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Heavener Runestone.

Heavener Runestone

Field review by the editors.

Heavener, Oklahoma

A sandstone slab, ten feet wide and twelve feet high, bears Runic alphabet inscriptions dating back thousands of years. It is believed to have been carved by the pre-Vikings who, as we all know, came to Oklahoma centuries before the time of Columbus.

A walking trail in the 55-acre Heavener Runestone State Park leads to the slab, which is so big that a glassed-in outdoor shelter had to be built around it. According to the folks in the nearby interpretive center, the inscription on the slab dates to AD 100-700, and tells the story of "Glome" who used the rock to lay claim to this part of the Sooner State.

The people in Heavener do not dismiss America's other runestones -- there are more than you might think -- knowing that they are all evidence that Columbus was a Euro-come-lately. "They've got their runestone, we've got ours," the interpretive center folks said about the runestone in Alexandria, Minnesota. "Ours is older."

Also see: Vikings in America

Heavener Runestone

Heavener Runestone State Park

Address:
CR E1460, Heavener, OK
Directions:
Sits in a ravine, inside a protective shelter. On Poteau Mountain, 2.5 miles east of town in Heavener Runestone State Park, off of US-59/270, and east of Morris Creek Rd.
Phone:
918-653-2241
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Nearby Offbeat Places

Eat in a Railroad CarEat in a Railroad Car, Heavener, OK - 1 mi.
Bank in a CabooseBank in a Caboose, Poteau, OK - 14 mi.
Monument Atop the World's Highest HillMonument Atop the World's Highest Hill, Poteau, OK - 13 mi.
In the region:
Modern Doctor Statue, Van Buren, AR - 39 mi.

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