The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

What do you think are the greatest missing links in Tulsa's history today, folks?

No, Ma-Hu 'n' the Blair Mansion, I'm afraid, will not be counted.

1913 Sinclair Mansion on Black Gold Row
1914 Cosden Mansion on Black Gold Row

1937 Shakley home at 7219 South Evanston (anyone know the designer of that one?)
1958 Scherbatskoy home (Robert E Buchner)
19__ Kershner home at either 1930 Oak or 4447 Oak (F V Kershner)

Missing links?  You mean as if they are not here now?

Right, Conan, the idea would be that these are homes that would be special in terms of seeing Tulsa's design history - either 1) as a home among the foremost examples of neoclassical, neo-whatever, craftsman, prairie, art deco, streamline moderne, ranch/midcentury, modernist, or what we have today, or 2) as a splendid example of how we moved from one trend to the next.   Either kind of house is essential for making sense of the stylistic consensus that shaped the rest of town.  Without them - and maybe I am in the minority in moving around through a place making sense of it intentionally - there are links missing.

I suppose the third kind of illustration would be ones that mark outliers, boundaries of trends - directions in which the mainstream didn't move after all.  Okay, take care.

What style was the Shakley home?  There’s a French Chateau knock-off that is for sale for $4.5 mil where that once stood. 

There is an Art Deco'ish home built in 1945 across the street.  Was that the style of the Shakley home?  That was way out in the country back in those days.

I don't see links for any of them.
Finding photos / articles is an exercise left to the user.   >:(

Hey, it's your poll/game, but just wondering why you exclude Ma-Hu...?? 

Here is an old postcard image of the Smith Codsen Residence which was located in the same parcel as the University Club Tower. The Tennis courts still remain, but they are no longer the imported English clay courts.

Colonial Revival or Plantation? No idea. 

(http://tulsariverview.com/images/cosden.gif)

Thanks for that picture and narration, carltonplace!

I guess Ma-Hu (ca. 1937) is the real deal, even though radiocasters later turned it into a sort of punchline or local kitsch thing.  I had only seen burned and "haunted" ruins photographed, but evidently it was very much a place:

http://www.tulsaokhistory.com/photogallery/mahumansion.html (http://www.tulsaokhistory.com/photogallery/mahumansion.html)


I believe the Shakley home was art-deco, yes, and pictures do exist but maybe not online.

Okay, I assumed the Cosden Mansion were just south of University Club Towers.  I had no idea it was the site of Josh’s old house.  There’s a neat Spanish style house to the south of that site I used to think was the Cosden house.  Anyone know who built it?

What about my house, post-bored architect design?  

sorry, guido.  no can do.

Does anyone remember Dr. Richardson's home at 31st & Victor, on the triangular plot where two very beige houses are now?  I would love to see a picture.  My Grammy thought it something special.

If no, do you know whether old assessor's photos are discarded when the property changes forms of building?  I'd be willing to go spelunking if they're kept.

The Beryl Ford archives are now in the possession of the Tulsa City County Library.  I could not find it in his archives, here’s a link as other gems you are looking for may be here:

http://www.tulsalibrary.org/bfc

You are referring to the Dresser Mansion which is now an event space and is still mostly unaltered inside

(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-vG0hDzPnZI8/UjtDbxtx5FI/AAAAAAAAGQY/lmyh64MnobU/w640-h480-no/photo.jpg)

That’s the one Carlton.  Thanks!

Ma-Hu was a magnificent place.  We - the neighborhood kids to south, west and north of there - would trick or treat 'cause they always gave out good stuff.  Rumors told of times before I got to the area when they would give candy plus a silver dollar to every kid willing to walk up that long drive....  Use to play "tag" with the long horn steer....he would always come at you when you came across the fence - looking back, I think it was more curiosity than anything - he didn't really seem 'mean'.  There was a small pond on the far southwest corner that was said to have an alligator in residence....

After the decay started (the owner's died) the place was abandoned and again, rumors told of a son/nephew (depending on version) who let it run down.  Either way, used to walk around in it exploring in late 60's.  Magnificent place - the scale was bigger than any of us had experienced to that time.  There were some HUGE beams running through it to support upper floor.  The roof rafters looked like beams all on their own....   Basement always had water in it when I would prowl around.

Then they started the "spook house" thing...disgusting thing to do to that building.

Several years before the house burned, there was a large barn at the back, close to 77th east avenue.  It caught on fire and it was a very windy day, so the flames were all blowing north, lapping across the roofs of the houses next to it in Johanson Acres (sp?).  That was several hundred feet!!  Still don't know how one or two of them didn't catch fire - the owners were spraying their roof, but the flames were massive!  Scary fire, but all the kids were around watching.


The picture of Memorial was how it was just before we moved to the area - they had JUST paved 2 lanes of asphalt which made it nice.  I think they paved it specifically for Oertle's when they built that store there - great store!  We shopped at 11th street store a lot, then were thrilled when they built that big box right down the street.   31st was still gravel to the east and all the way to Sheridan to the west.  They paved 31st not too long after that.

I found a photo of the Sinclair House 17th and Cheyenne (demolished by Oral Roberts) on the Beryl Ford collection

(http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getthumbnail/collection/p15020coll1/id/13982)

Maybe not great, but I found something that I could not remember what was there. The Western Village Resort at Admiral & Garnett. Think it was torn down in the early to mid 70's. You could actually fly into the resort.

The Bell helicopter in the photos was registered some one in Pennsylvania going by the reg#.

http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/fullbrowser/collection/p15020coll1/id/1238/rv/singleitem/rec/14 (http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/fullbrowser/collection/p15020coll1/id/1238/rv/singleitem/rec/14)

https://www.google.com/maps/@36.1589164,-95.8501408,366m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en (https://www.google.com/maps/@36.1589164,-95.8501408,366m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en)

http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N940B (http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N940B)

Here is an old aerial photo from 1967 of the MA-HU estate before the fire.

(http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p309/kallsop2/MA-HU67_zps4a05e81b.jpg)

You can this part of Tulsa on this PDF photo:

http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p16063coll3/id/34/filename/35.pdf (http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p16063coll3/id/34/filename/35.pdf)

It takes a bit to load.

http://www.batesline.com/archives/2014/03/north-of-downtown-tulsa-1967.html (http://www.batesline.com/archives/2014/03/north-of-downtown-tulsa-1967.html)

The left side near the top is the barn.  I think it was almost the square feet of the house - it was a big barn.

Just to the right of the barn, just on the north edge of the little orchard is the servant's quarters.  Can see what looks like a chimney on the north side of it.  North of the barn is the house that was in danger during that fire - can't see it.  Haven't check google earth yet, but that might even show up on the history.  Just checked - it only goes back to 1995....worthless.

Bill Leighty describes the Cosden and neighboring Markham Mansion as "unquestionably two of Tulsa's most significant architectural treasures."

This other one happens to be on Tulsa Library's Beryl Ford Collection flickr feed from 2012:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tulsalibrary/7461453696/ (https://www.flickr.com/photos/tulsalibrary/7461453696/)

with a greater selection of angles here:  http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/search/collection/p15020coll1/searchterm/markham/order/nosort (http://cdm15020.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/search/collection/p15020coll1/searchterm/markham/order/nosort)

Have a good weekend.