Holy City of the Wichitas

The Holy City grew out of an Easter pageant first staged in the Wichita Mountains in the 1920s. As the event drew larger crowds, organizers set about building permanent stone structures to serve as its backdrop, using the pink granite that lies all around in these hills. During the Great Depression, workers with federal relief programs helped raise many of the buildings.

The result is a remarkable ensemble: chapels, gates, walls, and buildings meant to echo ancient Jerusalem, arranged among the boulders so that the natural rock and the built stone blend into one another. The rounded granite hills of the Wichitas stand in convincingly for the stony landscape of the Holy Land, giving the site a genuine sense of place.

The heart of the Holy City is its Easter sunrise passion play, which dramatizes the final days of the life of Jesus and has been performed here for generations. It is one of the oldest continuously running passion plays in the country, drawing large crowds who gather among the stone buildings and boulders in the pre-dawn dark.

Volunteers from the region take the roles, and the natural amphitheater of the mountains provides the stage. For many families across southwest Oklahoma, attending the play is a long tradition, and it remains the event that defines the site, though the grounds welcome visitors of all backgrounds the rest of the year.

The Holy City lies within the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, a landscape of ancient granite peaks, boulder fields, oak groves, and prairie that is one of the natural jewels of the southern plains. The mountains are far older than the Rockies, worn down over hundreds of millions of years into the rounded, rocky hills seen today.

Because the site sits inside the refuge, a drive to the Holy City comes with the chance of seeing free-ranging bison, elk, and Texas longhorn cattle along the roads, along with the sweeping mountain scenery. The combination of the stone village and the wild refuge around it makes for a memorable and unusual outing.

The Wichita Mountains take their name from the Wichita people, one of the tribes long associated with this region of the southern plains, and the wider area is tied to the Comanche, Kiowa, and Apache nations who lived and traveled across southwest Oklahoma. These are living nations whose histories are woven through the land around Lawton and Fort Sill.

Against that deep backdrop, the Holy City is a twentieth-century addition, a distinctive piece of regional culture set within an ancient landscape. Travelers who come for the stone Jerusalem often stay for the mountains, the wildlife, and the long views that make this corner of Oklahoma so unexpectedly grand.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is a place we chose through independent editorial review, never a paid placement.

The Holy City of the Wichitas, in the Wichita Mountains near Lawton in southwestern Oklahoma, is a unique stone village built to resemble ancient Jerusalem, home to one of the longest-running Easter passion plays in the country. Constructed of native granite amid the rugged mountains, the collection of stone buildings recreates scenes of the Holy Land and serves as the dramatic setting for a beloved Easter pageant that has drawn audiences for generations. Open to visitors year-round, the peaceful site offers a striking and contemplative experience amid the beautiful mountain scenery. A unique and reverent religious site, it moves visitors. With its stone village, the Holy City offers a compelling destination in Oklahoma.

The Holy City of the Wichitas is famous for its Easter passion play, a dramatic outdoor pageant recreating the events of the Easter story, one of the longest-running productions of its kind in the country, performed at the stone village amid the Wichita Mountains. Held around Easter, the pageant has drawn audiences for generations and is a cherished tradition, with the granite buildings and mountain setting providing a striking backdrop. Because the pageant is seasonal, checking the current schedule is important if you wish to attend. This tradition is central to the Holy City's significance in Oklahoma.

Yes, the Holy City of the Wichitas is generally open to visitors year-round, who can walk among the stone buildings that recreate scenes of ancient Jerusalem, take in the peaceful setting amid the mountains, and reflect, while the famous Easter passion play draws crowds in its season. Because it is a religious and contemplative site, visiting respectfully is important, and checking current hours and any event schedules before you go is wise. Visiting respectfully and checking current information ensure a meaningful experience at the Holy City of the Wichitas in Oklahoma.

The Holy City can be visited year-round to walk the peaceful grounds, while the Easter season is the special time for the famous passion play, drawing many visitors, and the mild months are pleasant for exploring the stone village amid the mountains. Because the pageant is seasonal and hours can vary, checking the current schedule before you go is wise. For the passion play visit around Easter, or enjoy the peaceful site any time, at the Holy City of the Wichitas in Oklahoma.

The Holy City of the Wichitas is in the Wichita Mountains near Lawton in southwestern Oklahoma, within reach of the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Mount Scott, Medicine Park, and the Meers Store. That makes the Holy City a compelling stop to combine with the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and the other attractions of southwestern Oklahoma on a visit to the state.