The Rise and Fall of Black Wall Street

by Robin Oliver Walker

Did you know that African Americans in Oklahoma created a ‘Negro Wall Street’ in the early 1920s? The Oklahoma city of Tulsa in 1921 had a Black hospital, a Black public library, 2 Black public schools, 2 Black newspapers, 2 Black theatres, 5 hotels, 13 churches, 30 restaurants and perhaps 600 Black businesses! What was the story of this great Black achievement? What happened to all of this? In this inspiring lecture essay, Robin Walker, addresses these questions.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

97 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[DeeReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative but basic overview on the rise and fall of Black Wall Street!

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent quick overview of Tulsa’s ‘Black Wall Street’

Good read and basic overview of Black business achievements in Tulsa and the lead up to the riots that destroyed the black district. I wish the author had discussed more thoroughly/specifically the events of the race riots and the aftermath/consequences for the black residents of Tulsa. How did the loss of this district affect the following generations of Tulsa blacks and what vestiges (if any) of this violent episode remain today?

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential overview of Black Wall Street

Well-written and documented overview that enables the reader to fundamentally understand the Rise and Fall of Tulsa’s Black Wall Street in 1921. There are more books on the subject that go into great depth should the reader become interested in digging deeper into this forgotten piece of important American history.

[SassafrasfromAmazon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0🌟

Very informative account of "Black Wall Street" in Tulsa, Oklahoma between 1899 and 1921 and a good historical perspective about how the truly self-sufficient and prosperous Greenwood Street came into being. And, how all of the black businesses, homes, schools, banks and other buildings were totally destroyed, burned to the ground by whites. This book is a short read, contains a wealth of information, and it also offers some speculative theories germane to the start of the race war. Typically I prefer a more authoritative, scholarly work, but this is a good starting point. In addition, this book is in serious need of editing.

[john alston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Education will always be key......

Reading this I wondered
How many folk are really willing to speaking such atrocities? Straight to the point and informative......Education not readily discussed in today's society.....

[Dave Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well detailed, a bit difficult to read, but well worth it. If you don't know about this subject you will be very interested in what happened years ago to the the Black community. Needed more of the history.

[Clara Robinson-El · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting easy read

I enjoyed this story held my attention and left me wanting more on the history of the Black Wall Street s that story

[Kareem M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew this story and this book made me sad/angry.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't see it on Goodreads, but the version of this that I read is actually two books/long essays. One is The Rise & Fall of Black Wall Street and the other is called The Seven Key Empowerment Principles. I liked the first books and parts of the first chapter of the second. My interest was in reading an account of the burning of Black Wall Street written by a Black author, as opposed to Walker's purpose which is more about inspiring Black people to achieve financial success. I didn't realize that when I bought the book, so I ended up skimming most of the second half. The advice seems fine, but not particularly unique, and I am skeptical of writing that uses so many CAPS per page. However, if you want a brief intro to the Tulsa Massacre, I would recommend this book.

[Nabir Stowinn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick Primer on Black Wall Street

This book was actually a lecture on the topic which caught me off guard. However, it was a quick read that left me more informed on this subject than before I began. I found the authors arguments as to the causes of the riots on point especially when I read the quotes from the citizens of Tulsa at that time. The author also provided good resources if one wants to dive deeper into the subject which I found helpful. If you are looking for quick, easy to digest information on this subject then this book is for you.

[Nikki Hutton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a solid book and provided a lot of information that I didn’t know about Black Wall Street in Tulsa, the Tulsa massacre and the wealth of black empires.
The author pulled a lot of info from other financial educators that I’ve previously studied. She also repeated info multiple times which I found annoying but she could have done to drive certain points home.
This book should have been proofread as there are a few errors but overall it’s solid.

[felica c. newsome-dent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informational

Book was very informational. I would recommend this for adults & young adults to read. It has some good information on how a successful black community was taken by jealous white folk who could not stand to see African Americans prosper which is still in existence today.

[Ro]

The Rise and Fall of Black Wall Street

[Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read, with the addition of The Seven Key Empowerment Principles it elevates to great heights of enriching others.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is some interesting material here, but the current version is very brief, repetitive, missing the connections to broader themes and not well edited. The right author and editor could produce a very good book - the material is very interesting and helped me learn about African-American culture in Oklahoma that I was not aware of.

[JOY D MILLER · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative: A starting point for learning more

The writer seemed to try and present the information from a non bias view. Although there was a lot of information not included in the lecture, I do believe it is a good place to start.

[Tawana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good "history" lesson. I was not aware of the origination of Black Wall Street. This is likely something I could have Googled though. Not sure this was "book worthy." Still a good history lesson.

[Ginger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is great for those that don't know anything about Black Wallstreet .
It's an easy read that you can probably finish in a day.
It also provides some additional resources and books if you want to know more,which I highly recommend.

[John Darr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative book.

[Saturn Brathwaite · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's good

It's good

A short historical read that was informative however, more information would have helped flesh out the narrative. It was good.

[V.R. Foreman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thought provoking...

[Katrina Nichols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick read

Snackable bits of knowledge. I read this before going to bed. I had heard of black wall street but had no idea where it was or how it fell. Interesting piece.

[Darrel Bush · Rating 5 out of 5]

Knowing is half the battle!

Thus is a great read for all blacks when trying to understand your self worth and the power you have in staying united. I love this read!

[Elliot Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Live and lear

I was surprised great I agree with the author what is the point in learning history of were not going to practice what we learn

[Robert V. McClintock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Nice facts and information about the history of "black wall street" A good book to learn about the flourishing of the African American community

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read. I have another thicker book on the subject that may go into more detail, but this seemed to capture the gist. My version also included an addendum that I believe was titled, "The five principles to success" that was also worth the read.

Book is already on loan and when it is done, I intend to donate it to the local library as my dorm room space is limited.