TULSA, Okla. - New York, Miami Beach and Los Angeles usually are the first cities that to come to mind when one thinks of art deco architecture. But Tulsa? It may come as a surprise, but Tulsa ranks among the top eight concentrations of art deco buildings nationally. It all has to do with oil.

Throughout the city, you'll find an abundance of art deco masterpieces - churches, schools, gas stations, dry cleaners and residences designed by such masters as Bruce Goff, Francis Barry Byrne and Frank Lloyd Wright.

In the 1920s through the 1940s, when black gold was gushing, Tulsa's oil barons competed with one another to build the grandest monuments to their newfound wealth. Even during the Depression, they had so much money they didn't know what to do with it, so they built palatial homes and stunning skyscrapers.

No expense was spared, and only the finest materials were used by imported European artisans to work on these deco beauties. Italian marble, decorative brass grillwork, fresco-painted ceilings, elaborate mosaics, ornate plasterwork, vaulted ceilings, terra-cotta plaques, exotic chandeliers, gold leaf and etched glass are some of the luxurious details found in these opulent shrines to oil.

"Tulsa's art deco exemplifies a cutting-edge architectural style that came onto the scene when Tulsa came into its mineral inheritance as the Oil Capital of the World," said Lee Anne Zeigler, former CEO of Tulsa Foundation for Architecture.

More Information If you go Architecture & Art Deco Tour info: Monthly art deco walking tours are offered by the Tulsa Historical Society on the last Friday of each month at 10 a.m. Reservations are required. Cost is $5 per person. Private tours and guides available. Free walking art deco tour pamphlets can be found at visittulsa.com. Walking tour guides also are available from the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture for $4.95 and the Tulsa Historical Society for $3; visittulsa.com/things- to-do/art-deco. Boston Avenue United Methodist Church: Guided tours are given Sundays after the 11 a.m. worship service, beginning in the church library on the second floor. Free; bostonavenue.org. 918-583-5181.

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Tulsa's art deco has a style of its own - all about money and opulence. It was meant to impress. Unlike Miami Beach's (South Beach's) dainty whimsical tropical art deco, Tulsa's art deco meant business and was built to last; it was massive and masculine with nothing frilly or frivolous about it.

Unlike other cities with art deco buildings, Tulsa is blessed with an unusual encyclopedic array of art deco styles, including Zigzag, Streamline and PWA. The Fairgrounds Pavilion (also called the Expo Square Pavilion) with its exuberant and colorful three-dimensional terra-cotta friezes is one of the finest examples of "storytelling" architectural ornamentation.

At least 20 impressive art deco buildings are concentrated throughout downtown with a spillover of smaller structures scattered in commercial and residential neighborhoods.

Tulsa's downtown skyline depicts and documents the oil boom - a legacy of enormous wealth that some say was as big as the wildcatter's gigantic egos. Just like Donald Trump, they named state-of-the-art skyscrapers after themselves.

"It was a way of them showing off their new wealth," explained Marty Newman, real estate developer. "Oil was gushing, and money was flowing in Tulsa where only the very best, the newest and the most expensive would do for these newly rich oil tycoons."

Tulsa was booming and skyscrapers went up overnight, often named after the big oil men such as Waite Phillips and William G. Skelly. Excess was their mantra, and one-upmanship was the norm.

"Even during the Depression, (the oil barons) had so much money they didn't know what to do with it and built lavish homes and buildings; money was absolutely no object," said Ed Sharrer, executive director of Kendall Whittier Main Street, who likens the Tulsa of the 1920s to modern-day Dubai, where opulence, extravagance and excess reign. "After all, these newly rich oil tycoons wanted to show their New York bankers that they were socially and economically on par with them."

According to Sharrer, the five "must-see" deco beauties are the Philcade Building with its opulent gold leaf lobby and decorative animal-themed exterior ornamentation; the Warehouse Market with a spectacular multicolored terra-cotta entrance; the ONG building, Tulsa's oldest remaining art deco skyscraper; the Fire Alarm building, a classic example of highly stylized PWA architecture with a remarkable carved frieze of fire-breathing dragons and firemen; and the Boston Avenue United Methodist Church, Tulsa's only National Historic Landmark.

Most architectural aficionados agree that the Boston Avenue church is Tulsa's art deco crown jewel. With its strong exaggerated vertical lines ascending toward heaven, a 255-foot tower, angular faceted exterior, 62 praying hands and abundant symbolism carved into Bedford limestone, the church is considered an art deco masterpiece worldwide. Exquisite stained glass panels, a spectacular ceiling medallion and a circular sanctuary accented in soothing shades of lavender, violet and mauve create a peaceful meditative setting. Free tours are given by volunteer docents and can be arranged with reservations.

Tulsans are proud and protective of their art deco treasures. With nearly 50 percent of Tulsa's art deco gone, demolished and converted into parking lots during the sloppy and shortsighted '60s and '70s urban renewal movement, Tulsans such as Marty Newman and the late Rex Ball, and the Tulsa Preservation Commission and Tulsa Foundation for Architecture are recognized as being responsible for aggressively protecting and preserving Tulsa's art deco legacy for future generations.