John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park

Reconciliation Park is the long-awaited result of the 2001 Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921. It memorializes the Tulsa Race Riot, called the worst civic disturbance in American history. The Park also tells the story of African Americans’ role in building Oklahoma and thus begins the long-delayed rendering of the full account of Oklahoma’s history.

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Greenwood Cultural Center​

A tour of historic Greenwood must begin at the Greenwood Cultural Center. The building’s most valuable contribution is an impressive collection of historic black and white photos of the survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre, newspaper articles from around the world, and an additional collection of black and white photos. Photos of Indian Territory, Oklahoma statehood, Black Wall Street, 1921 Tulsa Race Riot/Massacre during,  and the rebuilding of the Greenwood District are on permanent display.  An exhibition of the Survivors speaks of their memory of the Race Massacre can be found in the Goodwin-Chappelle Gallery. These images give visitors an enlightened view of our historically significant contributions by these early pioneers.

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Ellis Walker Woods Memorial

The Ellis Walker Woods Memorial honors the first principal of Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High School. A labor of love for more than 30 years, the conception, fundraising, and construction of the memorial was guided by a dedicated committee of Booker T. Washington alumni and supporters. The memorial was dedicated on August 16, 2019. 

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The Historic Vernon A.M.E. Church

The historic Vernon A.M.E. Church is the only standing black-owned structure from the Historic Black Wall Street era and the only edifice that remains from the worst race massacre in American history. To this day, Vernon A.M.E. Church remains a visual reminder of the Massacre and the reconstruction process. 

 

Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Mt. Zion Baptist Church was founded in 1909 under the leadership of Rev. Sandy Lyons. The original site of the church was a one-room framed schoolhouse. Mt. Zion had just opened its new church and held its first service on April 4, 1921. Because it was the newest building in the neighborhood, rioters burned it down on June 1, 1921 during the Race Massacre.

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Standpipe Hill / Sunset Hill

White rioters used the high elevation of Standpipe Hill to fire down upon the Greenwood District with a machine gun and riddled the church tower with its devastating fire. Deadly firefights erupted at the site of an old clay pit off of Standpipe Hill and along the northern edge of Sunset Hill. As mobs poured into the southern end of the African-American district, as many as six airplanes, manned by whites, appeared overhead, firing on fleeing blacks and perhaps, in some cases, dropping explosives.

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Historic Greenwood Business District

Perhaps nowhere else in America is there a single thoroughfare which registers such significance to the African-American diaspora as Greenwood Ave, “Negro Wall Street” known for its prominence and progress during the early 20th century. By 1921, Tulsa’s African American population had grown to almost 11,000 residence and encompassed a bustling 35 square block of businesses and residential structures. Greenwood was bordered by the Frisco railroad yards to the south, by Lansing Street and the Midland Valley tracks to the east and by Standpipe and Sunset hills to the west. The section line, now known as Pine Street had for many years been the northernmost boundary of the African-American community. 

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