The Sapulpa Historical Society and Sapulpa Main Street have banded together to release “The Great Beckoning,” a two-book series on their Oklahoma home that unwraps some of the most turbulent and romantic, yet little-known tales of the American West.
“We started out looking at how natural overland trails and developing transportation methods shaped Sapulpa’s development.” said author Kirby Lee Davis. “That research revealed a long, winding epic of glorious triumphs and heart-crushing tragedies that impact us to this day.”
Published through Amazon, “The Great Beckoning” takes readers from America’s colonial days and the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma statehood and the rise of U.S. Highway 66, the legendary Mother Road now celebrating its Centennial.
“That’s what spurred this whole project,” said Brean Fowler, a longtime Sapulpa Main Street board member. “I had reviewed a few books about Route 66 in Oklahoma and realized Sapulpa was barely mentioned, if at all. I knew we could create something better. Sapulpa has such a vibrant history, and our Dewey Avenue sits right in the heart of Route 66. I knew we had to create something that told our story! I mentioned that last summer to Kirby while he was gathering chunks of pavement for what became Sapulpa’s Great Route 66 Giveaway (another Sapulpa Main Street project underway this year). After I shared my idea, he paused a moment, then said, ‘I can do that.’ And he did! He gave us just what we wanted. It’s very easy to read and so engaging!”
To obtain photos for the book, Sapulpa Main Street turned to the Sapulpa Historical Society and its plentiful archives. That’s when the project broadened, for Museum Curator Rachel Whitney wanted the book to include more on the founding and development of their northeastern Oklahoma city. That’s when “The Great Beckoning” split into two volumes, one published by the historical society, one by Main Street.
“Book One: The Story of Sapulpa and the Ozark Trail” takes readers back to 1720, when English colonists first met members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in what became the southeastern United States.
“Those events are difficult to revisit, and yet it’s vital to the story,” said Whitney, whose society has documented much of this history through books written by past members over the last 50 years.
“That long invasion process, which factored into several wars, led to the tragic resettlement efforts that followed,” explained Davis, a longtime communications consultant to Sapulpa’s Reed Architecture & Interiors. “And that’s how a Creek warrior named Sapulpa ended up opening a trading post, blacksmith shop, and farm along a natural trail the railroads would use to penetrate Indian Territory, establishing towns and making new markets. Our highways naturally followed them.”
That transition leads readers into “Book Two: The Story of Sapulpa and Route 66.” It explains the rise of that legendary road, the first all-weather concrete path across the American West. Sapulpa the city shared in all the good and bad that followed until America’s Main Street (as 66 was also called) reached its heyday. That’s when the state bypassed Sapulpa’s section of the Mother Road with the Turner Turnpike. Its success, and the interstates that followed, would steal away most traffic from Route 66, leaving many of its smaller communities to face desperate struggles.
“And yet, as with nearly all romantic tales, things gradually turned around,” said Davis, “although it took some time. Quite some time, in many cases.”
“The Great Beckoning” explains all of that to end with some vibrant twists shaping Sapulpa and Route 66 today.
“We’re quite proud of how it turned out,” said Whitney, “both with the books and our city!”
“The Great Beckoning” is available in paperback worldwide at Amazon.com, where it immediately hit several bestseller charts. You also may find the titles at the Sapulpa Historical Society Museum, the Sapulpa Main Street office, and a budding list of Sapulpa merchants. Full-color hardcovers are in development, as are Kindle electronic editions. The society and Main Street also are discussing audiobook options.
This marks the second Sapulpa Main Street program honoring the Route 66 Centennial.
The first, Sapulpa’s Great Route 66 Giveaway, presents drawings for three free pieces of actual Mother Road pavement each week of 2026. You may follow its schedule and learn how to participate on its official Facebook Page.
Sapulpa Main Street also is preparing to release the first in a series of annual collectible oil cans. This will debut during the 37th Annual Route 66 Blowout Car Show & Festival, Sept. 12. Updates will start soon on Facebook.
For its part, the Sapulpa Historical Society has just opened a new Route 66 exhibit in its three-story museum, 100 E. Lee Ave. The society also operates the Waite Phillips-Barnsdall Filling Station Museum, which honors the highway and automotive history in general, and the Sapulpa Fire Museum, which focuses on that aspect of the city’s development and transportation systems. The filling station sits across the street from the society’s office, while the fire station anchors the other end of the block.
To learn more about the society and its many operations, check out sapulpahistory.org
To dig further into Sapulpa Main Street, follow your browser to sapulpamainstreet.com