2. Grandma told me about “The Night Tulsa Died”. She started by saying that most black people in the United States originally came from Africa.

4. Whole families were forced onto big ships as slaves

5. . And brought to the USA

10. “ Black Wall Street” 37 block, black community The Greenwood District Tulsa, Oklahoma USA 1921

12. A prosperous community that had professional men and women of color, and well educated children.

16. A pool hall

19. Tulsa had Dunbar elementary and secondary schools. Two Newspapers; the Tulsa Star and Oklahoma Sun. Restaurants, cleaners, and more than 30 grocery stores. But racial segregation was pervasive.

22. A dollar passed from one community member to another 47 times before it left the Greenwood District, “The Black Wall Street”, so coined by Booker T. Washington.

24. Roland accidently tripped on the uneven elevator threshold and fell into Sara Page, a white girl, elevator operator. Caught off guard, and stunned, she cried out. The onlookers called the Tulsa police, and Roland was arrested, and accused of an alleged rape attempt .

27. 25 leaders of the black community, armed themselves and went to the court house with the intention of protecting the young shoe shine boy from the white lynch mob that was growing. But were turned away by the sheriff. .

28. .

30. And shocking exhibitionism.

31. .

37. .

42. children

43. Telephone and telegraph lines were cut and the railroad was blocked. no communication to the outside world was possible.

45. .

52. Marshall Law was enacted The National Guard was called. They brought… machine guns.

56. 10,000 black Americans were left homeless . There were untold numbers of dead, wounded, and missing.

57. And after it was all over, black men were forced to clean up the ashes.

58. A tent city was set up on the fair grounds. A thousand lived in that condition for more than a year

59. Nothing would ever be the same.

60. “ I’m 107 , but I remember 90 years ago, I remember that night. The Arkansas River was clogged with bodies, a large pit was dug in the cemetery, and a hay bailer was used to tie the bodies together. One man heard the sheriff say “go out there and shoot you a ‘nigger’, and the law will be on your side” and that’s just what they did.” Otis Clark

61. What happened to the shoeshine boy? He was never charged – and let go.

62. Your Grandfather saved his own fathers life, by using the law. J.B. was accused of starting the riot, and your Grandfather was able to stop his extradition which would mean death. In 1997 J.B. was posthumously exonerated from any wrong doing.