Ghosts, Gangsters, and Chicken-Fried Steak at Oklahoma’s Old Plantation

If you’ve spent any time around Medicine Park, you’ve probably heard the stories about The Old Plantation. It’s that hundred-and-something-year-old big stone building right in the middle of town, and it’s famous in Oklahoma for two things...

The Food and the Ghosts

Folks drive in from all over just to get the chicken-fried steak. I’m not exaggerating when I say it’s practically legendary. But somewhere between the mashed potatoes and dessert, a lot of people end up talking about what else might be hanging around the place, because it’s not just the tourists who come and go.

The Old Plantation has been standing since 1910, and you can tell those walls have seen some things. It started as a simple pavilion before being built into the three-story landmark it is now.

The Outlaws and the Speakeasy Days

Back in the 1920s, it was a local hotspot for just about everyone. The rich, the rowdy, and the wanted. Rumor has it, Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly both stopped by more than once when they needed a quiet hideout and a bite to eat.

During Prohibition, part of the building supposedly doubled as a speakeasy and dancehall, which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Medicine Park’s always had a little bit of that outlaw charm.

In those early days, it wasn’t uncommon to find saloons, brothels, and gambling joints tucked around every corner. And if history’s taught us anything, all that kind of fun tends to come with a few ghosts attached.

Ghost Stories from the Old Plantation

Over the years, visitors and staff have reported all sorts of strange things... lights flickering on and off, dishes sliding across tables, random cold spots, shadows darting down hallways. Some have even been touched or pushed by something they couldn’t see.

One of the most talked-about ghosts is said to be a little girl who hangs around the second floor. Another is a woman often spotted wandering between floors. Then there’s the one that gets everyone talking, a man who looks an awful lot like Heck Thomas, the famous lawman who helped bring down the Doolin-Dalton gang. He was Lawton’s first police chief back in the early 1900s and was buried not far from here in Highland Cemetery.

Legends say he’s still keeping an eye on outlaws, just not the living kind anymore.

A Good Meal and Maybe a Ghost

If you’ve never been, or it’s been a few years, this is the perfect time of year to plan a visit. You might go for the food, but you could end up leaving with a story of your own.

Whether you’re into hauntings, history, or just good old-fashioned Oklahoma comfort food, the Old Plantation checks every box.