If you’ve ever driven into Tulsa, Oklahoma, from any direction, you’ve seen it. It’s unavoidable. The BOK Tower, often still called the Bank of Oklahoma Building by locals who remember its 1970s debut, doesn’t just sit in the skyline—it basically is the skyline.
Standing at 667 feet, it’s a giant. But there is something weird about it. If you look at it long enough, you realize it looks hauntingly familiar. It should. It’s essentially a half-scale clone of the former World Trade Center towers in New York City.
The Twin Towers Connection
Minoru Yamasaki was the architect. He’s the same guy who designed the original World Trade Center, and he was working on the Tulsa project right around the same time. People often think the Bank of Oklahoma Building is just a generic skyscraper, but it’s actually a "Twin Towers Lite."
It uses the same vertical steel birdcage structure. It has the same narrow windows. Even the lobby feels like a ghost of the Manhattan giants. Honestly, it’s a bit surreal to stand at the base of it today. You’re looking at a piece of architectural history that survived while its bigger siblings did not.
Yamaski didn't just copy-paste his homework, though. He adapted the design for the Great Plains. While the New York towers were massive blocks, the Bank of Oklahoma Building feels sleeker because of its proportions. It’s the tallest building in Oklahoma—or it was until the Devon Tower in Oklahoma City snatched the title in 2012.
That loss of the "tallest" title still stings some Tulsans. You'll hear people argue that the BOK Tower has more "soul" or "historical weight." Whether that’s true or just local pride is up for debate.
Built on Oil and Ambition
Tulsa in the 1970s was a different beast. It was the "Oil Capital of the World." Money was flowing like, well, crude. The Williams Companies, led by John Williams, wanted a headquarters that screamed "we have arrived."
They got it.
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The construction was a massive undertaking. Completed in 1976, it cost about $22 million at the time. Adjust that for inflation and you’re looking at over $115 million today. That might actually sound cheap for a skyscraper in 2026, but back then, it was a staggering investment for a city of Tulsa's size.
One thing people get wrong is thinking the building is purely office space for bankers. It’s actually a massive complex. One Williams Center, which is the official name of the development, includes the tower, a performing arts center, and what used to be a bustling subterranean mall.
The mall is a bit of a time capsule now. It’s not the shopping mecca it was in the 80s, but it’s a fascinating look at how urban planners thought we’d all be living and working underground to avoid the Oklahoma heat.
A Modern Icon in an Art Deco Town
Tulsa is world-famous for Art Deco. You’ve got the Philtower, the Mayo Hotel, and the Boston Avenue Methodist Church. These are beautiful, ornate, "Great Gatsby" style buildings.
Then you have the Bank of Oklahoma Building.
It’s Brutalist-adjacent. It’s Modernist. It’s a sheer wall of steel and glass. Some people hated it when it went up. They thought it was too cold. Too corporate. But over the last fifty years, it has become the anchor. It provides the scale that makes the older, shorter Art Deco buildings look like jewels nestled at its feet.
Without the BOK Tower, Tulsa’s skyline would look like a mid-sized town. With it, it looks like a metropolis.
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Inside the Tower: What’s Actually There?
Most people only see the lobby or maybe the lower floors if they’re doing business with BOK Financial. But the upper floors? That’s where the views are. On a clear day, you can see forever. You can see the bend in the Arkansas River, the sprawl of the suburbs, and the Osage Hills fading into the distance.
The building is remarkably efficient. Yamasaki’s design used a "tube" system, meaning the exterior walls carry the load. This leaves the interior almost entirely open. No bulky columns blocking your cubicle. It was revolutionary for 1976.
It’s also surprisingly quiet. Skyscrapers are supposed to sway in the wind—and this one does—but the engineering is so solid you rarely feel the "seasick" motion that hits people in older tall buildings.
The Logistics of Maintenance
Keeping a 52-story steel giant clean isn't easy. The window washing rigs on the Bank of Oklahoma Building are a constant sight. Because the windows are so narrow and recessed, it takes forever to get through a full cleaning cycle.
Then there's the lighting.
For decades, the tower has been a beacon. During the holidays, they light it up. During the 2020s, as energy efficiency became the buzzword, the building underwent significant retrofitting. LED lighting replaced the older, power-hungry systems. It’s greener now, but it still maintains that classic nighttime glow that pilots use as a waypoint when flying into TUL.
Why It Still Matters
In an era of remote work and shrinking office footprints, the Bank of Oklahoma Building is facing the same challenges as every other skyscraper in America. Is it still necessary?
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The answer seems to be yes, but for different reasons. It’s no longer just a place to process checks or trade energy futures. It’s a landmark. It’s a brand. BOK Financial is one of the largest regional banks in the country, and this tower is their physical manifestation of stability.
If you're visiting Tulsa, you can't really "tour" the whole thing—it’s a private office building, after all—but you can hang out in the plaza. The plaza is actually a great spot for photography. If you angle your camera right, you can get the reflection of the Mid-Continent Tower in the BOK’s glass. It’s a classic "old meets new" shot.
Common Misconceptions
- Is it the tallest in the world? No. Not even close. It’s not even the tallest in Oklahoma anymore.
- Is it open to the public? Only the lobby and certain commercial areas. You can't just wander up to the 50th floor to take a selfie unless you work there.
- Is it dangerous in a tornado? Skyscrapers are actually some of the safest places to be during a storm because of their deep foundations and steel skeletons. Just stay away from the glass.
What You Should Do Next
If you're in downtown Tulsa and want to experience the Bank of Oklahoma Building properly, don't just stare at it from the sidewalk.
First, walk through the lobby. It’s massive and gives you a real sense of the "New York" scale Yamasaki was going for. Look at the marble. It’s pristine.
Second, check out the nearby Guthrie Green. It’s a park just a few blocks away in the Brady Arts District (now often called the Tulsa Arts District). From there, you get the best "hero shot" of the tower looming over the neighborhood.
Third, visit the Tulsa Historical Society. They have incredible photos of the tower under construction. Seeing the steel skeleton before the skin went on really helps you appreciate the engineering.
Lastly, if you’re a fan of architecture, compare it to the University of Tulsa’s buildings or the BOK Center arena nearby. The arena was designed by Frank Gehry, and the contrast between Yamasaki’s straight lines and Gehry’s wild curves is basically a crash course in 20th and 21st-century design.
The Bank of Oklahoma Building isn't just a hunk of steel. It’s the heartbeat of Tulsa’s urban identity. It reminds the city of where it came from—the era of oil booms and boundless ambition—and stands as a sentinel for whatever comes next.