Booker T. Washington High School, 1913

507 E. Easton Street

Legally segregated schools for African-American students began shortly after Oklahoma became a state in 1907. In 1908, a two-room frame school building was constructed on Hartford Avenue between East Cameron and East Easton Streets. The small school served grades 1 through 8. In the fall of 1913, Dunbar Grade School began operation in an eighteen-room brick building and a two-room frame building located at 326 N. Hartford Avenue. That first year’s enrollment included 241 lower grade students and 7 high school students. That same year the original Booker T. Washington High School was constructed. Its four-room frame building, designed by Leon B. Senter, was located at 507 E. Easton Street. Its first principal was E. W. Woods. This is now the center of the OSU Tulsa campus just north of Greenwood and Archer.


507 E. Easton Street

As Tulsa grew the four-room school soon became inadequate. A larger 3 story brick school was built on the same location in 1920 which served Tulsa's African-American community until 1960.


Booker T. Washington High School number two.



1631 East Woodrow Place

The third Booker T. Washington High School at 1631 East Woodrow Place began serving students in 1958. The first class to graduate from this school was the class of 1961.

The Tulsa Public Schools district was slow to react to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that de jure racial segregation was unconstitutional in the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed all racial segregation in the United States. However, in 1973 Booker T. Washington was chosen to be the vehicle for Tulsa's school desegregation program. At that time in Tulsa, most Caucasians lived in south Tulsa, whereas most African Americans lived in north Tulsa. As Booker T. Washington was built during American Segregation, it was in north Tulsa. The Tulsa School Board chose to bus in primarily Caucasian students who did not live near the neighborhood that Booker T. Washington had served, while continuing to accept students who lived near the school. This method was used by several school districts, and is called desegregation busing.



Although a fourth Booker T Washington High School was built in 2003, the front section of the previous school was retained for its historical significance.

After 1973, Booker T. Washington became a magnet school; it no longer had a home neighborhood from which students were accepted, instead, students had to apply for admission to the school and came from all over Tulsa. A racial quota system was established; until the 2004-2005 school year, 45% of the students accepted identified themselves as "white," 45% identified themselves as "black," and 10% came from "other" ethnic categories. However, because of the 2003 Supreme Court Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger decisions Booker T. Washington was forced to accept students using a different method. The school now uses a system that accounts for the geographical location in which a student resides. Because Tulsa remains rather segregated, this method maintains the ethnic diversity created by the old quota system.


Today, the student body of Booker T. Washington boasts championship basketball, football, and soccer teams, a nationally ranked academic bowl team, a physics team, a nationally competing science bowl team, a robotics team, a forensics team, and a competitive cheerleading team. Booker T. Washington was the first Tulsa Public High School to offer Advanced Placement courses and began offering the International Baccalaureate in 1983. The 2003-2004 school year marked the 90th anniversary of Booker T. Washington and the dedication of a new school building.



Booker T. Washington High School’s new 213,000-square-foot building was completed in the fall of 2003, as the school began its 90th year. The new high school is an unique achievement; a state-of-the-art, expansive, and technology-rich facility that also celebrates a distinctive heritage within the Tulsa community. The top public high school in Oklahoma, Booker T. Washington is also one of the top-rated schools in the nation. The 1,250-student school is considered a cornerstone of north Tulsa’s African-American community: it began as a one-room segregated schoolhouse in 1913, and in 1973 it served as a model for Tulsa Public Schools’ voluntary desegregation program.
(photos courtesy of Robert Hicks and the Beryl Ford Collection/Rotary Club of Tulsa, Tulsa City-County Library and Tulsa Historical Society) (Excerpted from Wikipedia and Tulsa Preservation Commission)

The Abundant Life Building,1957

1720 South Boulder Avenue

The Abundant Life Building was built in 1957 to house the Oral Roberts Ministries. It is very striking in its appearance because it has no windows. To make sense of the building requires at least a brief understanding of Oral Roberts.

Oral Roberts is an pentecostal minister and faith healer. He started his ministry as a pastor in the Pentecostal Holiness Church. He came to believe he had a special gift for spiritual healing. In April 1947, he began holding healing services in his church on Sunday afternoons. His reputation as a faith healer spread quickly and by May, the crowds were so large that he had to rent larger facilities. In June, he announced to his congregation that he had received invitations to conduct healing services in eight states and had decided to resign his pastorate. In 1949, he began a series of radio programs. By 1950, he was traveling the country with an 18,000-seat tent simultaneous broadcast on 63 stations. Within two years, his radio and television programs were being broadcast on 400 stations in the United States, Canada, Alaska and by short-wave to listeners around the world.

At the time the Abundant Life building was built Oral Roberts was raising literally millions of dollars through his traveling tent meetings and from radio and television solicitations. The name "Abundant Life" is a reference to the passage from the Gospel of John 10:10, "... I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly". This and other scriptural references are the basis of what is called "the gospel of prosperity" His life and ministry have been the subject of considerable controversy. He is regarded by some as a prophet and by others a fraud. Nevertheless, he and his ministry have prospered.

The Abundant Life building was the headquarters of this ministry and contained a large television sound stage which could simulate the tent meeting and film the opening and closing segments of the weekly broadcasts. This was also the destination for the large donations which supported the ministry. Much of this money was sent in the form of cash donations and the security considerations of handling and accounting for this money were implemented within this building.

The scale of donations provided for the establishment of a a Christian university which Roberts named for himself. In 1964 Oral Roberts University was opened on South Lewis. By the mid-70s the activities of the Abundant Life Building were transferred to the university and the original building was closed.

Southwestern Bell telephone used it for a time then but since the early 1980s it has been empty. It has changed hands several times but attempts to convert it into a multi-use facility have not gone anywhere. It remains empty at this time. For more on this see this post in Lost Tulsa.



The windowless facade looked very striking when illuminated at night.


This photo taken in July 2009 shows it looking rather shabby with several missing exterior tiles. I know of no one who has seen the inside. It is something of a mystery.

A fairly concise biography of Oral Roberts and his ministry is HERE.
A Wikipedia article on Roberts is HERE.

Cherry Street at Peoria: 1924, 1959, 2009

East 15th Street and South Peoria, "Cherry Street"

Looking north on Peoria from Cherry Street (15th) circa 1924. On the far right is what is now (2009) the Palace Cafe. Next to it is a lower building and then the Alhambra Theater which was remodeled as the Plaza in 1930. The 3 story apartment building in the distance is still there.

In its early days the Tulsa Little Theater performed plays at the Alhambra Theater. The smaller building is still there but the Alhambra Theater is now a parking lot. (Photo courtesy of the Tulsa Historical Society.)


The photo above reveals that this was still known as the Alhambra area in 1959 when this picture was taken. I know this has been the location of a number of businesses over the years. I bought a pair of stained glass panels here in the early 1970s when it was an antique shop. (photo courtesy of Beryl Ford Collection/Rotary Club of Tulsa, Tulsa City-County Library and Tulsa Historical Society)


This most recent reincarnation is as the "Palace Cafe, Nouveau Cusine" and the "Wood-Stone Studio". The building has a nice fresh coat of paint and looks good. We wish them luck.

The restaurant has a nice web site where you can look over their menu. Any place that has a Lobster Corndog as an appetizer has to be interesting. Sue and I will have to look into this. See their web site HERE.

St. Paul's Methodist Church, 1907

1442 South Quaker Avenue, (South Quaker at Cherry Street)

This congregation was founded in 1907 by the Reverend Sylvester Morris who founded a number of Methodist congregations in Tulsa. The parsonage of Rev Morris is believed to be the oldest surviving house in Tulsa and is now located in Owen Park. See my earlier post HERE. (photo circa 1925 courtesy of Beryl Ford Collection/Rotary Club of Tulsa, Tulsa City-County Library and Tulsa Historical Society)


The beginnings of St. Paul's history coincide with the year that early Oklahoma became part of the United States. In August 1907, Rev. Sylvester Morris and a small group of families gathered to worship in the brush arbor at 14th and Rockford. The "church" consisted of a few planks, blocks, stumps and rocks. After six years of meeting in various locations, these early Tulsans received permission to hold church services in the basement of the Bellview School building (later called Lincoln Elementary) at 15th and Peoria.

Later, the congregation moved its weekly church services to a house located at 1441 S. Quincy. In 1913, the church changed its name to Orcutt Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church and a little white church was built at 14th and Quaker.

Growth in spirit and body lead to decision in 1920 to construct the current sanctuary located at 15th and Quaker. Construction was not completed until late 1924 and the first service of the St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church was held in December. The new sanctuary was formally dedicated in January 1925. With its exquisite stained glass and its familiar red brick gothic architecture, St. Paul's has been a Tulsa landmark ever since. In conjunction with the national realignment of Methodist churches in 1968, our church is now known as the St. Paul's United Methodist Church. Visit their website HERE.

J. B. McGay Residence, 1936

1551 South Yorktown Place






This house was designed by Joseph R. Koberling, Jr. for J. B. McGay. McGay was an inventor who designed the parking meter, a gas calculator, petroleum gauges, and the tubeless tire. The home is an example of Streamline Art Deco with elements of the early Zigzag style. It is constructed of painted brick and features Spanish style wrought iron window balconies. Considered a maverick at the time, it was very unusual with its corner windows, front garage, and five different levels. (Excerpted from Tulsa Preservation Commission)

Brookside Then and Now

The heart of Brookside, 34th and Peoria, 1954.

Brookside is the Tulsa neighborhood just south of downtown, from Riverside east to Lewis, and from 31st Street south to 51st Street. In 1954 this area was anchored by the Brookside Pharmacy, TG&Y Variety Store, C.R. Anthony Clothing, Hanna Furniture, and Sidney's Hardware. These businesses catered to the neighborhood living close by. Most of Brookside was built in the early 1950s and was inhabited by growing young families. (photo courtesy of Beryl Ford Collection/Rotary Club of Tulsa, Tulsa City-County Library and Tulsa Historical Society)


The heart of Brookside August, 2009.

This area, like Cherry Street (15th Street from Peoria east), has become an upscale entertainment district. Senor Tequila replaces the pharmacy, and the rest are an assortment of bars, cafes, and clubs which cater to a wider, and more fickle clientele. Competition is ferocious and most of these places change hands every few years.

What a difference 55 years can make.

Midwest Marble and Tile Building, 1945

507 South Quaker Avenue

This building was designed by Robert E. West. This simple, white rectangular-plan building has an interesting facade. Its small radiused corners are highlighted by two separated bands of black marble tile at the cornice. The smooth walls curve inward at the entrance, topped with a projected concrete lintel. (Excepted from Tulsa Preservation Commission)


The building designed for the Midwest Marble and Tile company was itself an advertisement for the company's product. The alternating bands of black and white marble make a simple but striking appearance. After over 50 years the marble is smooth, shiny, and as rich in color as when it was new. Few materials are as permanent as marble.

The current occupant is Sharp Typesetting & Graphics.

Day and Nite Cleaners, 1946

1012 South Elgin Avenue


This streamline art deco commercial building sits on the curve where 10th Street in the downtown grid resolves into 11th Street. It is across the street from the Warehouse Market Building featured last June. See HERE.

Constructed in 1946 by architect William H. Wolaver it is very typical of the style presenting a flat roof and strong vertical lines even though only a one story building, it has rounded corners and glass block is used prominantly.

Possibly the most interesting thing about it is that it was used as a dry cleaners when it was built and continues to do business under the same name. Other than the City Veterinary Hospital I'm not sure what other Tulsa building can make that claim.

TV Channel 2, KVOO (KJRH) in Tulsa, 1954

3701 South Peoria Ave

KVOO radio broadcast at 50,000 watts for many years and has a rich history in Tulsa radio. IN 1954 KVOO opened a new broadcast facility in the heart of the Brookside neighborhood and went on the air with television channel 2.

Above is a fine artists drawing of the new station. It really is not possible to get far enough away to get that good a perspective.

Tulsa TV Memories has a good history of both the radio station (HERE) and the TV station (HERE).


Television Channel 2 is the NBC station in Tulsa. Located in the tower is a live web cam which shares the view of Brookside. On a good day you might see my house. The station's website is HERE.

Tulsa Fire Station No. 7, Old 1946, New 2000

601 South Lewis Avenue

The first fire station number 7 was opened in this location July 1, 1921. It was remodeled in 1946 and again in 1967. (old photo courtesy of City of Tulsa.)


The original Fire Station No. 7 building was sold and remodeled and is now used by a landscaping company.


Old No. 7 from the rear. The original glass block panels are still in place in this view.


3005 E. 15th Street

The new Station No. 7 opened in 2000 at 15th and College.