Seventh Street Staircase- Pawhuska, OK - Outdoor Stairways on Waymarking.com

County of structure: Osage County
Location of structure: Ki-He-Kah Ave. & 7th St., Pawhuska
Built: 1920-1927
Number of steps: 88

"13. SEVENTH STREET STAIRCASE WITH PUBLIC STORM SHELTER, circa 1920-1927. Early Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps show Ninth Street, Seventh Street, and Sixth Street between Ki-he-kah (formerly Paw-Hus-Kah) Avenue and Grand View Avenue as being "impassable". The reason for this is a dramatic bluff, known as Agency Hill, rising some sixty feet above the flat commercial district. Not only did this Hill physically divide the town, but it also socially separated it. Above was the Osage Indian Agency which was developed between the 1870's and the 1910's. Below was the predominantly "white settlement" downtown which was platted and auctioned for development in 1906.

"However, business and government transactions did take place. Preceding vehicular transportation, pedestrians dominated the "traffic". As a means to overcome the obstacle of the Hill, the three "impassable" streets became staircases, originally constructed of wood. The NINTH STREET STAIRCASE (now built of sandstone, not nominated), connected various houses perched on the steep hill. (Only of few of these remain as the lack of vehicular access has unfortunately made them unmarketable.) The SEVENTH STREET STAIRCASE and the SIXTH STREET STAIRCASE (to be discussed later) have been replaced with concrete plazas, steps, and landings with pipe railings and decorative cast-iron light posts. The importance of these staircases is probably responsible for the locations of certain builidngs [sic] in the downtown in relation to previously built Osage Agency structures.

"At the base of the SEVENTH STREET STAIRCASE is the circa 1920 WHITING BUILDING (#69), the new U.S. Post Office for Pawhuska (now containing county offices). At the top, is the headquarters building for the Agency. The staircase itself has a flight of stairs, marked by decorative cast-iron light posts, leading to a plaza approximately fifteen feet square. Decorative stone newel posts and corner posts are connected with original pipe railing. The four corners have intricately detailed, gooseneck, cast-iron light posts. Five steps above this plaza is another area measuring twenty-five feet wide and thirty feet deep. Concrete curbing in the scored concrete suggests four trees were planted there at one time. The upper plaza is located directly on the ground, whereas the lower plaza is located on top of a sandstone walled public storm shelter (discussed later). To the north of the upper plaza is the front facade of Number 12; to the south, the rear of the second floor of Number 14 which opens onto the rear yard. (Buildings numbered 14-31 and 33-41 have rear yards accessible only from the rear of the structure at the second story level.) To the west, the steps continue for six more flights with concrete newel posts supporting cast-iron light posts marking the landings." ~ NRHP Nomination Form