Editor’s note: we really enjoyed writing this story about Sapulpa’s historic Bell Building…not only because we had no idea about it’s amazing history, but because the Krout family chose to relocate from Tulsa to Sapulpa just to renovate this building in what they’re calling “the last undiscovered suburb”.
A building by a different name…
The Bell Building at 17 East Dewey Ave. was actually built as the Hedden Building, constructed in 1910. The building was designed by the architectural firm of Lawler and Inman. William Hedden purchased the property and existing building on that site, occupied by Sapulpa Drug, for what the Sapulpa Daily LIght called “The fancy price of $15,000, being the highest price ever paid for Sapulpa business property.”
The building’s dimensions were 25 feet by 108 feet. The front of the building incorporated Roman Brick, which is special, decorative brick. The building was originally to be a two-story structure, however, the final construction was three-stories.
Many of the downtown buildings had similar street-front dimensions, as was the case with my father’s building. The reason for these narrow storefronts was the fact that the property was sold by the street-front footage, not the length of the property.
William Hedden, who had the building erected, was a notorious bootlegger and a purveyor of gambling, operated several “Dens of iniquity.”
Hedden’s newly-constructed building was the “crown jewel” in his inventory of establishments. The first floor housed the Stag Barbershop and the Stag Billiard and Pool Hall, which was promoted as “The most up-to-date resort for gentlemen in the county.” The second and third floors were home to a “speakeasy” and gambling operations. The Hedden’s living quarters were in the upstairs section of the building.
Hedden’s whiskey and gambling “joints” were the subject of ongoing raids. On one occasion, the local constabulary attempted to enter the back of the Hedden Building in a clandestine raid but was thwarted by the steel door at the back of the building and found the structure was heavily fortified. They simply gave up and went home. In another raid, the police found a secret passage from the Hedden building to the adjacent building, where they found many items of contraband.
An article in the August 5th, 1912 edition of the Sapulpa Light, referred to Hedden as “The erstwhile King of the Bootleggers.” Hedden boasted of “owning” certain local officials.
Another article in the Sapulpa Light describes Hedden forfeiting a $35 bond for not appearing in municipal court on charges stemming from an altercation with a delivery man. Hedden refused to pay $4 for delivering 4 barrels of whiskey form the railroad station. The average wage the time was 22 cents an hour. After losing the fight, Hedden came back with a six-shooter, was disarmed and arrested.
Introducing…The Bell Building
Hedden sold the building to J.F. Bell in 1916. Bell located his retail clothing store on the first floor. The building had such a nefarious reputation that the topstone, which had Hedden’s name on it, was replaced with one that read Bell.
In 1939, local Attorney Sam T. Allen purchased the Bell Building for $7,000. At the time, the first floor was occupied by the Sapulpa Appliance store, and the second and third floors were the Bell Apartments.
The ground floor was subsequently home to several businesses, including Bayouths, Goodwill, Dollar Saver, Sapulpa Beauty College, and is currently occupied by Pat’s Place bar. The top two floors were apartments and office suites until the early 1960s.
Unveiling the Bell Building’s secrets
The new owners of the building, Joe and Penny Krout, Joe Krout, a freelance graphic designer, and his wife Penny, who owns an accounting firm, are members of the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture. The TFA is a non-profit organization that strives to raise architectural awareness in Tulsa.
The Krouts graciously gave Sapulpa Times a tour of the top two floors of the building, which they are renovating to use as their personal residence. Joe pointed out the hidden compartments in the floors, used to hide the illicit booze. He also showed us the original steel back door that removed when that entrance was sealed.
We saw pigeon skeletons, old whiskey bottles and wooden crates used to ship the liquor. One of the original bathtubs was still intact. There were phone numbers scribbled on the walls, and on one wall, a woman had recorded her, hip, bust, and waist size over a period of time.
Mr. Krout attributed the renovation project to his wife’s desire to “live in something that’s not a traditional home.” When asked why The Krouts chose Sapulpa, Joe replied, “It’s the undiscovered suburb, it is the only one left that hasn’t been developed.” The Krouts had looked at the building that currently houses CTX coffee, however, there were buyers ahead of them. Joe said, “We looked at it, the Chamber had the music playing, there were people walking up and down the street, It was a wonderful day, the windows on the building was open, there was a nice breeze coming through. It was like, ‘Oh my God,’ this is small-town America, this is amazing, this is like a little pocket in time, It is a little hidden gem.” At that point, Joe and his wife Penny said that Sapulpa was where they wanted to live.
The Krouts decided on the Bell Building and the owner, Marsha Sperling, the proprietor of Pat’s Place, sold them the building with the caveat that she could lease the downstairs section to operate her bar. Another iconic downtown building is being rescued and renovated.
I wish to thank Joe and Penny Krout for the tour, Joe and for the massive amount of historical information he provided about the building.
