet--the land between the Unassigned lands and the Kansas state line? Why didn't the state of Kansas ever just claim that area as their own. The Cherokees weren't living there--they were leasing it out to cattle drives coming from Texas

A lot of those small towns are rural farming communities. Not a whole lot a people live in town.

Hi Lord Spoda That's a real rural trip in Oklahoma. Ten small towns is a series! Very peaceful, clean, well kept. Wide roads, sprawling trees with big trunks, huge open spaces is added attraction. Life in rural small towns is remarkably different. Less the needs; less the civic facilities. Since the visitors in small towns are fewer, I wonder how do the strangers are greeted by the locals. It will be interesting to know about the life of a small family in a rural small town, how the houses inside are. A brief halt at a remote small house in rural town and an interview with a small family will be appreciated. Thanks for the video.

Nice work you've created Mr. Spoda. I'm a big fan from the Philippines.

My sister lives in Spavinaw, Oklahoma. Maybe you should check it out it is a very small town

I live in a small Oklahoma town which got ravaged by the flood. Mostly everybody came back. Not much too look at but its home. I love the fact that u have not degraded one house or town while driving thru.

God bless Oklahoma!

I love these videos, I feel like I'm actually in the truck being shown around these places. For me from the UK though, it's weird hearing these places described as "cities", here a city is like London or Liverpool, somewhere with millions of people. I live in a small conurbation in the English Midlands which has a population of 1,100 and it's known by everyone as a "village". But that's just a bit of trivia, thanks for making and posting these wonderful videos.

Next time your on your way through Oklahoma, take a look at Buffalo, OK. Talk about a small town, but it's absolutely beautiful scenery out that way

At Canton, the big deal is the lake. OKC draws water from it.

I've been watching your videos since ~Spring/Summer 2022. You have a good feel for documenting the American landscape (I was a Geography major at University of Northern Iowa) Your personality is interesting - kind of a mix between Charles Kuralt/Peter Griffin - which makes it entertaining to watch. Many things you mention are favorites we have in common. Note: My arrest for disorderly conduct didn't involve alcohol or drugs. A lot of misinformation about me - it's the majority.

you need to visit the roundhouse jeans factory in Shawnee -one of the last American jeans manufacturing factories left

I just like your American history it great ..you have nice town in USA too ...thank you so much for sharing ..have a great day..

Wondering how far people have to drive for decent health care and supplies in remote towns like this. Would be interesting to get some interviews from some locals living in these types of towns.

Reminds me of where I’ve lived for the past nearly 50 years of my life.

You do realize you are allowed to call those buildings grain elevators!

Most people that watched this have never spent months and months and years and years of small-town living. Everybody knows way too much about everybody else. Every young person that does not get engaged leaves right out of high school. They go to Dallas to discover themselves unless they go to school in Norman or Stillwater.

I’m just stumbling across your videos but I really enjoyed this. I know it’s a few months old but I wanted to comment anyway. If you ever decide to visit an 89’er City (think of us as Land Run OG’s😅) take exit 98 off I35 and come see our SpiderBug off Highway 77! It’s definitely an interesting piece of Okie history! We also had a very, very old bridge up until a few years ago, but it almost crumbled hundreds of feet to i to the Canadian River so now we have a much less cool and historic, but much safer bridge. It’s a town of about 2k but most of our residents are out of city limits, so it is actually much more than that. That’s also not counting the population of the two prisons 8 miles east of us. One of those prisons being the place where every prisoner in the state of Oklahoma gets received. So basically, if you go to prison in Oklahoma, you will be transported right past my house on your way there. That sounds kinda strange saying it out loud lol, but I’ve been here far too long to even notice anymore, it’s just normal here. My town is named after a fairly big city in another state. I hear they make good pretty good chicken there. Any guesses what my Oklahoma small town is named? C’mon y’all, play along!

Im happy yo see your video. I was living in Canton for 1 year.

I work EMS in this area just North of Hennessey. In a town called Lacey was some crazy shooting involved with quite a few dead one flown from scene and the suspect was arrested in Florida fleeing.