Archive · 2 Oct 2026
Thomas Gilcrease’s Oil Fortune Built Tulsa’s Western Art Museum
Thomas Gilcrease was a Creek man who received 160 acres of land when he was nine years old.
At first, the land did not seem very special.
Later, oil was found underneath it during Oklahoma’s oil boom.
The oil made Gilcrease very wealthy.
He used his money to collect art, historical papers, maps, and Indigenous artefacts.
He especially cared about the history and culture of the American West and Indigenous peoples.
He opened a museum in Tulsa in 1949.
Tulsa residents later approved a bond to help protect his collection from financial problems.
The museum is expected to reopen in a new building in March 2027.
Thomas Gilcrease received a 160-acre allotment south of Tulsa at age nine.
Oil discovered on the property eventually produced 32 active wells by the time he was 27.
Gilcrease founded the Gilcrease Oil Company in 1922 and expanded across Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas.
He collected Western and Indigenous art, historical documents, maps, manuscripts, and artefacts.
Gilcrease is scheduled to reopen in March 2027 in a 95,673-square-foot facility holding more than 300,000 works and cultural materials.
- Who
- Thomas Gilcrease, a Creek citizen and oil entrepreneur.
- What
- His oil fortune funded a major collection and institution devoted to American Western and Indigenous art and history.
- When
- Gilcrease was born in 1890, opened a Tulsa gallery in 1949, and is scheduled to reopen in March 2027.
- Where
- The original allotment was south of Tulsa; the current facility is in the Osage Hills on a 460-acre campus.
- Why
- Gilcrease collected and preserved art, historical materials, and cultural objects connected to the American West and Indigenous peoples.
- Birth
- Thomas Gilcrease was born in 1890.
- Land allotment
- He received 160 acres south of Tulsa at age nine.
- Oil production
- The land had 32 active producing wells by the time he was 27.
- Oil company
- Gilcrease founded the Gilcrease Oil Company in 1922.
- Tulsa gallery
- He opened a public gallery on his Tulsa estate in 1949.
- Community support
- Tulsa residents approved a municipal bond in 1954 to clear debts and preserve the collection.
- Planned reopening
- The museum is expected to reopen in March 2027 in a 95,673-square-foot building.
- Collection size
- The collection includes more than 300,000 works and cultural materials spanning 12,000 years of the Americas.