The homes and buildings of the Black community and The Dreamland Theatre
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In the season finale of Someone Lived Here we learn the story of the Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The neighborhood was 35 blocks and became known as Black Wall Street. It was a thriving Black community and the site of The Tulsa Massacre. It was later rebuilt even bigger than before, but today very few original buildings are standing. We follow the story of the Dreamland Theatre and the owner, Loula T Williams and her son, William Danforth Williams.
In this episode, we interview Hannibal B Johnson, an attorney and writer from Tulsa, Oklahoma who has written multiple books including Black Wall Street: From Riot to Renaissance in Tulsa’s Historic Greenwood District and Images of America: Tulsa’s Historic Greenwood District.
Thank you to the Tulsa Historical Society & Museum for use of their audio recordings.
At the end of the episode, Kendra gave herself a homework assignment. She would love for you to join. The description is below:
Research the history of your town or city, your neighborhood, your state.
Ask questions like: Were there Black communities here? Were there native communities? Were violent acts committed? When and where was that highway built? Were people of color displaced? See what you find, but then here is the most important part. Add what you find to your town or cities Wikipedia. Include your sources.
Wikipedia is how the world learns about a place or a topic. And these histories are often written from one source and I think it’s worth adding a lot more. It is not the responsibility of historians of color to uncover wrongs. It is the job of everyone to uncover the past so we can recognize the damage and use that knowledge to build a future.
Below are some additional resources that might help in your research. I will be adding more to this list, along with best practices for updating Wikipedia pages:
Renewing Inequality is a tool developed by a team at University of Richmond. It allows you to see displacement caused by Urban Renewal map its timeline and who was affected.
Saving Slave Houses is a project by Jobie Hill which documents still standing slave homes across the country.
Below is a transcript for season 2, episode 6 of Someone Lived Here and the story of the Greenwood District before and after the Tulsa Massacre. If you have any questions about the show or suggestions on how to make it more accessible please reach out at someonelivedhere@gmail.com.
Continue reading “The Greenwood District, before and after the Tulsa Massacre”
