Tulsa Historical Society

What Tulsa Historical Society does

Tulsa Historical Society, now operating publicly as the Museum of Tulsa History, is a Tulsa, Oklahoma-based nonprofit founded in 1963. It is housed in the historic 11,000-square-foot 1919 Sam Travis Mansion at 2445 S Peoria Avenue, which the organization purchased in December 1997 with funds from the Tulsa Tribune Foundation and renovated in 2007. The museum maintains nearly 400,000 collection items — photographs, books, maps, documents, textiles, architectural elements, and personal artifacts — and runs five rotating galleries plus a permanent Tulsa Race Massacre online exhibit. Supporting assets include the Vintage Gardens and the Five Moons bronze sculptures honoring Oklahoma's Native American ballerinas.

The organization's core products are rotating museum exhibits (e.g., 'Behind the Veil: Tulsa in the Twenties' through March 2027 and 'Cabinet of Curiosities' through July 2027), the PastPerfect Online collections database exposing over 75,000 digitized items, an annual Chautauqua scholar festival, the Tulsa Hall of Fame induction program (founded 1986, now in its 39th year), venue rental of museum rooms starting at $200 per hour, and a five-tier membership program ($40-$1,000) that includes NARM reciprocal privileges at 1,400+ museums. The collections database is built on PastPerfect, with the 24,000-image Beryl Ford Collection co-hosted via Tulsa City-County Library.

Revenue is generated through membership dues, general admission (free for children, students, and teachers), venue rental, photograph reproduction and usage fees, and — most importantly — private donations from foundations, corporations, and individuals. Major donors include Williams, ONEOK, George Kaiser Family Foundation, Anne & Henry Zarrow Foundation, The William K. Warren Foundation, Hardesty Family Foundation, Reed Jules Oppenheimer Foundation, James D. & Cathlyn Moore Foundation, and Austin Family Foundation, with named gifts from Charles & Peggy Stephenson and Billie & Howard Barnett. Customer segments are horizontally diversified across the general public, researchers and historians, media/publication professionals, and corporate event clients.

Name

Tulsa Historical Society

Legal name

Tulsa Historical Society

Website

https://tulsahistory.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1963

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tulsa Historical Society, operating as Museum of Tulsa History, is a Tulsa-based nonprofit history museum founded in 1963 and housed in the 1919 Travis Mansion. It preserves nearly 400,000 archival items, operates rotating exhibits, and serves the public through educational programs, memberships, and venue rentals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

History Museum & Cultural Heritage Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (712110), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

History Museums (THAJADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)

Keywords

• History museum operations
• Archival collections management
• Community educational programs
• Membership heritage services
• Historic venue rentals

Headquarters

HQ city

Tulsa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership program with multiple tiers ($40-$1,000) providing free admission, gift shop discounts, and reciprocal museum privileges (NARM).
2. Venue Rental: The museum generates revenue by renting spaces (Travis Room, Sunroom, AV Room, Library) for meetings, corporate events, rehearsal dinners, and parties. Rates begin at $200/hour for meeting room space.
3. General Admission: The museum charges admission for entry to exhibits. Children, students, and teachers receive free admission.
4. Donations and Special Gifts: The museum is entirely supported by private donations from foundations, corporations, and individuals. Major donors at $10,000+ level are recognized on the donor wall.
5. Photograph Reproduction Services: The museum supplies high-resolution digital image files upon approved request. Digital fees and usage fees may apply for ordering reproductions from the collection.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Tulsa Historical Society (operating as Museum of Tulsa History) is a nonprofit history museum housed in the historic 1919 Sam Travis Mansion in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It presents rotating exhibits on Tulsa's history, maintains a collection of nearly 400,000 photographs, documents, and artifacts (over 75,000 available online), and delivers educational programs including the annual Chautauqua scholar series, Tulsa Hall of Fame inductions, and community events.

Product overview

The Museum of Tulsa History (formerly Tulsa Historical Society) offers a comprehensive portfolio of history-focused products and services centered around preserving and presenting Tulsa's heritage. The core offering includes rotating museum exhibits (Behind the Veil: Tulsa in the Twenties, Cabinet of Curiosities) and a permanent Tulsa Race Massacre online exhibit, all housed in the historic 1919 Travis Mansion. Supporting offerings include the Vintage Gardens & Five Moons outdoor space, venue rental services, a tiered membership program, collections database access with over 75,000 photographs, research services, the annual Tulsa Hall of Fame induction program, and Chautauqua educational events. The museum serves as the primary resource for Tulsa's general history, funded entirely by memberships and private donations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Tulsa Hall of Fame: A program honoring visionaries who have worked to make Tulsa a better community. Founded in 1986, now in its 39th year.

Products and services

• Museum Exhibits

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 400,000 collection items preserved for public access
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Tulsa City-County LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Partnership with Tulsa City-County Library to digitize, preserve, and house the Beryl Ford Collection. The Rotary Club of Tulsa purchased the collection in 2004, and the digitization project was completed through collaboration with the library before the collection moved to its permanent home at the museum in 2007.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Oklahoma History Center: Operated by the Oklahoma Historical Society, the state's flagship history institution with permanent and rotating exhibits, archival collections, and educational programs across Oklahoma history — directly comparable in mission and scale to Museum of Tulsa History but statewide rather than city-focused.
• Woolaroc Museum & Wildlife Preserve: Bartlesville, Oklahoma museum and wildlife preserve founded by Frank Phillips with collections of Western art and Native American artifacts; comparable regional Oklahoma history/cultural attraction dependent on oil-industry philanthropy.
• National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum: Oklahoma City-based museum focusing on Western, Native American, and Oklahoma heritage; comparable as a regional cultural-heritage attraction drawing from the same statewide donor and visitor base.
• Will Rogers Memorial Museum: Claremore, Oklahoma museum operated as a state memorial site with exhibits, collections, and educational programming on Oklahoma heritage; comparable in scale, funding model, and Oklahoma heritage focus.
• Cherokee Heritage Center: Park Hill, Oklahoma cultural and historical institution with archives, exhibits, and educational programming for Cherokee Nation history — comparable as a regional heritage nonprofit with similar archive, exhibit, and grant-funded model.

Direct peers

• Philbrook Museum of Art: Tulsa's other major museum, housed in a historic mansion (Villa Philbrook) with gardens, exhibitions, membership tiers, and venue rental — competes for the same tourist visits, donor dollars, and event bookings in Tulsa.
• Gilcrease Museum: Also a Tulsa-based museum interpreting the city's history, Native American art, and Western heritage; the closest direct peer as it shares the same city, donor pool, and tourism audience as Museum of Tulsa History.

Broad incumbents

• Smithsonian National Museum of American History: The nation's flagship history museum with extensive archival and photographic collections; provides a broad benchmark for museum operating models, archival digitization standards, and exhibit programming even though it operates at much larger scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TulsaHistory
• Instagraminstagram.com/tulsahistorymuseum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tulsa-historical-society

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tulsa Historical Society