The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

  I am doing some research for some new mural for the Central Center at Central Park, but have some questions.  I am wanting to recreate some scenes of what the area might have looked like "back in the day".

Did the Tulsa Street Railway pass by the Longfellow School on 5th?
(http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/335/borderdeco3aweb2.jpg)
This is the start of a rendering will add people into the scene if this scene could have actually happened.


What decades would this have been at the Central Park so that I can put people in the scene with appropriate period clothing?
(http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/1791/bgh7gbmkkgrhqmokpieyjc0.jpg)
There is a 5cent stamp on the back if that helps place the years any.

Anyone know what the gas station was (brand or name) that is directly north of the Central Center and the years?

Any help would be much appreciated.

This map done by Michael Bates might help with the TSR passing the school.

http://www.batesline.com/archives/2009/12/tulsa-streetcar-and-interurban-l.html


I can't see the picture of the stamp here at work.  I just barely remember a 3 cent stamp being 1st class letter postage in the mid 50s. Then it was 4 cents for quite a while.  I don't remember when it went to 5 cents.

According to Wikipedia, it changed to 5 cents in January of 1963.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_postage_rates

Some of the photos in the Beryl Ford collection at TCCL are organized by street names.  It's a long shot.

http://www.tulsalibrary.org/tulsahistory/photographs.php (http://www.tulsalibrary.org/tulsahistory/photographs.php)

Thanks all.  I have looked at Bates map but still wasnt absolutely sure as to if the rail would have gone by the school.  And yes, I have searched the Beryl Ford Collection by street and several other ways as well.  There just isn't much showing that area. Not many trolley/streetcar pictures either though they must have been a common sight, apperently people didn't think worth taking pictures of lol.

The Library of Congress has some too:

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?q=tulsa+oklahoma&sp=2&sg=true (http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?q=tulsa+oklahoma&sp=2&sg=true)

You might try contacting the Tulsa Historical Society.

They should be able to help you with dating the pics and exact placements of where the tracks ran.

"When Oklahoma Took the Trolley" has several pictures from the Beryl Ford collection of downtown with trolleys.  The book only listed the TSR route in words as going east on 5th as far as Madison.  The map shows a bit farther but there is not enough detail to be sure of exactly where the trolley(s) went.

  Ok, the tracks did indeed go down 5th street.  And longfellow is on 5th....
 However, Longfellow expanded over the years.  In one old map of 1918 it shows the school only on the 6th street side and some on Peoria. There was a playground or field behind it along 5th.  In a later aerial, Longfellow took up most of the block there with buildings on both 5th and 6th.

The Tulsa Street Railway was in that area in the late 20s and perhaps early 30s.

My question now is... "Did Longfellow have school buildings, or a field, along 5th street during the time the streetcar went by?"
Here is an image where you can see that Longfellow by this time had added buildings along 5th, but there is no sign of a track.   
(http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/6556/6thpeoriagetimageca3ve1.jpg)

I have made 2 renderings to present just in case. One that would work if I have to use the 6th street side and thus a car.  One that can use the 5th street side and the streetcar if the school was expanded to that side when the streetcar was running.

Will change the mans clothing to be either a conductor or father, and wife will not have apron, etc. just needed figures for composition purposes. (titled "first day of school")
 (http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/523/borderdeco3cweb2.jpg)

(http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/2141/borderdeco3dweb2.jpg)


As for the wading pool.  Have determined that there was a wading pool at the park during the 50s, however it was of brick and more modern style.  The orientation was likely the same.  So with a little "artistic liscence" fudged the skyline over just a bit.   Someone told me their best guess would have the structure be pre war, but if the stamp was 60s.  May double check on what the stamp was since I do not have the actual postcard but was only told what it was.  Otherwise I will not know what clothing style to put on the figures.  Remember just a rough rendering to help get an idea across...  "A Walk in Central Park"

 (http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/1562/borderdeco3bweb2.jpg)

Thanks will take a gander.