Tulsa's Philcade Building Past & Present

Tulsa is home to some truly great, world class Art Deco Architecture including the Philcade Building which was built in 1931 and designed by architect Leon Senter.  

The original design was for a six story building with the lower two floors being a shopping arcade and the top four floors as office space.  The building was created to compliment the Philtower across the street, another Waite Phillips project.  The building takes it's name from Waite Phillips' last name and word "arcade" which was a term used for shopping malls in the 1930's, thus Philcade!

The Philcade has attracted national attention for its ornate interior and opulent Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles. It has grand entrances on both 5th Street and Boston Avenue featuring spectacular Zig-Zag Art Deco architecture.

As the construction was started, it was decided to enlarge the footings to allow for nine floors and then in 1930, it was decided to increase the height to 13 floors.  Note the small arched tunnel on the lower right of the front elevation.  This was put in as an escape tunnel for the Phillips family and leads to the tunnel system under the city of Tulsa.  The tunnel is a popular attraction today and is on a tour of the Art Deco district by the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture.

Here is the architectural rendering showing all 13 floors.

Here is a photo taken after the building was complete in 1931.

While to top floors are mostly brick with simple lines, the lower levels are covered in glazed terra cotta tile with intricate Art Deco patterns.

Some of the styling of the terra cotta is reminiscent of Egyptian styling with the use of flora and fauna as well as papyrus reeds.

Here is a view of the patio on the penthouse level.

Here are some of the Zig Zag details above one of the lobby entrances.  Note the WP above the doors.  These are the initials of Waite Phillips who commissioned the building.

Here is a photograph taken after the lobby and shops were complete.  Waite Phillips saw it and didn't like the ceilings.  He ordered them to be covered in a gold leaf design which still exists today as do the terrazzo floors and Genevieve marble walls which was selected because Mrs. Phillips first name was Genevieve.

The original window display cases are still in use today by the Tulsa Art Deco Museum.  They were originally storefronts for a photography studio, a cigar store, a barber, a Western Union Office, a drug store, and train ticket office to name a few.

Here is a view of the gold leaf ceilings in the lobby

Here is a postcard I found online.

Waite and Genevieve Phillips had decided to give their beautiful home the Villa Philbrook to the city of Tulsa to be used as a museum.  To see my post on the villa, click HERE . 
In 1939 the Phillips' completed a penthouse on a newly created 14th floor.  Many of the furnishings and fixtures were taken from the Villa Philbrook to the new penthouse. 

Once you stepped on the elevator, you entered through iron gates, then up the entry stairs into the 5,000 S.F. Penthouse.  I had the pleasure of attending a dinner party here a few years back after completing a project for Amoco which occupied most of the office space in the building until recently.

This was the living room with furniture from Villa Philbrook.

This was the library - the fireplace in this room came from Villa Philbrook.

This was Genevieve Phillips Bedroom.  The large mirrored wall was very Art Deco Moderne but she preferred old style French Furniture also from Villa Philbrook.

This is one of the guest bedrooms - note the photographer's reflection in the mirror and his 1930's style camera.

The penthouse had two terraces.  Note the Art Deco glass block on the solarium and the Philtower in the background across the street.

To see a post on the villa, click HERE 

The photos for this post are from a variety of sources including photos on display in the lobby, Pinterest and the internet.