Greenwood: Tulsa's Black Wall Street
Photo: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
In the early 1900s, Black families built a thriving district here on Tulsa's north side, with hotels, theaters, churches, doctors' offices and a newspaper. On May 31 and June 1, 1921, a white mob burned it. Greenwood rebuilt, then lost much of its heart again when an interstate was driven through it.
This walk follows that story through ten stops: Greenwood Rising, the sidewalk plaques of Deep Greenwood, the highway overpass, Vernon AME Church, the Greenwood Cultural Center and the Black Wall Street Memorial, Mount Zion Baptist Church, John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park and the Pathway to Hope. The last stop, Oaklawn Cemetery, is about a mile south, where the search for massacre victims goes on.
The core loop takes about 90 minutes on foot, on city sidewalks. Start at Greenwood Rising, at Greenwood Avenue and Archer Street. The stories here are painful; take your time, and remember that this is a living neighborhood.
10 stops on this tour:
Greenwood Rising - Where Black Wall Street Began
Deep Greenwood - Plaques Underfoot
I-244 Overpass - The Second Destruction
Vernon AME Church - The Basement That Survived
Greenwood Cultural Center - Keeping the Memory
Black Wall Street Memorial - Names That Remain
Mount Zion Baptist Church - A Debt Paid in Full
Reconciliation Park - Hostility, Humiliation, Hope
Pathway to Hope - Stitching Greenwood Back Together
Oaklawn Cemetery - The Search for the Missing
Plan your visit
- Route: 10 stops · about 2.1 miles · walking, one way
- Time: about 1.5 hours at an easy pace, with stops
- Start: Greenwood Rising (directions)
- Cost: free tour
- Audio: narrated - tap ▶ Listen at the top of any stop
Stops on this tour
- Greenwood Rising - Where Black Wall Street Began
- Deep Greenwood - Plaques Underfoot
- I-244 Overpass - The Second Destruction
- Vernon AME Church - The Basement That Survived
- Greenwood Cultural Center - Keeping the Memory
- Black Wall Street Memorial - Names That Remain
- Mount Zion Baptist Church - A Debt Paid in Full
- Reconciliation Park - Hostility, Humiliation, Hope
- Pathway to Hope - Stitching Greenwood Back Together
- Oaklawn Cemetery - The Search for the Missing