Woody Guthrie Center, Tulsa, Bezoekersgids & wat te doen in de buurt

The Woody Guthrie Center is a museum and archive in Tulsa, Oklahoma, devoted to the folk singer Woody Guthrie and the songs he wrote about workers, migrants and people the country had overlooked. It opened in 2013 in the Tulsa Arts District and holds one of the largest collections of material on his life. It is a good place to understand why an Oklahoma songwriter still matters well beyond his home state.

The story behind it

Woody Guthrie was born in Oklahoma and became one of America's great folk singers. His songs spoke for working people, families uprooted by hard times and those left behind by the country's prosperity. His best-known song, This Land Is Your Land, is still sung in schools and at public gatherings across the United States.

The Center opened on April 27, 2013, after the George Kaiser Family Foundation acquired Guthrie's archives and brought them to Tulsa. The collection includes his handwritten notebooks and lyrics, his artwork, photographs and instruments. The Center also looks after the archives of another protest singer, Phil Ochs, and the Guthrie Archives are open to researchers by appointment.

What to look for

• The museum's displays of Guthrie's handwritten lyrics and notebooks show how a song took shape on the page, often with sketches beside the words.
• His artwork and photographs show a side of him that many visitors do not expect from a singer.
• The instruments on display are a reminder that his songs were written to be played anywhere, for anyone.
• The building sits in the Arts District, so look at how the Center fits among the neighbouring streets and public spaces.

Tips for your visit

• Allow about an hour if you plan to go inside and read the displays properly. Check current opening hours and admission details before you go.
• Come in daylight if you want to enjoy the surrounding Arts District on foot as well.
• The Guthrie Green park is right across the street, and the Bob Dylan Center is nearby, so the three make an easy walking cluster.
• If you want to research the archives, contact the Center ahead of time, since access is by appointment.

See it on a quest

The Center is a stop on Ghost Hunt in Tulsa, a self-guided walk through the city on your phone. You reach the building on foot as one stop of a longer route, the app tells you about the place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle using what is in front of you. It suits the spooky theme of the name, and it gives you a reason to look closely at the streets around the Center. One ticket covers the whole group, and you can start whenever you like, with no guide and no set departure time.