Sooners

At 12pm on April 22, 1889, the Oklahoma Land Rush began. In the center of the Oklahoma Indian Territory, was a portion of land known as the Unassigned Lands. This portion of the future state was not assigned to any Native American tribe, while the rest of the territory was assigned to specific tribes. 

On April 22, homesteaders gathered in Oklahoma so that when the cavalry bugle sounded at noon, they could rush the newly opened land and claim the land for themselves. Their desire to claim land for themselves allowed the town of Guthrie to be built in a day. 

However, there were already homesteaders claiming land in the Unassigned Lands. In President Grover Cleveland's Indian Appropriation Act, there was a "sooner clause." The clause stated that no one could claim land before noon on the 22nd. 

"Sooners" were the people who snuck into the area before the land was officially opened, which gave them an advantage over those who rushed for land at noon. The University of Oklahoma's sports teams are called the Sooners.