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Southwestern Bell Main Dial Building
 424 South Detroit Avenue
Tulsa, OK 74120
Built in 1924
Information Provided by Tulsa Preservation Commission
The first two floors of this well-maintained
building were built in 1924 when the Gothic Style was popular. They were erected to house the new telephone dial equipment which was first used in Tulsa in November of
1924. Six years later, in 1930, when Zigzag Art Deco had supplanted the Gothic style, a four story addition was made. The addition held the division offices and the toll terminal
equipment for the Oklahoma City-Tulsa underground cable.
The facade of the first floor of this light brown brick building is broken by a series of large, arched windows. These windows are framed in terra cotta, matching the color of the rather
narrow terra cotta quoins and foundation of the building. The second floor windows are rectangular and separated by brick panels decorated with ornate terra cotta torches. A vertical
pair of terra cotta shields are located above the torches. Above the second floor the building
facade is broken into a series of stepped-back panels terminating in pinnacles above the roof line. The windows appear to be recessed panels. The spandrel area, constructed of buff-colored
terra cotta tile with art deco designs, has strong vertical lines. The pinnacles are also faced with terra cotta tile, as is all of the building's ornamentation. Northwestern Terra Cotta Tile
Company of Chicago, the leading manufacturer of these tiles, was the supplier. This building was listed in the National Register on June 22, 1984, under National Register Criteria A and C,
and its NRIS number is 84003445.
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