I flew Hobart, Oklahoma during their Sound of Liberty event, and the whole town center was alive. Booths and vendors packed the square, every kind you can think of. A long row of old historic cars sat lined down the street, chrome throwing light all over the place, people walking the rows the way folks do when there’s nowhere they need to be.
All of it sitting on top of a strange piece of history. On August 1, 1901, this was open prairie. By the next morning, 13,000 people were living in tents while they waited for land, and the place picked up the name Ragtown. When the town lots began selling on August 6, Hobart had 2,530 residents. Now the historic Kiowa County Courthouse sits in the middle of the square, with a tile mosaic laid into the ground nearby.
Catch it from the air at the right hour and the whole place glows the same red as the dirt it grew out of.
A small town that still knows how to fill its own square.
If you like small towns, local history and the view from a couple hundred feet, subscribe. More flights are coming.
Another courthouse landmark from above: Mount Vernon, Illinois.
Mount Vernon From Above: The Fifth District Appellate Courthouse and Veterans Memorial Park
Another city landmark from above: The Eye in downtown Dallas.
