What is a Sooner? Yeah. I know I am not the only one to ask that question. The Oklahoma Sooners are playing the University of Florida Gators in the BCS title game at Dolphin Stadium and most of us know what a gator is but at least half of America is wonder what is a Sooner.
Sooner is the name first applied about six months after the Land Run of 1889 to people who entered the Oklahoma District (Unassigned Lands) before the designated time. The term derived from a section in the Indian Appropriation Act of March 2, 1889, which became known as the “sooner clause.” It stated that no person should be permitted to enter upon and occupy the land before the time designated in the president’s opening proclamation and that anyone who violated the provision would be denied a right to the land.
That was our little history lesson that the kids can take back to school and impress their teacher.
Just throwing this out there. A gator is an alligator. You probably already knew this one but just in case you forgot.
Source: Oklahoma Historical Society
By the way, the Gators won the BCS title game.