Oklahoma Route 66 - Tulsa

"Take me back to Tulsa, I'm too young to marry..." - Bob Wills, George Strait, Asleep at the Wheel, and many others

Blue Dome Station

Metro Diner, 2006

Oasis Motel, 11th Street

Desert Hills Motel, 11th Street

TULSA, OKLAHOMA. With a population close to 400,000, and a modest but respectable skyline, I rank Tulsa as one of the "big city" stops on Route 66, along with Chicago, St. Louis, Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, and Los Angeles. Cyrus Avery, the "Father of Route 66," was from Tulsa, so here is where it all began. Mr. Avery owned a gas station, a restaurant, and a tourist court in Tulsa, went to Washington in 1925 to help establish the Federal Highway System, which included Route 66, then ran the new road right by his businesses. What a country! 

     Tulsa was the "Oil Capital of the World" in the early part of the 20th century, and since Art Deco was "in" at the time, much of the local architecture reflects that style, right down to the churches. The old brick building with the blue top at the corner of Second Street and Elgin was built in 1925, adding to this abundance of Art Deco. Originally the Blue Dome Service Station, it started out selling the builder's own Chastain oil products, became a Tydol Gas Station for a time and later became a Gulf. It had Route 66 traffic for a few years, but the station was bypassed when the old road was rerouted away from downtown to 11th Street, in 1933. It relied on city customers until about 1950, when the gas station turned into a bar. I'm not sure what the building is used for today, though I've heard there is an artist's studio under the blue dome.

     The Metro Diner, where Elvis ate, was built in the 1980's (and torn down, sorry to say, just a few years ago to make way for a University of Tulsa expansion), so it really wasn't authentic Route 66. But it sure looked the part, and hosted many 66 roadies during its time.

     11th Street still has many functioning motels and businesses left over from its 66 days, including the Oasis and Desert Hills motels.