Along the south side of US-40 in Lawrence, Kansas, a giant concrete teepee stands as a prominent landmark, hinting at a fascinating chapter in American roadside history. This distinctive structure marks the former site of the Indian Village, Lawrence, Kansas, a unique themed complex that captivated travelers in the early 20th century. Established in 1930, the Indian Village was a visionary project designed to attract motorists with its distinctive architecture and services, embodying the creative marketing prevalent during the burgeoning era of automobile travel.
The Entrepreneurial Vision of Frank McDonald
The concept for the Indian Village was born from the mind of Frank McDonald, who served as the athletic director at the Haskell Indian Institute in Lawrence. In the 1920s, McDonald astutely acquired a strategic ten-acre parcel of land situated at the anticipated intersection of a major east-west route connecting Kansas City and Topeka, and a vital road leading north out of Lawrence. His ambition was to establish Lawrence’s very first motel at this crossroads. This foresight proved prescient when the east-west thoroughfare became designated as U.S. 40, and Lawrence Road transformed into U.S. 73W, later known as U.S. 59.
McDonald, driven by an inherent desire to be his own boss, expressed in 1928, “I had always intended to enter the business world and be my own boss.” In 1929, he successfully persuaded the Sinclair Oil Company to consider a revolutionary idea: a network of transcontinental filling stations featuring Native American imagery. These stations were envisioned to be strategically located approximately a day’s travel apart near existing Indian reservations and staffed by Native Americans, with the inaugural station planned for Lawrence. McDonald’s innovative design for a teepee-shaped building was so unique that he successfully applied for and was granted a patent for it in 1930.
Original Plans and Unexpected Challenges
His elaborate plans for the Indian Village initially included a towering 40-foot high teepee, housing a filling station at its 25-foot base. This structure, envisioned as a wooden frame with a concrete exterior, was to feature restrooms, a men’s smoking room, and a second-floor apartment for the on-site station operator. The complex was also designed to incorporate a restaurant and a motor court comprising 14 teepee-shaped cabins, alongside a hogan-style building dedicated to restrooms and a bathhouse.
However, the grand vision faced early setbacks. When the main building for the gas station was finally constructed, it deviated slightly from the initial blueprints. The centerpiece concrete teepee emerged even larger than planned, reaching an impressive 50 feet in height and 33 feet in diameter. More significantly, McDonald was compelled to scale back other aspects of his ambitious project as the nation plunged into the early economic struggles of the Great Depression. Furthermore, the anticipated partnership with Sinclair Oil company dissolved, dashing McDonald’s aspirations for a nationwide chain of themed stations. Consequently, the filling station opened its doors selling Conoco gasoline instead.
The Grand Opening and Early Operation
By May 1930, the gas station was prepared to welcome customers. Prior to its opening, extensive publicity highlighted that the main teepee’s design was attributed to Native Americans, who would also staff the filling station in traditional tribal costumes, offering tourist information that emphasized their culture and reservations. The service station teepee officially opened on May 30, 1930, to considerable fanfare. The event included barbecued buffalo and the distribution of
