TULSA, Okla. — May 31 marked 104 years since the 1921 Tulsa race massacre.
While historians are still learning more about what happened before, during, and after the tragedy, Tulsans are also rediscovering their ties to it and their family histories.
2 News Oklahoma listened to those here at a genealogy workshop about learning not just about history — but about themselves.
The group Justice for Greenwood put on a workshop series called “The Stories of Us: Connecting Through Generations” for anyone searching for names, clarity, and the stories they were never told.
Ameisha Wagner told 2 News “there's a huge gap” in her family tree when it comes to the massacre. “I mean, it's an unknown. It is literally a black hole.”
A handful of genealogists not only taught attendees how to properly research their ancestors but also sat down with them — one-on-one — to unearth their family trees, using whatever information they had.
Wagner told us she just found out last week she has dozens of cousins in Tulsa she had no clue about, saying, “My initial thought was, if I have family in Tulsa, they had to have been here during the race massacre.”
She spent May 31 searching for records of her great-grandmother Rosa Jackson-Byrd (1911 - 1997) and what kind of connection she had to the race massacre.
She mentioned the research process was a journey of self-discovery, saying, “It helps me find out more of who I am and what my purpose is, what I'm supposed to do and give back.”
Allegedly, Jackson-Byrd’s cousins escaped the horror of the massacre by walking down the Midland Valley Railroad tracks from Tulsa to her home in Muskogee.
Wagner said the workshop was “absolutely” helpful, telling us, “I found two cousins that I didn't know existed, that were connected to my great-grandmother. So, that's a stepping stone at least.”
“Their records will connect you to other people,” she added. “It's a rabbit hole.”
Nia Hunt wanted to know more about her grandfather, Earl Hunt, who was born sometime in 1921 and died in 1993.
When we asked her if he had any ties to the massacre at all, she replied, “I'm not entirely sure. That's the problem … because we cannot find an accurate birth certificate.”
With whatever documents he might have had possibly lost or burnt in the massacre, she added, “We can't find anything extending past him.”
Hunt told us she’s been searching for seven years so her relatives can have and pass on their family’s history for generations to come, saying, “They’re getting older.”
“Everybody has a story, and who wouldn't want their father's story?” she continued. “Who wouldn't want their mother's story? Who wouldn't want to know who they are?”
We asked her if her research hit harder than normal on May 31, the massacre’s anniversary. “It does, honestly,” she responded.
Hunt said it made her feel like there's no way she can find those records.
“It’s getting harder for me to even find that type of information out, or it may be nonexistent,” she emphasized. “We may not get closure. It's upsetting because I don't know where to go after that.”
However, she holds out hope that her new know-how will eventually find her family records — or at least put her in touch with distant relatives who may have leads.
“It has to be somewhere,” said Hunt. “Someone has to know something.”
“If I don't get closure, at least someone will,” she added.
Wagner urged other people with family histories intertwined with major events not to lose those stories, saying, “You have people out there; look for them. You get to tell their story. You get to speak for them.”
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube
