Golden Driller
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Golden Driller is a 76 foot tall (23 meter), 43,500 pound[1] statue of an oil worker, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which is claimed to be the "largest free standing statue in the world."[2]
It was originally built in 1953 by the Mid-Continent Supply Company of Fort Worth for the International Petroleum Exposition. Six years later, it was temporarily erected again for the 1959 show. Due to the positive attention it attracted, the company donated the statue to the Tulsa County Fairgrounds Trust Authority, which had it permanently installed in front of the Tulsa Expo Center for the 1966 International Petroleum Exposition. The statue's right hand rests on an oil derrick which had been moved from a depleted oil field in Seminole, Oklahoma.
An inscription at the base of the statue reads, "The Golden Driller, a symbol of the International Petroleum Exposition. Dedicated to the men of the petroleum industry who by their vision and daring have created from God's abundance a better life for mankind."
In 1979, the Golden Driller was adopted by the Oklahoma Lesiglature as the state monument.
As part of an online promotional contest sponsored by Kimberly-Clark in October 2006, the Golden Driller was named the grand prize as a top ten "quirkiest destination" in the United States, winning its nominator a $90,000 international vacation for two.[3]
[edit] External links
- Expo Square - Home of the Golden Driller
- Golden Driller appearance in Zippy the Pinhead comic strip from May 24, 2005.
[edit] References
- ^ Expo Square History. ExpoSquare.com. Retrieved on January 17, 2006.
- ^ The Golden Driller. BestofTulsa.com. Retrieved on January 17, 2006.
- ^ Tulsa's Golden Driller Honored. KOTV.com. Retrieved on October 25.