NEW Tulsa historical office will focus on 'Life' program

TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ Historical agencies have joined forces to open a Tulsa branch office that will also house a folk life program and help prepare the city for Oklahoma's centennial celebration in 2007.

The Oklahoma Historical Society, Oklahoma Centennial Commission and Tulsa Historical Society announced the new office Thursday. It will be housed in the historic Samuel Travis Mansion, home of the Tulsa Historical Society.

The office will help collect and exhibit artifacts, documents, photos, maps and audio and video recordings on Tulsa's history and work with the Centennial Commission, said Clayton Vaughn, executive director of the Tulsa Historical Society.

It will also give Tulsa access to the Oklahoma Historical Society's statewide resources and programs, he said.

Guy W. Logsdon, a recognized folk life historian, entertainer and Smithsonian Institution Fellow, will head the office and oversee the folk life program.

The program is funded with the help of a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.