Route 66 Rising: A large sculpture sits on the east side of Tulsa welcoming travelers as they enter the city. The city is proud of its history and involvement in Route 66 as the highway passes through Tulsa for many miles. There are numerous landmarks around town that commemorate the highway including the ‘Route 66 Rising’ sculpture in east Tulsa. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Meadow Gold: Meadow Gold Dairy has been around since 1901 serving a variety of dairy products. The Meadow Gold sign was constructed in 1934 as an advertisement for Meadow Gold, which was owned by Beatrice Foods Co. at that time. The sign glowed in the Tulsa sky until the 1990s and the building that it sat on was sold and demolished in 2004. However, the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture was able to disassemble the sign and save it. The sign was moved to this structure built solely to display the sign again. The sign was installed on the structure on 11th Street in 2016 where it once again lights the Tulsa sky. The clocks on top were added at a later date. As you can see the neon lettering was not complete the evening that we visited the area. Meadow Gold is now owned by a cooperative of farmers who continue to produce quality dairy products. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly from Los Alamos
Many years ago Don Williams had a hit entitled “Tulsa Time” and that is what we enjoyed for several days this fall, living on Tulsa Time. We were traveling Route 66 through Oklahoma and Tulsa is a must stop when driving the “Main Street of America”.
Tulsa offers several miles of Route 66 including realignment sections of the road. The “Father of Route 66”, Cyrus Avery, was from Tulsa and was a prominent businessman in the city. Avery was a leader in the Good Roads movement and designer of the National Highway System in 1926, which is when Route 66 was established. This was the first time that the U.S. had an organized highway numbering system.
The route passes through several “districts” within the city and each presented a different view of Tulsa. For the purpose of this Post From the Road we will look at the 11th Street corridor which stretches for miles in an east-west direction through Tulsa.
We traveled the 11th Street section a few times during our time in Tulsa but I will feature landmarks traveling from west to east. The west end of 11th Street is in the shadows of downtown Tulsa to the south. The Pearl District is a popular area located on this end of the 11th Street corridor of Route 66, which featured several iconic Route 66 stops.
If you ever drive Route 66 you will soon discover that the giant “muffler man” statues are very popular. These statutes, which stood an average of 20 feet tall and were used to advertised various products, were most popular in the 1950-60s when Route 66 was at its prime for cross country travelers. This area of the route in Tulsa features a few of these statues.
Another feature seen in this section of Route 66 in Tulsa was the use of neon lighting on signage as well as on the buildings. The majority of the buildings seen on the route have been repurposed into shops and restaurants and other facilities related to the route. There is a part of this stretch of road that features some of the motor lodges or motels that were popular overnight stops for travelers as well.
Tulsa is a city that will surprise travelers who are new to the area and have time to spend around town. Route 66 stops are just one of the attractions within the city that make for an enjoyable visit. We enjoyed our “Tulsa Time” and look forward to returning and exploring more of what the city has to offer.
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Buck’s On 66: Buck Atom’s Cosmic Curios has been a popular stop on Route 66 since the 1960s. The eclectic shop is housed in a former 1950s gas station on a prominent corner on Route 66 (11th Street) and Quincy in the Pearl District. In addition to a whimsical variety of Route 66 items in the small store, it features two of the giant statues on the grounds. To the right of the store stands the 21-foot-tall ‘Space Cowboy’ named Buck Atoms, while to the left of the store stands a 19-foot-tall ‘Space Cowgirl’ named Stella Atoms statute. There are many photo opportunities around the facility adding to its popularity. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Meadow Gold Mack: Across the street from Buck’s On 66 is the ‘Friendly Lumberjack’ who stands in from of the Meadow Gold facility. The facility sells a variety of items including vintage items, books, and plants along with Tulsa related items and Route 66 items. Sitting next to the Meadow Gold facility is the Meadow Gold sign, which has been a part of Tulsa’s landscape for years. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Driller: The Golden Driller is an iconic statute that stands at the Tulsa Expo Center, which is a few blocks from Route 66 but is still a popular stop for travelers. This statue is far larger than the ‘muffler man’ statutes seen elsewhere along Route 66. The Golden Driller was constructed in the 1960s and stands 76 feet tall. The statute depicts an oilfield worker of which there are many across Oklahoma. The statute is made of concrete and plaster and weighs a whopping 43,500 pounds and has become an iconic landmark in Tulsa. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Tally’s Diner: A few blocks farther east on Route 66 is Tally’s Diner. The diner has been a staple non the highway for many years and continues to serve customers daily. The facility features an abundance of neon lighting on the exterior as well as the interior. The 50s style diner features many Route 66 decor items with many containing neon lighting as well as classic car decor which also feature neon lighting. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com