Not an oil derrick is visible to the casual tourist, yet Tulsa is an important energy city. Oil and gas fields surround it, and offices of energy companies are prevalent: more than 600 energy and energy-oriented firms employ 30,000 people. It is the second largest city in Oklahoma, and its atmosphere is cosmopolitan.

The first well came in across the river in 1901. Tulsa invited oilmen to "come and make your homes in a beautiful little city that is high and dry, peaceful and orderly, where there are good churches, stores, schools, and banks, and where our ordinances prevent the desolation of our homes and property by oil wells."

Oil discoveries came in 1905 and 1912, but Tulsa maintained its aloof attitude. Although most of the town owned oil, worked in oil, or supplied the oil fields, culture remained important. Concerts, theater, museums, and activities at three universities, including the University of Tulsa (1894) and Oral Roberts University (1963), give the city a sophisticated quality.

Tulsa has a well-balanced economy. Aviation and aerospace is the city's second largest industry, including Rockwell International and the American Airlines maintenance base, engineering center, reservations center, and revenue and finance division.

With the completion of the Arkansas River Navigation System, Tulsa gained a water route to the Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico. The Port of Catoosa, 3 miles from the city and located on the Verdigris River, is at the headwaters of the waterway and is now America's westernmost inland water port.