what is tulsa described as in the story and why?

It took place in the year of 1966 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The book was published in early 1967, and the fictional events in the book took place just before that, as the author herself wrote the book while in high-school, watching the kind of thing that happen in The Outsiders take place all around her.

it takes place in Tulsa Oklahoma the greasers live on the east side and the socs live on the west side.