The man behind Route 66’s Totem Pole Park: The history of a 90-foot Oklahoma landmark

Just miles off Route 66 in Rogers County stands one of Oklahoma’s most unusual roadside attractions: a 90-foot concrete totem pole built largely by one man over more than a decade.

Ed Galloway’s Totem Pole Park is home to what is widely described as the world’s largest concrete totem pole, created by Oklahoma folk artist Nathan Edward Galloway during his retirement years.

The park sits near Chelsea and continues to draw visitors traveling Oklahoma’s stretch of Route 66.

A project decades in the making

According to the National Park Service, Nathan Edward Galloway was born in 1880 in Springfield, Missouri. He later worked as a manual arts teacher at Sand Springs Home before retiring in 1937 to property near present-day Chelsea in Rogers County.

After retiring, Galloway began building what would become Totem Pole Park. Using concrete, steel rebar, wood, and red sandstone, he created a series of colorful, highly decorated totems and structures across the property.

Atlas Obscura reports that Galloway began construction in 1938 with the goal of building durable totem poles from sturdy materials, and he surrounded his land with tapered concrete monuments and decorative features.

Between 1937 and 1948, Galloway constructed the park’s centerpiece: a 90-foot-tall totem pole carved with bas-relief designs. Travel Oklahoma describes it as a Route 66 icon and a state landmark.

Eleven years and 90 feet of concrete

Credit: Rogers County Historical Society

The main totem took roughly 11 years to complete, according to Atlas Obscura. The structure is made of red sandstone framed with steel and wood, then covered with a thick concrete exterior.

The tower features more than 200 carved images, including representations of birds and Native American figures facing the four cardinal directions. Near the top are four nine-foot figures representing different tribes.

Galloway’s version differs from traditional totem poles of the Pacific Northwest, which are generally carved from red cedar.

The structure rises from the back of a large, three-dimensional turtle. The turtle base was carved from a broad sandstone outcrop on the site and painted in bright colors.

The totem is hollow and rises about nine stories, with the ground level measuring about nine feet in diameter. Inside, plastered walls feature painted murals of mountain-and-lake scenes and bird totems, along with Native American shields and arrow points. At the top, the cone is open to the sky.

Picnic tables supported by small concrete totems, a totem barbecue fireplace, and gate structures designed to resemble fish fill the park grounds.

The Fiddle House

Credit: Rogers County Historical Society

Beyond the towering pole, Galloway’s artistic interests extended into music and woodworking.

An 11-sided structure known as the “Fiddle House” sits on the property and resembles a Navajo hogan, according to the National Park Service. The building houses many of Galloway’s hand-carved fiddles and other creations.

The Rogers County Historical Society says the Fiddle House Museum retains many of Galloway’s handcrafted violins and artifacts.

From neglect to restoration

Credit: Rogers County Historical Society

Galloway continued working on the park until his death in 1961. After he died, the site gradually fell into disrepair.

In 1989, the Rogers County Historical Society acquired the property. A major restoration effort took place from 1988 to 1998, with art conservators and engineers studying the structures and repairing damaged materials.

Additional repainting and preservation projects began in 2015.

Today, Totem Pole Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It remains open year-round with free admission and is managed by the Rogers County Historical Society.