Black History is Oklahoma History

This page is a work in progress, created to share resources about the Black experience in Oklahoma.

As an educational organization and a dedicated community partner, the Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) has long believed that one important step toward ending racism and injustice is a better understanding of our shared history. By providing resources that give context for the Black experience in Oklahoma, we hope to spark civil discourse and open dialogue about the role of race in the history of our state. While these conversations about our past may not be comfortable, they are necessary to understand where we have been and how we can best move forward together.

Since 1893, the Oklahoma Historical Society has collected and shared the story of Oklahoma. In the 1980s, the OHS began a concerted effort to engage with Oklahoma’s Black community—to listen to their stories and share their experiences. While we have made both mistakes and significant strides, we will continue to do better and do more. As new voices call for change, the OHS stands committed to our mission to collect, preserve, and share the history and culture of all Oklahomans. Learn more and browse free resources related to the Black experience in Oklahoma below.

The Civil War in Indian Territory

The Battle of Honey Springs (2021) tells the story of the historic 1863 battle that was a turning point for the Civil War in Indian Territory. The approximately 9,000 troops involved included Native Americans, veteran Texas regiments, and the First Kansas Colored Volunteers, which was the first African American regiment in the Union army.

Walk the historic battlefield and view artifacts that tell the story of this momentous event at Honey Springs Battlefield, located east of US Highway 69 between Oktaha and Rentiesville. Learn more about Honey Springs Battlefield.

An elderly Freedman woman sits outdoors in a rocking chair

Freedmen and the Territorial Era

The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

Researching Freedmen History
View images, learn about Dawes Rolls, and find sources for Freedmen records on our Freedmen History page.

“From Tulsa to Beyond: African American Genealogy in the Indian Territory and Oklahoma,” Nicka Smith
Discover how to research the lives of your ancestors using tribal records (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole), federal records, newspapers, college/university collections, historical society records, and more!

From The Chronicles of Oklahoma
“‘The Golden Days’: Taylor and Mary Ealy, Citizenship, and the Freedmen of Chickasaw Indian Territory, 1874–77,” by Ellen Cain

“Reading Prestatehood Muskogee: Racial-Political Discourse in American Indian, African American, and White Newspapers, 1905–07,” by Angela M. Person

“West Edwards Days: African Americans in Territorial Edmond,” by Christopher P. Lehman

Podcast
“Slavery in Indian Territory,” BrainBox podcast, Oklahoma Humanities

“The Misremembered ‘Uncle’ Wallace and ‘Aunt’ Minerva,” Shelby Ward (2021)
“Uncle” Wallace and “Aunt” Minerva Willis contributed to the musical legacy of Oklahoma and beyond. They performed Negro spirituals during the antebellum Indian Territory period. While their talent has not been forgotten, the nature of their relationship has been misremembered. Hear their story in this presentation.

“Finding Isaac Rogers,” Nicka Sewell-Smith (2021)
Isaac Rogers was a well-known US Civil War veteran and deputy marshal who met his demise on a platform in Fort Gibson, Indian Territory, on April 21, 1897—but who was he outside of those titles and that singular event? Find out in this presentation.

“The Elder Dunjee: Examination of the Life and Influence of John William Dunjee in Early Oklahoma”, Edith Ritt-Coulter (2022)
This session seeks to extend the story of Roscoe Dunjee by acknowledging the legacy of his father, John William Dunjee. The elder Dunjee contributed to the establishment of African American churches throughout Oklahoma and Indian Territories. He instilled in his children a sense of political consciences rooted in the ideology of racial uplift that impacted Oklahoma’s Black communities and communities throughout the United States.

Audio and Video

The Clara Luper Show
Listen to select episodes on YouTube

Podcasts

“The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre,” A Very OK Podcast

“A Little Freedom is a Dangerous Thing,” A Very OK Podcast

“Retail Therapy,” A Very OK Podcast

“Blacks on the Oklahoma Frontier: Lawmen, Outlaws, Cowboys, Cowgirls, and Rodeos,” Oklahoma African American Film Festival (2020)

Historic photograph of musician Charlie Christian on the guitar while a man plays the saxapohone and another man looks on

Discover How Black Oklahomans Shaped Literature, Music, and Culture

The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

“Genie Boy Goes to Hollywood,“ Cindy Donovan Wallis and Gwen Walker
Gene “Genie Boy” Smith was raised in Stringtown, Oklahoma. He later moved to California and worked as one of the first Black stuntmen in Hollywood. Breaking color barriers, Smith did stunt work in “The Virginian” and “The Outcasts,” which was noted for being the first TV western with an African American co-star. Before his death in 2018, Genie Boy shared his perspective, unforgettable memories, and photos with the Atoka Museum.

Sports History

The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

Interview with Bobby Walton (2016)
Bobby Walton discusses breaking barriers in his attempt to be certified the first African American to register and participate as a player in the Oklahoma American Legion Baseball Tournament in 1954–55 in Enid, Oklahoma.

Black Writers

Learn about some of Oklahoma’s celebrated Black authors in the online exhibit Oklahoma Writers: A Literary Tableau.

The Tulsa Race Massacre

Collections and More
View OHS photographs, oral histories, newspapers, programs, and more on the Tulsa Race Massacre page

Tulsa Race Riot: A Report by the Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, published in 2001 (PDF)

E-Exhibit
Tulsa Race Massacre

Lesson Plans
Black Wall Street
The Tulsa Race Massacre
Riot Versus Massacre

Teacher Resource Guides correlating to Oklahoma History Academic Standards
OKH.5.2, Examine multiple points of view regarding the evolution of race relations in Oklahoma

Aviators Thomas Allen and James Herman Banning stand in front of an airplane wearing pilots goggles and flight suits

Early Oklahoma

The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

From The Chronicles of Oklahoma
“Colorblind Proletarian Brotherhood: African Americans, American Indians, and Racial Inclusivity in the Oklahoma Socialist Party,” by Matthew F. Simmons

“Did Oklahoma African Americans Vote Between 1910 and 1943?,” by R. Darcy

“Sundown on the Prairie: The Extralegal Campaigns and Efforts from 1889 to 1967 to Exclude African Americans from Norman, Oklahoma,” by Michael S. Givel

Tourism and Recreation

Explore events, landmarks, attractions, and more from the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department.
www.travelok.com/long-road-to-liberty

View the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department’s Long Road to Liberty: Oklahoma’s African American History and Culture on Issuu.

Researching the Black Experience in Oklahoma

The masthead of The Black Dispatch newspaper with decorative text atop an illustration of a train

View thousands of issues in the African American Newspapers Collection, including these publications:

Find more newspapers on The Gateway to Oklahoma History or visit the OHS Research Center in Oklahoma City to view newspapers on microfilm.

Collections Available on The Gateway to Oklahoma History
Currie Ballard Collection
Finley-Slaughter Family Collection
Melvin R. Chatman Collection
Rubye M. Hall Collection
Sapulpa Historical Society Collection
Shirly Nero Collection
Zella Patterson Collection

Learn More
African American History Resource Guide (PDF)
The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

Read The Ellis Family Story, by Mel Chatman on The Gateway to Oklahoma History

Several students stand on the sidewalk during a 1960 civil rights demonstration

Resources for Educators, Parents, and Students

E-Exhibits

Lesson Plans
The Curious Case of All-Black Towns
Senate Bill One
Black Wall Street
The Tulsa Race Massacre
Riot Versus Massacre

Teacher Resource Guides correlating to Oklahoma History Academic Standards
OKH.5.2, Examine multiple points of view regarding the evolution of race relations in Oklahoma

Traveling Trunk and Pop-up Panels
African Americans in Oklahoma

All-Black Towns and More

All-Black Towns of Oklahoma: Remembering Safe Havens
Join the State Historic Preservation Office on a journey through Oklahoma's All-Black Towns, where we will highlight the creativity, entrepreneurial spirits, and tenacity that helped build some of these Black safe havens.

Thematic and Architectural Survey

The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

“Oklahoma Bound,” the films of Reverend S. S. Jones
Watch selections from silent films created by Reverend S. S. Jones, who came to Oklahoma Territory in 1889. Scenes of traditionally All-Black towns of Oklahoma include Taft, Clearview, Melvin, and Boley in the 1920s.

Civil Rights in Oklahoma

Presented by the Oklahoma Historical Society, this documentary shares the history of sit-ins in Oklahoma City during the Civil Rights Movement. Through historic images and new interviews with sit-in participants, producers Joyce Jackson and Bruce Fisher tell the powerful story of this movement.

People of Oklahoma: Civil Rights Movement Across Oklahoma
The civil rights revolution of the 1950s and the 1960s included brave individuals who challenged a system of injustice and inequality. This documentary includes reflections of some who participated in sit-ins across Oklahoma, in addition to the comments by community leaders, such as Marilyn Luper Hildreth, Joyce Henderson, Dr. Gloria Griffin, Christina Beatty, Senator George E. Young, Loria Phillips, Espaniola Bowen, J. C. Watts, Jabee Williams, J. D. Baker, and others who are in charge of projects that preserve the legacy of the movement.

Cover image of The Good Fight with students standing in downtown Oklahoma City in the 1960s

“The Good Fight,” Crossroads online publication
This issue presents an intimate look back at the struggle for civil rights in Oklahoma City.

Find more about Civil Rights Leaders and History
in The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture

The Chronicles of Oklahoma
“An Unflinching Call for Freedom: Clara Luper’s Pedagogy at the Center of Sit-Ins,” by Rachel E. Watson

“Fitting In and Sitting In: Phillip Henry Porter and Memories of Integration Efforts in Enid, 1955–58,” by Aaron Preston

“Thurgood Marshall’s “Broom Closet”: The Structure of Segregation in McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents,” by Eric Lomazoff and Bailie Gregory

“Unforgotten Trailblazer: Nancy O. Randolph Davis,” by Gloria J. Pollard

Historic Places

“An Oklahoma Story of Place: Voices of Preservation” – Summit, Oklahoma
This video features interviews with descendants of Reverend L. W. Thomas, founder of the town of Summit, Oklahoma (Muskogee County). Summit was one of more than fifty All-Black towns established in present-day Oklahoma, and one of only thirteen still in existence today. The many businesses in Summit before World War II included a cotton gin, filling station, grocery, and garage.

“An Oklahoma Story of Place: Voices of Preservation” – Threatt Filling Station
This video features Reverend Allen Threatt III discussing the Threatt Filling Station, which was built in 1915. Owned and operated by his family, this service station was located along Route 66 near Luther, Oklahoma, and it served African American travelers and locals. This business is one that would typically be included in “The Travelers’ Green Book.”

Historical Markers
View historical markers related to ethnic diversity.

National Register of Historic Places

Exhibits

Exhibit panel about historic All-Black Towns of Rentiesville, Lima, and Taft

Part of exhibit panel reading Oklahoma, an All-Black State?

Part of exhibit panel reading Early Oklahoma: Black Hope/Black Dreams, Black Impact

Traveling Exhibits
Bring a traveling exhibit to your school, library, church, or local community center.

Part of an Oklahoma History Center exhibit recreating the Katz Drug Store counter with four stools

Visit Realizing the Dream, an exhibit about the Black experience in Oklahoma, at the Oklahoma History Center.