Houses northwest of downtown

[Nik]

I love driving around north and West Tulsa and seeing some of the original neighborhoods of Tulsa. I came across some old houses, one of which (the biggest) appears to be rundown and possibly uninhabited. What is the story behind this neighborhood? It is on W Fairview St just east of the Tulsa Country Club. Who used to own these houses?

map: http://tinyurl.com/9ccla8





Beyond these houses is a really nice rental community. How long has that been there?

map: http://tinyurl.com/8zgtq7

[Hoss]

quote:Originally posted by Nik

I love driving around north and West Tulsa and seeing some of the original neighborhoods of Tulsa. I came across some old houses, one of which (the biggest) appears to be rundown and possibly uninhabited. What is the story behind this neighborhood? It is on W Fairview St just east of the Tulsa Country Club. Who used to own these houses?

map: http://tinyurl.com/9ccla8





Beyond these houses is a really nice rental community. How long has that been there?

map: http://tinyurl.com/8zgtq7

If you're talking about this:

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=q0tst86zzv23&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=16614797&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

as a rental community, you're a little off.  These are all low-income housing, if I'm not mistaken.

[pfox]

That project is part of the Hope IV program, which was designed to transition some of the worst public housing projects in the country in to mixed income residential.  So, as far as publicly funded housing projects go, it is very nice.

HOPE VI makes use of New Urbanism ideals, meaning that communities must be dense, pedestrian-friendly, and transit-accessible. Housing rarely comes in the form of apartments, instead private houses, duplexes, and especially for these public housing projects, rowhouses are preferred, because these buildings directly interact with the street. Similarly, houses always stand close to the street, with small front yards. It is common to see porches on the buildings, as well as small apartments for single residents built over garages or on the ground floor.

[TheArtist]

Whatever the case, they look nice and seem to be well kept. I have been in the area a number of times and had no idea they were some sort of low income housing. Just thought it was a nice, new, little middle class neighborhood going in there.

The large house actually looks MUCH better than it did the last time I saw it. There were all kinds of small trees, scraggly shrubs and such growing up next to the foundation tearing it up. Looks like they have cleaned it up considerably. Good to see.

[Hometown]

Others here could give you better information but from what I recall hearing, and I apologize in advance for errors, that cluster of old mansions was the Kennedy Compound.  Kennedy was a doctor/oil man.  He owned a great deal of land in Northwest Tulsa and he blocked development on that land helping cause Tulsa's growth to shift to the south.

Apparently there was WWII barrack housing where the new rentals are now.  Those old barracks had been rented out and I hear the new housing there is an improvement.  I agree siting rental housing next to the old mansions was not smart.

When I was living in Ft. Worth, my great aunt told me she had been married to a Tulsa oil man named Kennedy, and that she divorced him.  Funny I didn't ask her one question about it.  I haven't been able to find any reference to Kennedy having an earlier marriage and divorcing but I'm assuming that is what happened.

The largest of those old mansions, the one pictured, was recently put up for auction to pay back taxes.  I don't know what the outcome was.

[Nik]

One of the houses in the neighborhood, across the street from the one pictured, is a B&B.

http://www.kennedymansion.com/index.html

Here's an article about it from Urban Tulsa: http://www.tulsapeople-digital.com/tulsapeople/200812/?pg=26&pm=2&u1=friend

Apparently, Aerosmith used it as a recording studio for awhile.

[sauerkraut]

WoW that is some house. I like alot of the homes located in west Tulsa, I think west Tulsa has alot of old time charm. I'd like to see that big house.[]

[cks511]

quote:Originally posted by Hometown



Apparently there was WWII barrack housing where the new rentals are now.  Those old barracks had been rented out and I hear the new housing there is an improvement.

I believe the barracks you are referring to were the Osage Apartments.  My parents moved into one right after the Korean war.  Then I showed up and we had to move.  No kids allowed. There was also The Immaculate Conception Parish located in the middle of those barrack-like apartments.  My first teaching job was with the school in the parish.  That was 1977 and the apts were crime ridden.  The school and the church were torn down to make way for those rentals.  The rentals are a huge improvement.

But I loved the mansions in that area lot's of stories about them some rumor some fact.  Most are gone now.

[carltonplace]

quote:Originally posted by sauerkraut

WoW that is some house. I like alot of the homes located in west Tulsa, I think west Tulsa has alot of old time charm. I'd like to see that big house.[]

This is not west Tulsa, it's just North of Downtown by Tulsa Country Club and Owen Park.

[Double A]

quote:Originally posted by carltonplace

quote:Originally posted by sauerkraut

WoW that is some house. I like alot of the homes located in west Tulsa, I think west Tulsa has alot of old time charm. I'd like to see that big house.[]

This is not west Tulsa, it's just North of Downtown by Tulsa Country Club and Owen Park.

At least not in the sense that most people think of west Tulsa i.e. west of the Arkansas river. The southeastern edge of northwest Tulsa is how I would describe it.

[Hoss]

quote:Originally posted by cks511

quote:Originally posted by Hometown



Apparently there was WWII barrack housing where the new rentals are now.  Those old barracks had been rented out and I hear the new housing there is an improvement.

I believe the barracks you are referring to were the Osage Apartments.  My parents moved into one right after the Korean war.  Then I showed up and we had to move.  No kids allowed. There was also The Immaculate Conception Parish located in the middle of those barrack-like apartments.  My first teaching job was with the school in the parish.  That was 1977 and the apts were crime ridden.  The school and the church were torn down to make way for those rentals.  The rentals are a huge improvement.

But I loved the mansions in that area lot's of stories about them some rumor some fact.  Most are gone now.

I miss the mansion out on Memorial across from Oertle's that had Halloween Nights.  I always thought for the longest time that parcel of land would never have anything on it other than that old, run down mansion.

[waterboy]

HT, I was born on Newton street, behind Lombard Elementary, near those apartments. My understanding was that they were post WWII housing built to accomodate the returning GI's. They may in fact have been constructed as temporary war housing. I doubt they were barracks because of the concrete block style of construction. Barracks were either quanset style huts or simple structures of wood.

It was a decent neighborhood in the early 50's. Had its own shopping, barbershop, convenience store, gas station, school etc, but declined the next few decades.

One of those mansions was an operating bordello during the 70's-80's. It had a nice view of the country club. The operation was shut down and the property sold. I toured it...when it was for sale.[]

[DowntownNow]

I'd heard that a local attorney recently purchased one of the mansions in that area and is in the process of extensive renovations starting on the interior.  They were going so far as to try and track down all the original fixtures and what not that seem to have been sold at various times and acquire them.  Might be this Kennedy Mansion.

[AVERAGE JOE]

The house pictured is the Springer Mansion.

[pfox]

AJ is correct, btw.

Springer Mansion.