Gallery 01
Cruisers & the Open Road
From the 1937 Ford Model A to the modern interceptor — eight restored Patrol vehicles trace the evolution of the cruiser, the radio, and the road itself.
Learn more
Museum planning stage · Membership & support opportunities
Help preserve a valuable piece
of Oklahoma history.
The museum is in planning, with membership and support opportunities available now. Tours, events, and expanded programs are in development and will be announced as launch milestones are met.
1937
Year the Patrol was founded
43,561
Sq. ft. of museum & mansion
88+
Years of service preserved
2,400
Artifacts in the collection
The Patrol Through the Years
From dusty section lines
to interstate corridors.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol's story is the state's story — written in mile markers, badge numbers, and the men and women who carried both.
1937
A Patrol is Chartered
Governor E.W. Marland signs House Bill 26, establishing the Oklahoma Highway Patrol with 132 troopers tasked with policing the state's growing road network.
1957
Twenty Years on Patrol
The Patrol's first two decades close with statewide radio dispatch, modern cruisers, and the first formal academy at the new Department of Public Safety headquarters.
1985
A New Era of Tools
Aviation, K-9, and Specialized Operations divisions are formalized, expanding the Patrol's mission across air, terrain, and the rapidly growing interstate system.
2026
A Permanent Home
The Historical Society opens its first dedicated museum at the Marland Mansion — closing the loop between the Patrol's founder and the force he created.
What you'll see
Five permanent galleries.
One continuous story.
Step through eight decades of state service — restored cruisers, recovered artifacts, and the personal stories that built the Patrol.
Gallery 02
The Badge & the Uniform
Eight decades of insignia, hats, and standard-issue gear.
Learn moreGallery 03
Communications
Radios, dispatch consoles, and the wires that held the Patrol together.
Learn moreGallery 04
Honor Hall
A memorial gallery for the troopers who gave their lives in service to Oklahoma.
Learn moreGallery 05
The Marland Theater
A 60-seat archival cinema screening original Patrol footage and oral histories on the hour.
Learn moreGuided experience
Take the full tour — 90 minutes, five galleries, one curator.
Visit Updates
Tours and events are coming soon.
Address
The E.W. Marland Mansion
901 Monument Road
Ponca City, OK 74604
Ponca City, OK 74604
Approximately 1.5 hours north of Oklahoma City via I-35 & US-60.
Hours
Public hours coming soon
Launch schedule and opening calendar will be announced after initial fundraising milestones are reached.
Thank you for supporting the museum while we complete planning.
Admission
Admission details coming soon
Final pricing and group program details will be posted with the launch announcement.
Current priority: fundraising and exhibit preparation.
On the Grounds
Planned Features
Support the Society
Every gift helps keep a chapter of Oklahoma history on its feet.
The OHP Historical Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Membership and community support power this mission while the museum is in planning, and every gift helps preserve a valuable piece of Oklahoma history.
- ✓100% of gifts go directly to museum operations & preservation.
- ✓Donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed.
- ✓Memorial gifts may be made in honor of a trooper or loved one.
- ✓Corporate matching & planned giving are warmly welcomed.
Make a Gift
501(c)(3) · EIN 84-XXXXXX$25
Citizen
Helps fund a single artifact's conservation.
→
$100
Trooper
Sponsors a school field trip from anywhere in Oklahoma.
→
$500
Captain
Funds restoration work on a Patrol vehicle for one quarter.
→
$1,937
Founder's Circle
Named brick on the memorial walk + private collection preview (when available).
→
$
Secure giving via the Oklahoma Charitable Trust Fund.
Governor E.W. Marland
The Governor who built the Patrol — and the mansion that now holds its story.
Ernest Whitworth Marland made his fortune drilling for oil in the rolling country north of Ponca City, then poured it into a Mediterranean Revival estate designed to rival the great houses of Italy. When the oil markets turned, he turned to public service — winning the governorship in 1934 and, three years later, signing the bill that put a uniformed patrol on every Oklahoma highway.
For nearly nine decades, the mansion he built and the Patrol he founded have stood as parallel landmarks of the state. In 2026, they share an address.
The roads of Oklahoma belong to the people. They will be safer for it.
— Gov. E.W. Marland · upon signing the Highway Patrol Act, 1937
Marland Mansion
A Mediterranean mansion, a Patrol's living archive.
The E.W. Marland Mansion stands at 901 Monument Road in Ponca City — a 43,561-square-foot Mediterranean Revival landmark built by an oilman who would become Oklahoma's tenth governor. Today it serves a second purpose: home to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol Historical Society.
Inside its limestone walls, visitors trace nearly nine decades of state service — from the 1937 charter through the cars, uniforms, equipment, and personal effects of the troopers who wore the patch. Restored galleries, an on-site theater, and rotating exhibits give voice to a force that has watched over Oklahoma's roads since the model A.
— OHPHS
