Four Oklahomans Make Forbes’ ‘400 Richest People in America’ List

When it comes to the topic of money, Oklahoma is usually an afterthought. Sure, we have our couple of industries that have higher-than-average pay in the Sooner State, but most truly believe the lavish lifestyles are unobtainable.

That may be true of someone wishing to make millions in their small hometown, but as is true in life, fortune always favors the bold.

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Growing up in an oil and gas family, we moved around quite a bit. We kids hated getting to new schools and having to make new friends so often, but I can still hear my mother telling me "We go where the job is. Life is as simple as that."

While we bucked that saying at the time, we've all followed that narrative in our own adult lives. It's crazy how that happens.

On Forbes' list of America's 400 richest people, four billionaires call Oklahoma home.

While everyone likes to joke that Oklahoma is run by the oil and gas industry, it's hard to argue since all four of our richest Oklahomans are somehow tied to it.

At the top of the Sooner State list - and the 43rd richest person in America - is Harold Hamm.

With a worth of over $18-billion, it's easy to scoff at anything related to the Hamm family, but it was an empire completely born from nothing. It started with a big-rig truck and evolved into the massive oil and gas company the Hamm family still runs today. Self-made.

George Kaiser is listed as the 54th richest person in the country, and while his economic rise is attributed to oil and gas, there's a bit of banking there too.

George was able to levy his families oil and gas money into purchasing the failed Bank of Oklahoma back in the 1990s. Needless to say, BOK has thrived ever since.

See the full list of Oklahoma's billionaires below.

Judy Love is listed as the 65th richest person in America. She and her husband Tom founded the Love's gas station and travel stop empire.

Last, but certainly not least, Lynn Schusterman ranks at 299 on the America's Richest list. She and her late husband founded an oil and gas exploration company in the 1970s, but the family is known more for their philanthropy over the years.