Produced by Adam Forgash with the Route 66 Alliance and noted author and historian Michael Wallis. A Forgotten Oklahoma Archive, Rediscovered After 100 Years
In 1913, photographer S.J. Tyler opened a small studio in Afton, Oklahoma, long before the world knew the name Route 66. For three decades, he captured the everyday people who lived, worked, and traveled this historic corridor. His portraits
were taken on fragile glass plates between 1913 and 1943, then forgotten for nearly a century… until their rediscovery in 2023. These images are more than photographs; they are a time capsule of early America. Tyler photographed Caucasian, Native American, African American, and Latino subjects alike, honoring each with the same dignity and care in an era when that was rare. Now, these extraordinary portraits are being brought back to life for the first time. Faces of the Mother Road: The Lost Portraits of S.J. Tyler debuts
January 2, 2026 in the Tulsa Arts District, launching a year-long, multi-city traveling exhibition for the Route 66 Centennial. Produced by photographic historian Adam Forgash, in partnership with the Route 66 Alliance and noted author and historian Michael Wallis, this exhibition bridges art, history, and cultural identity by telling America’s story through the lens of one Oklahoma photographer.
