I’ve written a separate blog post on many of the things to see in Tulsa, both along Route 66 and elsewhere. But if you’re a fan of historical architecture, there’s even more to see here. Tulsa has one of the best collections of art deco architecture anywhere. Most of it was built in the 1920s and 1930s, right when Route 66 was born, so seeing Tulsa’s art deco treasures can certainly be considered part of the Route 66 experience.
Why does Tulsa have so much art deco architecture? The 1920s were boom times for the Oklahoma oil industry…and for Tulsa, where the oil boom led to a construction boom. By 1930, Tulsa had more buildings ten or more stories tall than any other city in the world. Newly prosperous Tulsa businesses and residents wanted buildings in the very latest style—art deco.
Tulsa art deco architecture falls into two broad categories. Streamline Moderne was inspired by America’s new ability to travel by air. So Streamline Moderne features aerodynamic designs such as curved corners plus vertical lines that draw the eye skyward. Zigzag Moderne is decorated with geometric shapes.
We started experiencing Tulsa’s art deco architecture by staying in an art deco building: the Mayo Hotel at 115 West 5th Street.
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| 1925 Mayo Hotel lobby |
When it was built in 1925, it was the tallest building in Oklahoma. We loved our stay there, partly because many of the things we wanted to see in Tulsa were within walking distance. One morning we had a really nice breakfast at the Cherry Street Kitchen, just half a block from the hotel at 111 West 5th Street, then took ourselves on a walking tour of downtown Tulsa.
Right across the street from the Cherry Street Kitchen, is the Pythian Building, also known as the Gillette-Tyrell Building, at 423 South Boulder Avenue.
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| 1929 Pythian Building in Tulsa |
The Pythian Building was built in 1929. It’s one of my favorite of Tulsa’s zigzag art deco buildings.
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| Southwestern Bell Mail Dial Building in Tulsa |
The first two floors were built in 1924 in Gothic style. The remaining floors were built in 1930 in zigzag art deco style.
At 313 South Cincinnati Avenue, we stumbled on an interesting building that I hadn’t read about in any guides. It’s a parking garage called the K C Auto Hotel!
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| K C Auto Hotel in Tulsa |
It was built in 1928 as a truly full-service auto hotel, offering all kinds of auto servicing as well as parking with a team of uniformed staff.
About two blocks north of the Auto Hotel is the Tulsa Union Depot at 43-99 East 31st Place North.
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| 1931 Tulsa Union Depot |
It was built in 1931. Today it houses the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.
On another day we did a driving tour of more of Tulsa’s art deco buildings. We started with breakfast at the Savoy at 6033 South Sheridan Road. We’d read that it had the best breakfast in Tulsa, and ours really was excellent!
Our first art deco stop was City Veterinary Hospital at 3550 South Peoria Avenue, built in 1942.
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| 1942 City Veterinary Hospital in Tulsa |
All the straight horizontal lines plus the curves on both sides make the City Veterinary Hospital a great example of streamline moderne.
Our next stop was the Jesse Davis Residence at 3231 South Utica Avenue. It was built in 1936 in streamline moderne style. Notice the interesting railing on the left.
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| 1936 Jesse Davis Residence in Tulsa |
Next we saw the Ungerman Residence at 1718 East 37th Street. It was built in 1941 in streamline moderne style. Even the windows—called ribbon windows—create horizontal lines.
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| 1941 Ungerman Residence in Tulsa |
Next was a Tulsa treasure: Westhope, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, at 3704 South Birmingham Avenue.
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| Westhope in Tulsa (view from South Birmingham Avenue) |
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| Westhope in Tulsa (view from South Atlanta Place) |
Also known as Richard Lloyd Jones House, it was built in 1929. The unusual construction method, called Textile Block, stacks molded concrete blocks in patterns. Textile block was invented by Frank Lloyd Wright.
One of the most interesting buildings we saw in Tulsa was Christ the King Catholic Church at 1520 South Rockford Avenue. It’s listed on Google Maps as the Parish of Christ the King.
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| 1927 Christ the King Church in Tulsa |
Christ the King Catholic Church, built in 1927, was the first church in the world to be named Christ the King. The design is a combination of art deco, Byzantine, and Gothic. It was considered either radical or innovative at the time, depending on who you asked.
Next door, at 1519 South Quincy Avenue, is Marquette Catholic School, built in 1932. The style clearly echoes the church but somehow doesn’t seem so radical.
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| 1932 Marquette School in Tulsa |
Across the street from Christ the King Church, at 1528 South Quincy Avenue, is what’s now Marquette Early Childhood Center.
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| Marquette Early Childhood Center in Tulsa |
I couldn’t find any information on when the Marquette Early Childhood Center was built, but it was clearly designed to complement Marquette School.
At 1551 South Yorktown Place is the 1936 McGay Residence.
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| 1936 McGay Residence in Tulsa |
The horizontal lines on the right side of the McGay Residence’s style are streamline moderne, while the details in the center of the building would be zigzag.
Two of our favorite art deco buildings came at the end of our driving tour. The Fire Alarm Building is at 1010 East 8th Street. It’s listed on Google Maps as the Tulsa Fire Museum.
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| 1931 Fire Alarm Buiding in Tulsa |
The Fire Alarm Building was built in 1931. When someone rang a fire alarm, the signal went to this building, and someone here relayed the call to a fire station. The building is a beautiful example of zigzag art deco, full of wonderful details. It’s not far off Route 66 and worth seeking out.
Our final stop was Boston Avenue United Methodist Church at 1301 South Boston Avenue.
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| 1929 Boston Avenue United Methodist Church in Tulsa |
Built in 1929, it’s considered one of the best examples of an art deco church in the United States.
These are only a fraction of Tulsa’s notable art deco buildings. If you’re interested in learning more about Tulsa’s art deco architecture or seeing more photographs, Galen Frysinger has photos and information of many of Tulsa’s historic buildings.
We missed all of this! Thanks for sharing....adding it to our bucket list.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't finished our first roadtrip of all of Route 66...and we're already planning to do it again!
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