Bartlesville [key], city (2020 pop. 37,290), seat of Washington co., NE Okla., on the Caney River; inc. 1897. It is a distribution center for a ranching and rich oil-producing area. Petroleum production, marketing, and research have been major enterprises since the first well was tapped in 1897. Of interest are the Price Tower, a concrete and glass building with cantilevered floors, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, with its arts center; and the Nellie Johnstone oil well, a replica of the first commercial oil well in the state. A U.S. Bureau of Mines energy research center is in the city.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. Political Geography
