Look for the tall, bright-white tower with a dark copper-green roofline and little Gothic-style details near the top-it’s the Mid-Continent Tower, and it stands out against the sky like Tulsa decided to wear a dress shirt to work.
This is the Mid-Continent Tower at 401 South Boston Avenue: 36 stories, about 513 feet tall, and one of the easiest buildings downtown to recognize thanks to that clean white terra cotta skin and the unmistakable copper crown. But here’s the twist: this “one” tower is really two eras pretending to be one body.
Down at the base is the original 1918 Cosden Building-16 stories tall, built for oilman Joshua Cosden when Tulsa was booming hard and fast. And it sits on a site with even deeper roots: the first Tulsa schoolhouse, started as a mission in 1885 on Creek land. So, yes, you’re standing near a place that’s been educating people in one way or another for well over a century-first kids, later oil executives.
Kansas City architect Henry F. Hoit designed the original, in a modern take on Gothic style-more “cathedral vibes” than Art Deco glitz. Then in 1984, Tulsa pulled off a very careful architectural magic trick: a new 20-story section was added and cantilevered so it looks like it’s resting on the older building, even though the real support is tucked to the east. Built 66 years apart, but dressed to match so well you’d swear it was always whole.
When you’re set, 320 South Boston Building is a 1-minute walk heading northwest, and it will be on your left.
