#Tulsa100

[todaysdocument]

After the Tulsa Race Massacre, the Red Cross announced plans to form a “Colored Hospital Association,” and provide a hospital building to be staffed by Black surgeons, physicians, and nurses. Oklahoma Sun article, 12/1/1921.

Series: Central Decimal Files, 1881 - 1982

Collection: Records of the American National Red Cross, 1881 - 2008

Transcription:

[handwritten vertically on left side of page] RC - 103 P4 [/handwritten]

[newspaper article]

Entered as second-class matter June 30, 1920, at the post office at Tulsa, Oklahoma, under the Act of March 3, 1879.

Published weekly, on Wednesday, at 126 N. Greenwood St., Tulsa, Oklahoma.

THE OKLAHOMA SUN

VOL. 2, NO. 35.                     TULSA, OKLAHOMA, DECEMBER 1, 1921                           PRICE, $1.50 PER YEAR

RED CROSS A GREAT BENEFACTOR COLORED HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION ORGANIZED

AN INSTITUTION THAT HAS SHELTERED AND CARED FOR MANY COLORED SUFFERERS GOOD WORK STILL GOING ON

The old saying, "Tis an ill wind that blows no one good" is coming true. The colored population of Tulsa will always remember with gratitude and thanksgiving the fact that nothing has been left undone by the Red Cross to heal the wounds of the sick and maimed following the June riot. The best surgical, medical and nursing case has been provided every riot sufferer and no expense has been spared in caring for the sick whose homes were burned and where home (?)ome provisions for caring for sick people were limited.

When it became necessary for the Red cross to vacate the hospital at the Booker T. Washington School, the colored people were quick to respond to a suggestion made by the Red Cross that a new hospital be erected on a co-opeative plan whereby the Red Cross would furnish all the material necessary for a hospital building if the colored people, thru Central Relief Committee, would furnish the labor. With surprising swiftness, a thirty-bed hospital was built and equipped with every essential for scientific surgical care and treatment of the sick. The hospital building is located at 324 North Hartford on the site of the old Dunbar School. It has one large surgical ward for men, a surgical ward for women, a maternity ward a general medical woman's ward, dining room, kitchen, bath, linen closets, and best of all a thoroughly modern operating room, fully equiped. A large porch running the full length of the building on the east provides ample space for convalescent patients during the sunshiny days, and a like porch on the south side answers the same purpose during the chilly days. Two convalescent tents have been equipped for ambulatory patients. Likewise a tent for tuberculars is provided on the grounds.

Up to the present time, the Red Cross has conducted this hospital as a riot relief proposition. It has served its purpose so well that the institution has become indispensable. It has been the desire of the Red Cross Committee, County Officials and Mr. Willows particularly, for the Red Cross to leave a permanent institution for the care of the sick and wounded in Tulsa to the colored people as their own institution.

HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION FORMED

The first steps have been taken to form a Colored Hospital Association, which will be organized and incorporated under State laws. This association would be directed by a board of representative colored citizens with an advisory board of a small number of interested citizens. There will be in addition to the board of white directors, a Woman's Auxiliary made up of representative colored woman and organized in such fashion that every colored woman in the district can become identified with the movement. The title to the hospital building and equipment will be turned over to the Colored Hospital Association. The hospital will be generally supervised by Dr. Butler, County Physician, (white) who will have to assist him a staff of colored physicians and surgeons whose services will rotate. Colored nurses will be employed by the Association, and in every sense of the word the institution will be the property, a thoroughly democratic institution, operated, owned and controlled by the colored citizens.

Announcement will be made next week of the personnel of the Board of Directors elected; likewise the (illegible) or personal or (illegible) and gratitude is due the Red Cross for this splendid and adequate provision made.

THE PRESENT STANDARD TO BE MAINTAINED

It is the present intentions of the association to maintain the highest standard hospital care for our people, and we have every assurance from the county officials Red Cross and others that the colored people will be given full support in this new venture.

The suggestion has been unanimous that the hospital be named after the Red Cross Director who has established for the white population of Tulsa a reputation for sympathetic and fair dealing with our people in their time of trouble, sickness and destitution.

[photo of building with car parked in front]

[Caption: Front View of 9 room Hospital Building.]

[photo of people in hospital beds]

[Caption: Men's Surgical Ward. ]

[photo of operating room]

[Caption: Operating Room. ]

#archivesgov #December 1 #1921 #1920s #Tulsa100 #Tulsa #Tulsa Race Massacre #Black history #African American history #American Red Cross #Red Cross #hospital #Oklahoma

[africanamericanreports]

The HISTORY® Channel sets the premiere date for its new two-hour documentary “Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre” on Sunday, May 30 at 8PM ET/PT. Executive produced by NBA super star and philanthropist Russell Westbrook, and directed by Peabody and Emmy-Award winning director Stanley Nelson (“Freedom Riders”) and Peabody and duPont-Award winner Marco Williams (“Two Towns of Jasper”), the documentary commemorates the 100th anniversary of the horrific Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, one of the worst acts of racial violence in American history, and calls attention to the previously ignored but necessary repair of a town once devastated.

#Tulsa #tulsa race massacre #tulsa 1921 #tulsa massacre #Tulsa100

[ladylilabrown]

I’m in #Tulsa, Oklahoma to recognize the 100 Years that has passed since the terrorist attack on my people 1921-2001. ✊🏾 #Tulsa100 #Oklahoma #TulsaOklahoma #BLM #BlackLivesMatter #NativeAmerican #Melanin ALWAYS REMEMBER 😔 #Greenwood #BlackWallStreet #art #mural (at Greenwood Cultural Center) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPeSanfMZcHAxU8Im__VPFBiW5tpVnT6ztqs9U0/?utm_medium=tumblr

#tulsa #tulsa100 #oklahoma #tulsaoklahoma #blm #blacklivesmatter #nativeamerican #melanin #greenwood #blackwallstreet #art #mural

[msnaturaltee202]

#Repost @nmaahc

・・・

⁣100 years ago today, the deadliest racial massacre in U.S. history began in the thriving Greenwood African American community of Tulsa, Oklahoma. ⠀

⠀

In May of 1921, the imprisonment of Dick Rowland, a black man falsely accused of assaulting a white woman, sparked the Tulsa massacre. A lynch mob gathered to hang Rowland and black Tulsans hurried to the courthouse to protect him. From May 31 to June 1, white mobs ransacked, razed, and burned over 1,000 homes, businesses, and churches in Greenwood, and murdered scores of African Americans. ⠀

“For fully forty eight hours, the fires raged and burned everything in its path and it left nothing but ashes and burned safes and trunks and the like where once stood beautiful homes and business houses. And so proud, rick, black Tulsa was destroyed by fire—that is its buildings and property; but its spirit was neither killed nor daunted.”- B. C. Franklin ⠀

⠀

Dozens of black-owned businesses were rebuilt in Greenwood within a year of the massacre, and hundreds more followed over the next three decades. This rapid rebuilding illustrates the energy and resiliency of the community. But the massacre’s repercussions—and questions of race, memory, and repair—continue to resonate in Tulsa and across the nation. #Tulsa100 ⠀

⠀

📸: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Cassandra P. Johnson Smith

#Tulsa #Remembering Tulsa #Tulsa Oklahoma #repost #NMAAHC #AfricanAmerican #EndRacism #BlackPeople #BlackHistory #1921 #2021 #100 Years Ago Today #May 1921 #May 2021 #Tulsa Massacre

[warriorsouljah-blog]

This is just a fraction of the beauty our nation was robbed of because of The Tulsa Massacre. Reposted from @moyoafrika One hundred years ago, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, an armed white mob attacked Greenwood, a prosperous Black community. Hundreds of Black Tulsans were killed and Black Wall Street was burned to the ground. No one was charged for the killings. Video: @blackarchives.co . . ———- #panafrican #ushistory #blackhistory #africanhistory #americanterrorism #representationmatters #Moyoafrika #amplifyblackvoices #blackhistory #amplifymelanatedvoices #tulsa #blacktravelmovement #africandiaspora #tulsaok #tulsamassacre #tulsa100 #blackcommunity #panafricanism #blackhistory365 #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatter✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 https://www.instagram.com/p/CPnC3X6h4G4/?utm_medium=tumblr

#panafrican #ushistory #blackhistory #africanhistory #americanterrorism #representationmatters #moyoafrika #amplifyblackvoices #amplifymelanatedvoices #tulsa #blacktravelmovement #africandiaspora #tulsaok #tulsamassacre #tulsa100 #blackcommunity #panafricanism #blackhistory365 #blacklivesmatter #blacklivesmatter✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿

[givengracedesignco]

Are you watching? #dreamlandtulsa #tulsa100 #blackhistory365 https://www.instagram.com/p/CPj0bfisU_k/?utm_medium=tumblr

#dreamlandtulsa #tulsa100 #blackhistory365

[intellectualviolence]

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Tulsa, Oklahoma today as they commemorate the horrific events of May 31 and June 1, 1921, known as the Tulsa Race Massacre. The mural below was painted by Michael Rosato, the artist who created the Harriet Tubman Mural, to remember and honor what was lost in the Greenwood neighborhood over a two day period--35 blocks of black-owned homes and businesses burned to the ground, 10,000 people made homeless, hundreds killed, a thriving black community systematically destroyed by the white community. The brutality of the act and magnitude of the loss is beyond comprehension. #neverforget!! #TulsaRaceMassacre #tulsa100 #tulsaoklahoma #michaelrosato #blackwallstreet #blacktherapists #letyourselfbegreat #blacktherapist #blackcounselors #therapyforblackmen #blackmaletherapist #melantedtherapist #melanatedsocialwork #blackpipeology #bigsexyistheillest #healblackman #blackcounselorsrock #melantedmindfulness #healblackmanheal #begreatonpurpose 👑  #BlackMaletherapist #mentalhealthmatters #MindoVaMaterial ##FaithovaFear #kingsraisingkings #howmuchshitareyouwillingtoeat #brokenness https://www.instagram.com/p/CPizH05DjST/?utm_medium=tumblr

#neverforget #tulsaracemassacre #tulsa100 #tulsaoklahoma #michaelrosato #blackwallstreet #blacktherapists #letyourselfbegreat #blacktherapist #blackcounselors #therapyforblackmen #blackmaletherapist #melantedtherapist #melanatedsocialwork #blackpipeology #bigsexyistheillest #healblackman #blackcounselorsrock #melantedmindfulness #healblackmanheal #begreatonpurpose #mentalhealthmatters #mindovamaterial #faithovafear #kingsraisingkings #howmuchshitareyouwillingtoeat #brokenness

[normanevansmusic]

This year is the centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma. This clip from @SmithsonianChan features colorized archival scenes from Greenwood & neighboring communities, filmed 1925-1928. #Tulsa100

[furryalligator]

George Monroe was 5 years old when he collected this penny in the aftermath of the deadliest racial massacre in U.S. history. The back is so melted that nothing is visible. The story of the Tulsa Race Massacre through this object in our @NMAAHC: https://t.co/fpFb8brCUd #Tulsa100

— Smithsonian (@smithsonian) May 27, 2021

#Tulsa Race Massacre #tulsa massacre #@Smithsonian #Penny #numismatics

[trascapades]

✊🏿🗣#ArtIsAWeapon Reposted from @bws.gallery ‼️ For Immediate Release ‼️

Thursday, June 3, 2021 2:00 PM

26 Mercer Street, SoHo

Advisory: Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, former NYC Commissioner Gregg Bishop, and Black Wall Street Gallery to call on NYPD to investigate hate crime

NEW YORK -- Today, Thursday, June 3, 2021, at 2PM, 26 Mercer Street, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, former NYC Commissioner Gregg Bishop, and Dr. Ricco Wright, owner of Black Wall Street Gallery will hold a press conference to denounce three incidents of racist vandalism that occurred on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, around the 100th Anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, and to demand that the NYPD investigate the vandalism as a hate crime.

Black Wall Street Gallery was originally founded in Tulsa, OK, and opened its SoHo location in October 2020. The art gallery's current exhibition "21 Piece Salute" brings together 21 art pieces by 21 Black artists. The exhibition is a tribute to the Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial, in which white mobs killed hundreds and burned 35 blocks of one of the most affluent Black communities in the nation to the ground.

# # #

@galebrewernyc

@greggbishop

@riccowright03

@bws.gallery

@jerrysaltz @bisabutler @chrisrock @bkbmg @romedancy06 @damonlindelof @sirsargent @hankwillisthomas

#BlackWallStreet #21PieceSalute #BlackWallStreetGallery

#nyc #soho #justice #blacklivesmatter #endwhitesupremacy #Greenwood #Tulsa100 #BlackGallery #exhibit #ArtAndTheCity #TulsaRaceMassacre #BlackArtists #BlackArt

#Instagram

[todaysdocument]

Front page of the Tulsa Tribune during the Tulsa Race Massacre, 6/1/1921.

Series: Central Decimal Files, 1881 - 1982

Collection: Records of the American National Red Cross, 1881 - 2008

Transcription:

THE PEOPLE'S PAPER

                                                          The Tulsa Tribune

THE WEATHER                                                                                                       SECOND

OKLAHOMA - Tonight and Thurs-                                                                    EXTRA

day part cloudy.

     Tulso temperatures: Maximum

today at noon, 85, yesterday, 91;

minimum, 68, yesterday, 61

FULL LEASED WIRE REPORTS OF ASSOCIATED AND UNITED PRESS; UNRIVALED STATE AND FEATURE SERVICE

VOL. XVII - NUMBER 225.        TULSA, OKLAHOMA, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 1921.        State Edition * *      FOURTEEN PAGES - PRICE [TORN] CENTS

COUNTY PUT UNDER MARTIAL LAW

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

7 whites, 68 Negroes Dead --- Fire Rages

PROCLAMATION

All persons not deputied as special officers are ordered to

disarm in a proclamation issued shortly before noon by Mayor

Evans. Persons carrying guns after that hour will be arrested.

The proclamation:

"Armed troops, well equipped, have now arrived who, with

the assistance of the local authorities, will be able to control

the situation in this city. Everyone is directed to preserve law

an dorder and to avoid under every circumstance, the gather-

ing on the streets of curious and excited masses. This only

tends to make the situation worse for the authorities in restor-

ing order, making it more burdensome and complicated. No

loyal citien of Tulsa will willingly commit any act which en-

dangers the peace and security of the city. All parties, without

direct authority from the chief of police or the sheriff or Tulsa

county, who may be found after 11 a. m. today bearing arms and

engaged in any act liable to promote a breach of the peace will

be arrested and prosecuted under the Riot Act.

"Headquarters of the National Guards is established in

Room 306, City Hall, at Fourth street and Cincinnati avenue,

and except for duly appointed policeman and deputy sheriffs

all permission to bear ar mfsrom, and after, the publication of

this proclamation must be countersigned by Gen. Charles F.

Barrett or Col. B. F. Markham, commanding the National Guards.

"Gen. Charles F. Barrett concurs in this proclamation."

Dated 10:30 a. m., June First 1921.

"T. D. EVANS, Mayor."

Barrett is Put in Full

Charge by Robertson

OKLAHOMA CITY. - Martial law in Tulsa was ordered by

Governor Robertson at 11:15 o'clock and Adjutant General Bar-

rett placed in command of the city. The order was given over

the long distance telephone and a proclamation to this effect is

being prepared and will be issued immediately.

The order of Governor Robertson invoking martial law

over Tulsa has been extended to include all of Tulsa county. The

order will displace civil control and place it in supreme com-

mand of the adjutant general.

The governor's telegram to the adjutant general follows:

"I have declared martial law throughout Tulsa county and

am holding you responsible for maintenance of order, safety of

lives and protection of property. You will do all things neces-

sary to attain these objects.

(Signed)                  "J. B. A. ROBERTSON, Governor."

The governor acted after being in communication with of-

ficers in Tulsa. Attorney General Freeling will go to Tulsa this

afternoon.

"The situation at Tulsa seems peculiar to me," Governor

Robertson said. "With power vested in all city and county offi-

cials there to deputie and put into the law enforcement every

citien of the city if necessary, I cannot understand how this

trouble was allowed to get such a start."

Conversation with Adjutant General Barrett was to the ef-

fect that it was impossible for the fire department to enter the

negro section and that the flames were raging unabated.

All available guardsmen will be placed on duty once in

the negro section, which has been entirely destroyed by flames,

General Barrett said when he r[eceived order?] from Governor

Robertson placing the county under martial law.

Orders have been issued to disarm citizens. Later the

military will issu ecrededntials to men chosen as special officers.

A military commission, composed of seven city officials

and business men, to pass upon the guilt of the 6,000 negroes

now held in concentration camp, was formed shortly before

noon by Mayor Evans and Chief of Police Gustafson and ap-

proved by General Barrett. This committee will pass upon the

guilt of those held under guard in the various camps, naming

those who will be held for trial for inciting the black populace

to riot.

The personnel of the committee: C. S. Younkman, water

commissioner; Albert Hunt, district judge; H. F. Newblock,

city commissioner; C. S. Aver, oil man; Grant McCullough,

banker; F. E. White, business man; Alva J. Niles, banker.

The Tulsa Tribbune

RESTORE ORDER

LYNCH law leads not to law but to lawlessness and

lawlessness is a repudiation of government.

Lynch law is a fire brand in the hands of those

who thoughtlessly elect to establish mob rule for law

and order. Lynch law is an impassioned appeal to the

hatreds of prejudice. It brings ignominy and disaster

to any community that falls its victims.

Whatever ground it may have had, a story starts

that a negro in the county jail was to be lynched. Out

of curiosity a crowd collects. A small band of negroes

brings firearms onto the scene. At first they were few

At the outset there was nothing to indicate that the

whites had been moved to a battling protest. But when

the first small band of negroes added to their armed

forces the war began. Tulsa found itself experiencing

a night of terror and the new day dawned with the

[illegible]nd of battle and the sky clouded with the smoke that

rises above the burning buildings and shacks in the

negro end of town.

At such a time as this it is the first duty of every

citizen to restore law and order as quickly as possible.

The National Guard is equal to cope with the rioting

negroes who are already under control. Let every citi-

zen do his duty and lend his fullest influence to the

prompt restoration of law and order. Do this for the

good name of Tulsa. Keep off the streets where there

are evidences of disorder as much as possible. Make

no needlessly threatening display of arms. The state's

soldiers can do that and do it with the authority of the

law.

Now is the time for every citizen to keep a cool

head, to keep out of mob collections. The quickest and

surest way to restore law is to respect the law. Let the

authorized agents of the law handle those who will

not.

BLACK QUARTER BURNS TO GROUND;

FOUR GUARD UNITS TAKE CHARGE

Seven white persons are known to be dead.

One white woman, shot six times, is expected to die.

Thirty-four whites are wounded in three hospitals. Many other wounded persons are

in their own homes.

Sixty-eight negroes, including men, women, and children, are dead, according to reports

from all districts of the black belt where heavy fighting was waged throughout the night

and up to 9 o-clock this morning.

One hundred blacks are believed wounded.

The officials are in control of the situation and no more armed conflicts are expected.

The entire black belt of Tulsa is a charred mass. The business section of

Greenwood avenue is levelled. Scarcely a building escaped the flames set by

torches when an army of whites invaded that district early this morning to an-

ticipate a general attack on the part of the blacks. Officials at noon today were

unable to estimate the total loss which will extend into many thousands of dollars.

It is estimated that more than 500 homes of negroes were burned. A score of

business buildings and a number of factories were razed. Heavy stocks of mer-

chandise were a total loss.

The fire carried by a strong north wind spread into the white residence

section adjoining the black settlement on North Detroit avenue. Ten homes in a

row were burned before firemen could check the flames. One house was burned

in the immediate vicinity of Standpipe hill.

At 12:30 o'clock the fire in this district was rapidly being brought under

control.

Hundres of white women and children fled from their homes as the leap-

ing flames fanned by a strong wind from the north ate their way to the white

belt. About 11 o'clock the wind subdued, giving the firemen a chance to

successfully combat the flames.

A special train bearing 350 National Guardsmen under the command

of Adjutant General Barrett arrived at 9:05 o'clock this morning. General Bar-

rett issued a statement from guard headquarters at the police station that mar-

tial law would not be declared until he had made a hurried investigation.

Only developments will determine if it is to be invoked,

Barrett added. Companies A and B, totaling 150 men, arrived

on the special train from Oklahoma City, with a second troop

train due from the capital about 11 o'clock. Company B and a

sanitary detachment, both located here, are also on duty and

have been since midnight.

The guards after establishing headquarters in Second

street in front of the police station were ordered to various sec-

tions of the black belt. One contingent was sent to Meulty park,

where several hundred negroes are interned.

General Barrett is now acting under orders issued by Mayor

Evans, Chief of Police Gustafson and Sheriff Bill McCullough.

Following a night of rioting, snip-

ing and open clashes between whites

and blacks hundreds of armed men

invaded the negro district to remove

the menace the blacks there offered.

At 5 o'clock scores of armed men in

automobiles drove to the north side

of the black belt in the vicinity of

Standpipe hill. These white fighters

formed one wing of an encircling

movement entirely surrounding the

negro district. Hundreds of pedes-

trains advanced on the black belt

from the south and west. Hundreds

of shots were fired. Many negroes

were reported to have been wound-

ed while a number of whites were

taken to hospitals with wounds.

The heaviest fighting this morn-

ing  was in the extreme northern sec-

tion of the black belt. Hundreds of

negroes were concentrated in a val-

ley at the base of Sunset hill. Fifty

were barricaded in a church.

Machine Guns In Use.

Deadly volleys of steel were poured

[into?] the ranks of the whites as they

[advanced?] in open formation against

the blacks who stood their ground.

Finally the whites were forced to re-

treat. A call was sent to police head-

quarters for reinforcements. A num-

ber of guardsmen with two machine

guns were rushed in automobiles to

the scene of the fighting. The ma-

chine guns were set up and for 20

minutes poured a stream of lead on

the negroes who sought refuge be-

hind buildings, telephone poles and

in ditches.

The heavy firing came to a sud-

den halt when a huge white cloth

was raised aloft by the negroes. The

church where many negroes were

barricaded was riddled with bullets,

it was said.

Hundreds of negroes with hands

held high in the air walked from

the valley under the guard of armed

civilians. They were taken to Con-

vention hall and McNulty park,

where they were interned.

Whites who returned from the

battle-swept valley said that at least

50 negroes, including men, women

and children, were lying dead. At 10

o'clock authorities had been unable

to make a check of the black losses

in this battle.

Most of the blacks who were killed

met death in the early morning

fighting in the negro section near

the Frisco tracks.

___________________________

THE START

The clash had its inception when

several automobiles loaded with

armed negroes and said to have been

led by "Old Man" Stratford, a ne-

gro hotel proprietor, swung up in

front of the courthouse shortly be-

fore 10 o'clock, bent on protecting

Rowland. Not more than 30 blacks

were in the first party but they suc-

ceeded in virtually taking command

of the situation there because few

of the whites were armed and none

displayed guns. The blacks were or-

dered home by Sheriff McCullough,

who it is said, had armed negro

deputies with him on the courthouse

steps. Barney Cleaver, a former negro

police officer, also advised them to

go home. After the first sally,  dur-

ing which the blacks dispersed part

of the crowd of whites, the negroes

were still permitted to keep their

guns.

Instead of going home, they cir-

cled around several blocks near the

courthouse and came back with an-

other flourish of shot-guns and

rifles. By this time the crowd of

whites had increased to several

thousand with hundreds of women

and a number of children on the

fringes. Most of the whites wer on-

lookers and there appeared to be

no organized mob. After making

known their intention to protect

Rowland at all costs the blacks were

star[ing?] toward home again. There

was still no move on the part of the

sheriff's forces or the city police to

disarm them although the black

force was not more than 50 at this

time.

Instead of going to the negro sec-

tion to stay the blackss whirled

through the streets of the quarter

and sought recruits. Every negro

they met was solicited to joion their

ranks. At Sixth and Cincinnati two

negroes who refused were threat-

ened, according to residents of the

neighborhood who overheard the

conversation.

Shortly after 10 o'clock the blacks

came back to the courthouse with

their biggest force. Estimates place

the number of armed negroes at be-

tween 100 and 200. By this time

it was estimated that probably 100

of the whites in the crowd had

procured arms. A number of whites

who sought guns at the National

Guard armory were refused. Cour-

iers went through the crowd of

whites and warned women and

children and unarmed men to seek

safety. They said they feared an

assault by the blacks. Only a part

of the crowd complied.

The first clash followed on the

heels of this warning. There are

two versions of how the firing be-

gun. According to some of the spectators

pistols were first fired into the air

in front of the Boulder street en-

trance to the courthouse and this,

spectators say, acted as a signal for

the general firing during which the

blacks fired ten shots to each one

for the whites. The crowd of whites

greatly outnumbered the armed

band of negroes but the whites were

helpless in front of the black on-

slaught because they were in con-

stant danger of firing into other

whites if they attempted to protect

the women and children in the crowd

by answering the blacks fire.

Where First Man Fell

After the first volley one carload

of blacks came north on Boulder

avenue, firing as they raced along.

The first white man dropped be-

fore the crash. He had been stand-

ing against the wall of the garage

on Boulder, just south of Sixth

street.

Across the street men and women

in the crowd sought refuge in the

row of houses on Boulder south of

Sixth. Many of them were unoble

to reach cover before the second

volley so they dropped in their

tracks and clung to the earth.

Others hid behind curbs in the

driveways to the garages of these

homes, running to better cover be-

tween the volleys.

Meanwhile the negroes fled.

Some of them ran through the

crowds of women and children,

brandishing their guns. They had

disappeared from the immediate

area of the courthouse within ten

minutes after the first shot had been fired.

Second Version of Start

The second version of the start

of the firing was to the effect that

a number of unarmed white men,

seeing that the officials were not

willing to disarm the blacks, took

that task to themselves. One man

is reported to have dashed into the ranks of blacks and seized one of the

guns. Spectators who relate this as

the true story of the inception of

the shooting declare that the blacks

immediately opened fire when they

were threatened with disarmament.

Shortly after the negroes fled

from the courthouse battlefield an

automobile load of white youths

sped past and fired into the jail

windows on the fourth floor, spec-

tators declared.

John McQueen, a former county

officer and one of the men who at-

tempted to disperse the crowd at the

courthouse, declared today that

Johnny Cody was the negro whose

shot started the general firing here.

"While I was on the steps Cody

and a band of negroes started up,"

McQueen said. "I went to meet them

and a stranger backed me uo. Cody

pushed a gun against him and fired

just as I pushed the gun away. The

stranger went down. Several bullets

went through my coat."

Immediately after this report came

to the crowd that the blacks were

mobilizing for systematic assault on

the whites. The majority of the

white men were still [illegible]. It

became immediately apparent how-

ever, that the police and sheriff's

force were making no attempt to

prevent the return of the blacks so

the white men themselves took

charge of the situation. Small

groups systematically entered all

downtown hardware stores and

pawnshops and took up all the arms

and ammunition that could be found

Nothing else in any of the stores

were touched.

Black Attack Again.

Soon there were more than 1,000

armed men on the streets. Part of

this crowd defended the Hotel Tulsa

and the section around Second street

and Cincinnati avenue from an attack

of blacks who swarmed back within

three quarters of an hour after the

court house battle.

After this second general battle,

which is described elsewhere, the

whites took rapid command of the

situation. Patrols spread quickly to

cover all the principal streets and

the roads leading into the city.

Special guards were put at all bridges

within a several-mile radius to halt

any incoming blacks. Roving pa-

trols moved up and down Main

street. At Main and Archer streets

desultory firing took place for sev-

eral hours. Blacks from their quar-

ter fired repeatedly from behind the

building at Archer street and Boulder

avenue and Archer and Cincinnati

avenue. They were cleared out with-

in an hour or two, but a second

group took their place and held the

negro block on Cincinnati, at the

Frisco tracks, against assault until

early this morning. Two negroes were

killed here and several others wound-

ed. A number of whites were re-

ported wounded in fighting here.

Could Have Disarmed Blacks.

Fully an hour before the first

shots were fired at the courthouse

citizens stood on the south steps and

pleaded with Police Commissioner

Adkison to call out the National

Guard without delay. The negroes

were just beginning to parade the

streets at that time and they argued

that even a small detachment of or-

ganized and equipped men could dis-

arm them, compel them to return to

their own part of ftown, get the

whites to disperse when this had

been accomplished and so avert im-

pending trouble.

Commissioner Adkison answered:

"We are trying to get them out,"

then turned and told the crowd to

obey E. S. McQueen's advice to go

home while the negroes were patrol-

ling the streets in arms, threatening

death and rapine. The police were

powerless.

An hour after the pitched battle

took place around the courthouse

and northward along Main and Bos-

ton, the Guard got into action.

Guardsmen went immediately to the

police station and began an attempt

to disperse the whites who had

armed themselves and gathered

there in expectation of another at-

tack.

_____________________________

The Dead

Carl D. Lotpeisch, 28, Randall

 Kans., shot through breast. Taken to

Oklahoma hospital at 6:30 o'clock

this morning. He died shortly after-

ward.

Unidentified whate man, about

28; light brown hair; light brown

eyes; five feet ten inches; 160

pounds. At the Mowbray undertak-

ing parlors.

F. M. Baker, Havelin, Kan., 27,

short in back with buchshot. Died

this morning at Morningside hospi-

tal. At the Mowbray Undertaking

parlors. An identification card found

in his clothing bore the name of

Norman Gillard, 315 So. Norfolk.

The third white man, unidentified

was killed about 5:45 o'clock this

morning when a squad of white

riflemen engaged a group of ne-

groes on North Cincinnati av. The

body was taken to Mitchell-Fleming

undertaking parlors. He was de-

scribed as about 25 years old, six

feet [ta?]ll, weight 165 punds. He

wore dark green trousers, brown

coat, tan shoes, and a tan belt with

a silver clasp bearing the initial

"W". He was shot in the neck.

Death was instantaneous.

The body of an unidentified white

man about 35, held at the Stanley-

McGee Undertaking parlors still

was unidentified early today. He

was shot in the head.

The body of a white man, about

30, shot in the back of the head, held at

the Mowbray undertaking parlors,

ho[illegible] [ea?]rly last night in the first brush

with the blacks, still was unidentified

this morning.

[1?]0-year-old white boy, though

to [be?] named Olson, home at Sapulpa

died at 8:30 o'clock following a bat-

tle an hour earlier at the Frisco depot

in which two negroes were reported

killed. Olson's body was removed to

the Mitchell-Fleming undertaking

parlors where it awaits positive

identification.

A white girl was reported killed on

North Peoria in the vicinity of the

Texaco plant. the report could not

be verified at 10 o'clock.

____________________________

The Injured

A re-check of the injured revealed

the following at the various hospit-

als:

Oklahoma Hospital.

Earl Hileman, city, shot through

thigh, not serious

G. B. Steck, Sapulpa, shot in back,

serious.

J. E. Wissinger, 150 Admiral or

1202 East Second, shot in knee, not

srious.

G. F. Joiner, 1703 South Main, shot

in leg, not serious.

Ross G. Owens, 1108 South Jack-

son, shot with bird shot, several

wounds but not serious.

E. D. Hartshone, shot in thigh.

Edward Austin, 418 South Detroit,

shot in toe, not serious.

Grocer Slinkhard, West Tulsa, fac-

tured rib.

Robet Elmer, West Tulsa,

A. N. Dow, 401 South Madison,

shot in upper thigh and compound

fracture of arm, serious.

C. C. Thomas, 803 South Main,

shot in leg, not serious.

E. R. Hileam, Fern hotel, com-

pound fracture of thigh, serious.

Garland Crouch, 16 North Quincy,

shot in upper abdomen and right

arm, though serious.

A. T. Sterling, 314 South Zunis,

minor injuries.

Robert Palmore, West Tulsa, shot

in left shoulder, not serious.

E. Belchner, 1437 East Hodge,

shot in hand and leg, not serious.

Lee Fisher, 338 1/2 East First, shot

in left leg and thigh, thought serious.

G. I. Prunkart, Frisco conductor,

shot with bird shot in shoulder, chin

and forehead. He was shot while

sitting in caboose of train just pulling

into city.

There are two wounded patients

unidentified. Fifteen or 20 patients

having only slight wounds called at

hospital and had them dressed, left

hospital without giving name or ad-

dress.

Tulsa Hospital

George Switzgood, 415 N. Detroit;

not serious.

K. G. Logsdon, 308 S. Cincinnatti;

shot in arm; not seriously.

Sergt. W. R. Hastings, 1507 E. Jef-

ferson; not serious. After having his

wounds dressed, Sergeant Hastings

immediately left hospital.

H. L. Curry, Illinois hotel, shot

through neck; serious.

E. F. Vickers, city; arm shot.

M. W. Camble. 220 W. Cam [Iron;?]

thought serious.

Jess Collins, 522 N. Boston; serious.

R. N. Seltzer, 529 S. Utica; leg, not

serious.

Otto Sherry, 112 N. Frisco; face

powder burned.

Thirty-five or forty who were only

slightly wounded were attended at

the hospital. After the wounds were

dressed they walked out, leaving

no name or address.

Physicians & Surgeons Hospital.

R. C. Hankson, Jenks, Okla., tool

dresser; shot through right wrist,

bullet traveling through abdomen

into the left arm; shot at 6:45 a. m.

___________________________

NOTICE TO TELEPHONE

SUBSCRIBERS

          ______________

Please use your telephones only

in case of emergency. This will

assist us in protecting life and pro-

erty.

SOUTHWESTERN BELL TELE-

PHONE COMPANY

___________________________

CURTIS BROWN CO. sells PHOE-

NIX PURE SILK HOSE. Phone 232.

____________________________

We sincerely trust that the

local disturbance is over. We

do not want to give the im-

pression of trying to drive in

business as the result of a

calamity.

It is our duty, however, to

call t he public's attention to

the fact that the standard fire

policies do NOT cover loss re-

sulting from Riot, Insurrection

or Civil Commotion.

We write Riot, Insurrection

and Civil Commotion Insur-

ance and the cost of same is

very slight. Call us for rates.

Policies are written here in

our office. Phone Cedar 2100.

Pearce, Porter & Martin

500 Palace Building

_______________________

NOTICE

______

Because of the race war

the announcement of the re-

maining entrants in The

Tribune beauty contest will

be carried in all editions to-

morrow and none today.

#archivesgov #June 1 #1921 #1920s #Tulsa Massacre #Tulsa #Oklahoma #newspaper #riots #racism #Tulsa100

[todaysdocument]

“The question of whether or not the city has a legal right to pass a fire ordinance for the express purpose of preventing negroes rebuilding frame shacks in the burned area ... is being squarely tried out on its merits today….” Tulsa Tribune, 9/1/1921

Series: Central Decimal Files, 1881 - 1982

Collection: Records of the American National Red Cross, 1881 - 2008

Transcription:

[newspaper article]

TULSA TRIBUNE, TULSA, OKLAHOMA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1921.

BLACKS ATTACK NEW ORDINANCE PASSED BY CITY

Three Judges to Make Final Ruling

The question of whether or not the city has a legal right to pass a fire ordinance for the express purpose of preventing negroes rebuilding frame shacks in the burned area, which was avoided when the negroes won the recent injunction suit on a technicality, is being squarely tried out on its merits today before District Judge W. B. Williams, Valjean Biddison and A. C. Hunt, sitting as a single court.

Their decision this afternoon is expected to settle for all time the rebuilding controversy so far as the local courts are concerned.

The case being tried involves only the north half of the burned district as the same judges recently held that the fire ordinance passed long before the riot effectively prevented the re-construction in the south half of "Little Africa" of all except fireproof buildings.

The present case is an application for a temporary restraining order brought by Judge Mather M. Eakes, prominent white attorney, in behalf of 10 or 12 negro property owners and seeks to enjoin the city from molesting the blacks in rebuilding or otherwise putting in force the fire limit ordinance passed last week after the court held the one enacted just after the riot invalid because of a defect in its publication.

No Frame Buildings.

When the previous ordinance was held invalid City Attorney Frank Duncan announced that he believed the negroes should be permitted to build temporary shacks in the burned area and would urge such an ordinance on the mayor and commissioners.  Duncan made such a recommendation but it was not followed and the new ordinance is identical with the one set aside except that it has been properly published.  The new ordinance went into effect today.

It includes the north half of the devastated area within the city fire limits thereby prohibiting the erection thereon of frame buildings held unlawful under the fire restrictions imposed.

Judge Eakes is attacking the ordinance on the ground that it is unconstitutional.  He argued before the court today that it is invalid and should be set aside because it involves an unreasonable and unjust exercise of the police power of the city.  He gave the further reason that it was enacted in bad faith, not for the purpose of crating fire limits but to force the conversion of the area into an industrial district and thereby prohibiting the negro owners from using the land for its original and rightful purpose.

Unconstitutional He Says.

"We are raising the question in this case," explained Judge Eakes to the court "that this ordinance is a direct attempt to take property without due process of law, herefore violates the constitution of the United States and also the constitution of Oklahoma, which provides that property cannot be taken for private purposes, either with or without compensation, without the consent of the owner."

Should a temporary restraining order be granted, it was generally admitted that a permanent injunction would follow as a matter of course, for the points argued involve permanent rather than temporary conditions.  For that reason lawyers said the decision today would settle the case or force an appeal to the supreme court.

 The courtroom was crowded with negro property owners and riot suffers during the hearing, a number of them taking the witness stand and describing in detail present conditions in the area, which, they declared, are unsatisfactory, unsanitary and do not admit of being made permanent.

[Two other September 2, 1921 newspaper articles are underneath.]

#archivesgov #September 1 #1921 #1920s #Tulsa Race Massacre #Tulsa100 #racism #Black history #African American history

[warriorsouljah-blog]

100 years ago today Americans led a terrorist assault of a town of fellow Americans, with support from the city police dept and later the US Military. #NeverForget #tulsamassacre #tulsa #tulsaok #tulsa100years #blackwallstreet #terrorism #terrorist #terrorists #americanterrorists #americanterrorist #americanterrorism #ushistory #americanhistory #blackhistory #Racism is a #nationalsecurity #issue Reposted from @smartfunnyandblack #tulsa100 Tulsa Race Massacre - Tulsa Race Riot, the Greenwood Massacre, the Black Wall Street Massacre, the Tulsa Pogrom, or the Tulsa Massacre - It's been known by many names over the past 100 years but has still meant only one thing, the obliteration of Black people minding their own damn business. 100 years ago today was the start of the #TulsaRiots and they continued on into June 1, 1929. It was one of "the single worst incidents of racial violence in American history. About 10,000 Black people were left homeless, and property damage amounted to more than $1.5 million in real estate and $750,000 in personal property (equivalent to $32.65 million today). Many survivors left Tulsa, while Black and White residents who stayed in the city kept silent about the terror, violence, and resulting losses for decades. The massacre was largely omitted from local, state, and national histories for more than 75 years. READ MORE: www.tulsahistory.org www.okhistory.org www.tulsa2021.org Tulsa 1921: Reporting a Massacre by Randy Krehbiel The Ground Breaking: An American City and Its Search for Justice by Scott Ellsworth Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre by Carol Boston Weatherford and Floyd Cooper Magic City by Jewell Parker Rhodes The Burning: Massacre, Destruction, and the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 by Tim Madigan DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE RIGHTS TO THE CONTENT AND SHARE IT UNDER THE FAIR USE ACT. I acknowledged the original content poster and/or owner, to the best of my knowledge. https://www.instagram.com/p/CPjZRExBPZH/?utm_medium=tumblr

#neverforget #tulsamassacre #tulsa #tulsaok #tulsa100years #blackwallstreet #terrorism #terrorist #terrorists #americanterrorists #americanterrorist #americanterrorism #ushistory #americanhistory #blackhistory #racism #nationalsecurity #issue #tulsa100 #tulsariots