1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Graves Update

(TULSA, Okla.) The Public Oversight Committee for the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Graves Investigation will meet virtually Thursday, April 29 at 5 p.m. The Public Oversight Committee will continue to discuss the investigation of the Original 18 site at Oaklawn Cemetery. The City of Tulsa will also share additional logistics and information about the excavation scheduled this summer.

Citizens can attend the virtual meeting at: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/699877965. 

The access code is 699-877-965.

Last summer, at least 12 coffins holding human remains were discovered where researchers previously detected anomalies. It is unknown if these burials are associated with the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Further efforts to identify those remains and their causes of death continue to date.

The remains were discovered in the historic African American section of Oaklawn Cemetery, previously referenced as the "Original 18" site. The area also sits adjacent to two headstones of known 1921 race massacre victims.

Funeral home records and other documents from 1921 show that at least 18 identified and unidentified African American massacre victims were buried in the City-owned cemetery.