Buck Atom Space Cowboy Muffler Man

Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States

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Listed, not yet checked · Oct 2026

This Big Thing is recorded as still being here.

Buck Atom is a 21-foot-tall fibreglass space cowboy holding a rocket, built by Mark Cline and unveiled on 11 May 2019 at Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios on Route 66 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at 1347 East 11th Street, at the site of a 1950s PEMCO gas station.

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Buck Atom Space Cowboy Muffler Man

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Site-level location · 36.1478° N, 95.8935° W

FIELD GUIDE

The story

A 21-foot space cowboy holding a rocket stands outside a former gas station on Route 66 in Tulsa, and he exists because a shop wanted a mascot. Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios on 66 stands on the site of a 1950s PEMCO gas station at 1347 East 11th Street, in what TravelOK calls Tulsa's Meadow Gold District.

The Tulsa World reported that Buck Atom was built by Mark Cline of Enchanted Castle Studios, with the rocket in his hand designed and built by Tulsa artist Chris Wollard, and photographed the crowd at the unveiling on 11 May 2019. A historical marker erected by the Oklahoma Route 66 Association says the 21-foot Muffler Man was custom made and serves as an ambassador for the revitalisation of Route 66 in Oklahoma and beyond.

Buck comes with a backstory conceived by the shop's owner, Mary Beth Babcock. In it, according to the marker, he was a rodeo cowboy abducted by aliens in the 1950s, who spent the next 66 years travelling the cosmos before landing at the site of the shop and becoming a goodwill ambassador for Route 66.

He no longer stands alone. Stella Atom, a 19-foot space cowgirl, joined him in June 2024; KJRH reported that she would stand on the west side of the building, with Buck in his usual spot on the east. The Route 66 Road Map guide, published in 2026, lists five fibreglass giants in the Meadow Gold District and calls Buck the first Muffler Man in Tulsa.

The statues stand outside a working shop, so a visit combines a photograph with a browse.

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WHAT TO EXPECT

Two giant statues, Buck Atom and Stella Atom, stand outside a souvenir shop in a former gas station. TravelOK lists free admission and shop hours of 9am to 5:30pm daily, with holiday hours varying; confirm hours before visiting.

ACCESS

At Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios on 66, 1347 East 11th Street, Tulsa, a business on Route 66; the statues stand outside the shop on either side of the building.

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Stella Atom Uniroyal Gal

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Stella Atom is a fibreglass space-cowgirl statue outside Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios on Route 66 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, dedicated on 28 June 2024. KJRH gave her height as 19 feet; she stands beside the shop's 21-foot Buck Atom.

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