African Americans in Oklahoma
African Americans in Oklahoma or Black Oklahomans are residents of the state of Oklahoma who are of African American ancestry. African Americans have a rich history in Oklahoma.[1][2] An estimated 7.8% of Oklahomans are Black.[3]
![]() Elderly African American Sharecroppers in 1914 | |
Total population | |
---|---|
289,961 |
Part of a series on |
African Americans |
---|
|
African-Americans first settled in Oklahoma during the Trail of Tears. While many of these people were African slaves, around 500 chose to do so in order to escape slavery.[4]
Racism against Blacks has been common throughout the state's history, manifesting itself in scenarios such as the Tulsa race massacre, which targeted members of Tulsa's affluent African-American Greenwood District.[5]
History
_(cropped).tif.jpg.webp)
All-black towns
Entirely black towns and neighborhoods were historically common in Oklahoma, and thirteen still exist.[6][7] This is a list of all remaining African American towns in Oklahoma:
Black newspapers
A list of historically black-owned/edited newspapers, serving primarily black communities, established in Oklahoma.[8]
- Clearview Tribune
- Creek Baptist Herald
- Lawton Community Guide
- The Baptist Informer
- The Beacon
- The Black Dispatch
- The Boley Informer
- The Boley News
- The Bookertree Searchlight
- The Chickasaw Rival
- The Clarksville Echo
- The Clearview Patriarch
- The Langston City Herald
- The Lawton Oklahoma Eagle
- The Lima Observer
- The Lincoln Tribune
- The Muskogee Cimeter
- The Muskogee Lantern
- The New Community Guide
- The Oklahoma Dispatch
- The Oklahoma Eagle
- The Oklahoma Guide
- The Oklahoma Safeguard
- The Oklahoma Tribune
- The Paden Press
- The Paden Times
- The Patriarch
- The Peoples Elevator
- The Taborian Monitor
- The Tulsa Star
- The Wagoner Echo
- The Weekly Progress
- The Western World
- The Wewoka and Lima Courier
- The Wichita Observer
Notable residents
- Green Currin, first African American to serve in the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature
- Lelia Foley, first Black female mayor in the United States
- A. C. Hamlin, first African American in the Oklahoman legislature
- Edward P. McCabe, politician
See also
References

- "African Americans | The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- "Black History is Oklahoma History". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Oklahoma". www.census.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- "African American History & Culture in Oklahoma". TravelOK.com - Oklahoma's Official Travel & Tourism Site. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- Huddleston, Tom Jr. (2020-07-04). "'Black Wall Street': The history of the wealthy Black community and the massacre perpetrated there 100 years ago". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- "Throwback Tulsa: The 13 historic all-Black towns that remain in Oklahoma". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- Young, Marcus (October 15, 2021). "All-Black Towns of Oklahoma". State Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved 2021-12-30 – via ArcGIS Story Maps.
- "African-American Newspapers". The Gateway to Oklahoma History. Retrieved 2023-05-04.