Route 66 Historical Village
The Route 66 Historical Village at 3770 Southwest Boulevard in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is an open-air museum along historic U.S. Route 66 (US 66, Route 66).[1] The village includes a 194-foot-tall (59 m) oil derrick at the historic site of the first oil strike in Tulsa on June 25, 1901, which helped make Tulsa the "Oil Capital of the World".[1] In a nod to Route 66, it has the Route 66 Village Station, a tourism information center modeled after a 1920s-1930s gas station, which includes a giant Route 66 map for travelers.[1]
The days of rail transportation are represented by Frisco 4500, an oil-fired 4-8-4 Baldwin locomotive from November 1942 previously owned by the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway.[1][2][3] It was used to pull the line's crack Meteor passenger train, which connected Tulsa with other cities.[2][4] The village's train consist is rounded out with a passenger car, oil tank car, and caboose.[3]
Officials cut the ribbon on the village's new "Red Fork Depot" on October 22, 2021.[3][5] This is a $3 million addition which serves as both a museum and a rentable events center at the site.[5]
References
- "Route 66 Historical Village". TravelOK.com. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- "St Louis-San Francisco 4-8-4 'Northern' Locomotives in the USA". SteamLocomotive.com. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- "The Train and Depot". Route 66 Historical Village. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- Foresman, Bob (August 28, 1992). "Bright memories of Tulsa's 'Meteor' train". Tulsa World. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- Stanley, Tim (October 23, 2021). "Watch Now: Route 66 Historical Village's new train depot opens as museum, events center". Tulsa World. Retrieved October 23, 2021.