Thomas Gilcrease (1890–1962) was born in Louisiana in 1890, and moved to Eufala, Oklahoma with his family just months later. Because his mother was of Creek ancestry, the Gilcrease family was allowed to live on the Creek Nation. When the government decided to distribute tracts of land to members of the nation, Gilcrease received 160 acres (650,000 m²) just south of Tulsa. Oil was discovered on this land, and he founded the Gilcrease Oil Company in 1922. The company was successful, and Gilcrease was able to purchase more land, and placed the headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. During the 1920's and 1930's he spent time in Europe, where he was inspired by the European museums. He started to collect oil paintings and other artifacts of the American West in 1922, and opened the original Gilcrease Museum in 1943. He soon moved his collection back to Tulsa, where he opened the second Gilcrease Museum in 1949 on the grounds the house he had purchased in 1914. When debt forced Gilcrease to sell his collection, the citizens of Tulsa voted to pass a bond to pay the debt. He then gave the collection to the city in 1955. In 1958 the museum itself was given to the City of Tulsa as well.
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