Dates & times
All times are local to the venue · America/Chicago
- 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day: Cookies, Kits and an 1860s Oven
At Fort Gibson Historic Site, the oven sets the schedule: the head baker plans to send gingerbread cookies out in batches about every half hour. On Saturday, Dec. 19, visitors can decorate a cookie at the Commissary or pick up a kit at the Hospital Visitor Center; the Bakehouse itself stays closed to the public until the final batch goes in, around 2 p.m.
The baking is the baker’s work; decorating is for visitors
The site’s head baker uses the 1860s wood-fired oven to make the giant gingerbread cookies. Visitors take over at the decorating stage, with station sweets the organizers describe as examples of treats available in the 1800s.
The listed choices include cherry licorice laces, spice drops, peppermint medallions and candied chocolate. The period connection is in these decorating options; the announcement does not describe a participant baking lesson.
Further reading: Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗
Two nearby buildings serve different purposes
The on-site decorating station is in the pre-Civil War Commissary. Take-home kits are sold at the 1870s Hospital Visitor Center, on the same block at the opposite end of the magazine and 1860s Bakehouse.
The visitor center occupies the historic hospital. Built in the 1870s, the building originally had offices, a dispensary, a surgery and a 12-bed ward; today it includes orientation areas, galleries, a gift shop and a replica ward. That makes the kit pickup a chance to see a building with its own distinct role in the post’s history.
Further reading: Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗ · Historic Hospital | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
A winter activity in a layered historic site
Fort Gibson was established in 1824 with a stated purpose of keeping peace between the Osage and Cherokee. Its history is also tied to U.S. westward expansion and the removal of Indigenous people. The site’s surviving buildings and exhibits sit within that larger history, rather than apart from it.
The grounds include original buildings dating from the 1840s through the 1870s, as well as a reconstruction of the early log fort and stockade. Visitors can explore structures including stone barracks, a dogtrot cabin, a sutler store, a mess hall, the Commissary and the Bakehouse. Fort Gibson is a National Historic Landmark.
Further reading: Fort Gibson Historic Site | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
Choose a cookie to decorate or a kit to take home
Both options include a gingerbread cookie. The Commissary purchase includes decorating supplies at the station; the take-home kit includes those supplies except frosting.
2026-12-19 · Pre-Civil War Commissary
- Buy giant gingerbread cookies to decorate on site with 19th-century-style sweets, including cherry licorice laces, spice drops, peppermint medallions and candied chocolate.
2026-12-19 · 1870s Hospital Visitor Center
- Take-home gingerbread kits are sold here; each includes a cookie and decoration supplies except frosting.
Plan the day
Saturday, Dec. 19, 2026
Gingerbread Bake Day runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Cookies and kits are available first-come, first-served, while supplies last; staff cannot hold supplies.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗
$7 per cookie or kit
The $7 purchase covers one cookie to decorate on site, with station supplies included, or one take-home kit containing a cookie and the station’s decorating supplies except frosting. The event listing does not say whether general site admission is required in addition to this purchase.
Fort Gibson’s visit listing gives general admission as $10 for adults; $8 for seniors 62 and older; $5 for students ages 6–18; and free for children 5 and under, Oklahoma Historical Society members, and veterans and active military with ID. It also lists a $30 family rate for up to six people and a group rate of $7 per person for groups of 10 or more.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗ · Plan Your Visit | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
Pick the right building for your purchase
For on-site decorating, go to the Commissary at 907 N. Garrison Ave. Take-home kits are sold at the 1870s Hospital Visitor Center at 803 N. Garrison Ave. The historic site’s listed address is 803 North Garrison Avenue, Fort Gibson, OK 74434. The site lists 918-478-4088 for inquiries.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗ · Plan Your Visit | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
The event ends before the site’s usual closing time
The site’s visit listing gives normal hours as Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Bake Day cookie sales are scheduled to end at 3 p.m., or earlier if supplies run out.
Find the right Fort Gibson building
Site address and event stops
Fort Gibson Historic Site’s listed address is 803 North Garrison Avenue, Fort Gibson, OK 74434. On-site cookie decorating is in the Commissary at 907 N. Garrison Ave.; take-home kits are at the 1870s Hospital Visitor Center at 803 N. Garrison Ave. The Commissary and hospital are on the same block, with the magazine and Bakehouse between them.
The official visit information provides a map but no parking or public-transit instructions. Use the map link to calculate directions from your own starting point; call 918-478-4088 with site-specific questions.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗ · Plan Your Visit | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
Before you make a plan
Where do I go to decorate a cookie?
The on-site decorating station is in the pre-Civil War Commissary at 907 N. Garrison Ave. Take-home kits are sold at the 1870s Hospital Visitor Center at 803 N. Garrison Ave.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗
What comes with a take-home kit?
Each $7 kit includes a gingerbread cookie and the decorating supplies available at the station, except frosting.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗
Does the $7 purchase include general site admission?
The event listing does not say whether site admission is required in addition. Fort Gibson’s visit information lists general admission rates from free to $10, depending on age, membership or other eligibility.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗ · Plan Your Visit | Oklahoma Historical Society ↗
Will cookies still be available at 3 p.m.?
Not necessarily. Sales are first-come, first-served and end at 3 p.m. or when supplies run out; staff cannot hold supplies.
Fort Gibson Historic Site Gingerbread Bake Day | OHS Calendar ↗
Location & Google Maps
Fort Gibson Historic Site
803 North Garrison Avenue, Fort Gibson, OK 74434. On-site cookies are sold at the Commissary, 907 N Garrison Ave; take-home kits are sold at the 1870s Hospital Visitor Center, 803 N Garrison Ave.
Map search by venue and address. Check the organiser’s entrance details before travelling.