Oklahoma Celebration Shaker Types
Oklahoma Shakers
Frankoma did advertising pieces from the beginning, but Frankoma had little to celebrate for many years. Tragedy was ever at the door and the business climate was terrible. Bankruptcy and war tried to put them out of business several times.
In the 1950's though the company finally hit its stride and experienced success. When in 1957 the time for Oklahoma's semi-centennial celebration arrived Frankoma was ready!
Frankoma produced a variety of semi-centennial celebration pieces including no fewer than five different shaker designs! All of the celebration items were in the existing line in one way or another. John Frank used his teepee, wagonwheel, oil derrick, and horseshoe designs by simply adding the celebration inscriptions to the existing molds. In one instance, the Teepees to Towers design, he took one shaker from two different sets to make up the new offering.
The clay in 1957 was brick red so the rutile glazes are especially showy on the 1957 celebration sets. Frankoma had by this time moved on to a wide offering of colorful glazes so a collection of these pieces is quite showy. The available glazes are prairie green, desert gold, clay blue, terra cotta rose, white sand and turquoise. Other than glaze differences the manufacturing did not vary because of a single year of production.
In 1983 Frankoma came back for the 75 year statehood celebration with a single commemorative shaker, the 94HLD horseshoe set. Little did the Frankoma people know it, but the celebration would soon be over. In November of 1983 for a second time fire completely destroyed the plant.