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Teepee Building.

50-Foot-Tall Concrete Teepee

Field review by the editors.

Lawrence, Kansas

"The Tee Pee" is a relic from an earlier time, when Indians were evidently giants who built their homes to last. The main teepee building design was actually patented by its creator, Frank W. McDonald, in 1930, so the structure likely went up in the late 1920s, well ahead of later Wigwam Villages. It's 50-feet tall, 33-ft. in diameter, and was the centerpiece of a US 40 roadside complex "Indian Village" that included a gas station, restaurant and motor court of smaller teepee cabins.

The 14 teepee cabins are long demolished. Today what remains is a one-floor building with a teepee on either end, and the main teepee. The pole rigged to a sail-like flange gracing the original design is also gone. Marks on the side of this age-stained structure indicate the high water marks from Kansas River floods in 1951 and 1935.

The teepee has been more recently refurbished and repainted. It was reported open as a restaurant in 2009, and then a party venue.

Auxiliary Teepees.

Also see: Buildings Shaped Like Teepees

50-Foot-Tall Concrete Teepee

Tee Pee

Address:
US Hwy 24, Lawrence, KS
Directions:
Tee Pee. I-70 exit 204. Turn right onto 3rd St./US Hwy 59, drive under the interstate, then turn right at the traffic light onto US Hwy 24. The Tee Pee will be on the right.
RA Rates:
Worth a Detour
Save to My Sights

Nearby Offbeat Places

Nightly Indoor Mermaid and Snowstorm at a BarNightly Indoor Mermaid and Snowstorm at a Bar, Lawrence, KS - 2 mi.
Museum of the OddMuseum of the Odd, Lawrence, KS - 2 mi.
Wishing BenchWishing Bench, Lawrence, KS - 2 mi.
In the region:
Downtown Burial Mound, Kansas City, KS - 34 mi.

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