Broadway Tower

The Broadway Tower is both historically and architecturally significant because: (1) built during the period of 1928 to 1931 it is one of the most important remaining commercial buildings that housed a variety of service-oriented functions for Enid, the largest city and regional center for northwest Oklahoma, (2) the Broadway Tower provides the best example of Art Deco architecture as applied to tall commercial buildings still intact in Enid and is the only one remaining which has not been significantly altered. (3) the Broadway Tower served as the Garfield County Courthouse from 1932 to 1936 as the result of a fire that totally destroyed the Courthouse. Many actions significant to all of northwest Oklahoma were conducted in the Office Building during this period.

Established when the Cherokee Outlet was opened for settlement in 1893, an estimated 15,000 people arrived at the Enid townsite within six hours after the Land Run began. Enid had been platted prior to the Run of 1893 and had been officially designated as a site for the United States Government Land Office and County Seat of O County in Oklahoma Territory. Space was set aside for the construction of a County Courthouse and the business district quickly developed around that square piece of land.

Enid's emergence as a regional center for northwest Oklahoma did not occur until the early decades of the twentieth Century because of several factors: (1) it eventually became the principal agricultural center for the rich wheat-growing region and cattle industry of northwest Oklahoma, (2) it became the primary railroad mode for the northwestern quadrant of the state, and (3) petroleum was discovered in the nearby Garber Field in 1916. Enid was and still is one of the largest storing, processing, and marketing points for wheat not only for Oklahoma but for the entire nation. Only Minneapolis and Kansas City exceed Enid in terms of storage capacity. This "elevator city" has facilities for storing millions of bushels of wheat. Three major railroads, Rock Island, Frisco, and Santa Fe, had at one time lines running in ten different directions out of Enid. Finally, when petroleum was discovered in 1916 near Enid, the city became a production, refining, and marketing center for oil and gas as exemplified by the fact that Champlin Petroleum Company, one of Oklahoma's largest, made Enid its headquarters.

All of these petroleum, agricultural, and transportation facilities and activities brought increased growth to Enid. From 1910 to the present the city has experienced a population increase each decade with the greatest growth occurring in the 1920s following the discovery of petroleum in the area. As a result of the petroleum boom, the Enid City Council determined there was a shortage of office space and lodging facilities for visiting agricultural businessmen and petroleum-related companies.

Three highrise commercial buildings, one being the Broadway Tower, were constructed during the period when Enid was experiencing tremendous growth and they provided a partial solution to the increased need for office space not only for petroleum-oriented companies, but also offices for professionals such as attorneys, physicians, and dentists. Furthermore, the City's development as a major urban center and regional mode for northwest Oklahoma stimulated demand for lodging facilities to house visiting businessmen in petroleum, agriculture, and personnel involved in the railroad companies.

Constructed in 1931 by McMillen & Shelton Construction Company from a design by George E.V. Blumenauer of Enid and Layton, Hicks, and Forsythe of Oklahoma City. The Broadway Tower was the last in the series of three highrise commercial buildings designed to solve Enid's growing need for office space. The building was constructed for the Broadway Development Company which included: A. Herzberg, A.E. Stephenson, M.J. Newman, A.J. Mahoney, A. Meier, C.B. Longcor, C.E. Loomis, Walter L. Stephenson, M. Godschalk, Harry O. Glasser, and W.L. Stephenson. The Broadway Tower was purchased in 1943 by Mr. Garrison Munger, Sr., and the Munger family continued to own and operate the facility until 1981. The Broadway Tower is the only one of the three highrises retaining integrity.

At fourteen stories, this is the tallest of only three highrise buildings in Enid. It illustrates the formula for the era's tall commercial building: a base, a shaft housing identical floors of offices, and an elaborate crown of exquisite decoration. Typical of the Art Deco vocabulary, the building features set-back in walls as a design element, stepped facades and upper stories, strips of windows with decorated spandrels, straight-headed unadorned windows, iron grille- work, and extensive terra cotta ornamentation of sunrise and floriated patterns, especially at the base and upper story levels.

The Art Deco building features stylized openings of zig-zag decorative bands, cast iron finial-like ornamentation, and extensive terra cotta moldings. Crowning elements include terra cotta trim of sunrise pattern, dentil-like ornaments, and zig-zag stepped pilasters. Spandrels at upper levels feature a chevron design and at lower levels are mosaic tiles. The Broadway Tower has served the commercial district of Enid since 1931 and remains an integral part of the commercial infrastructure of the city.

The Broadway Tower is the only highrise structure representing the tremendous growth period for the Enid economy that retains its integrity. Also, it is the best remaining example of Art Deco architecture in the City of Enid.