The Blue Whale - Swimming Hole - Catoosa, Oklahoma, USA.[
N 36° 11.600 W 095° 43.967
15S E 254274 N 4008854
The Blue Whale is a swimming hole location, and roadside attraction located in Catoosa, Oklahoma. One of the most recognizable icons on historic Route 66.
Waymark Code: WMM09N
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 06/26/2014
Views: 15
A 80 feet long Blue Whale, built in 1972 out of pipe and concrete in a local swimming hole. It has a diving platform on its tail and a slide coming out of its side. The location is free to use.
"Hugh Davis had a job as a director of a Tulsa zoo, and he and his wife Zelta ran an alligator farm just off of Route 66. In the early 1970s Hugh surprised Zelta on their anniversary by unveiling an 80-foot-long sperm whale that he had built out of pipe and concrete in a little pond on their property. He originally built it for the use of just the Davis kids, with a diving platform on its tail and a slide coming out of its head.
By the mid-1970s, however, the happy whale with the toothy smile had become the centerpiece of Hugh and Zelta's new attraction, Nature's Acres, which also featured Animal Reptile Kingdom (A.R.K. -- housed in a replica of Noah's Ark) and a Trading Post run by Hugh's Indian brother-in-law. The spring-fed pond had been enlarged by Hugh into a commercial swimming hole, and the Blue Whale became a Route 66 icon." Text Source: (
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"Built in 1972 as an anniversary gift, the Blue Whale quickly evolved into a local summer hot spot and family travel destination. Almost immediately the whale began attracting people who wanted to fling themselves off his tail, slide down his water-coated fins and poke their heads out the holes in the whale’s head. Travellers stopped by to picnic, swim, or fish. So began what became one of the best loved icons on Route 66." Text Source: (
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