Celebrating Black History Month: Sarah Rector, first black millionaire in Oklahoma

Sarah Rector, born March 3, 1902 in Indian Territory near what is now Taft, Oklahoma, was the granddaughter of Creek Indians who were born before the Civil War.  Under the Treaty of 1866, she inherited land. However, the plot of land allotted to her was unsuitable for farming, and about 60 miles from where she and her family lived.

To help allay costs of property taxes, her father leased Sarah's land to the Standard Oil Company in February 1911.  In 1913, oil was discovered, with a daily yield of 2500 barrels of oil, and $300, which would be equivalent to $9,800 in 2023. Sarah became a millionaire before she was 12, the richest little girl in Oklahoma.

Because of her wealth, the Oklahoma Legislature tried to have her declared white, since many white people could not handle the thought of a young, black girl being rich.

After an article about her appeared in The Chicago Defender, Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois became concerned for her welfare, and wanted to be sure she was not taken advantage of.  DuBois established the Children's Department of the NAACP, which investigated claims of white guardians suspected of depriving black children of their land and wealth. 

Rector enrolled in the Children's School, a boarding school at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, and entered the institute upon graduation. She increased her wealth by owning stocks, bonds, businesses and a 2000-acre piece of land. 

She moved her family to Kansas City, Missouri and lived a comfortable life, entertaining celebrities such as Count Basie and Duke Ellington.  During the Great Depression she lost much of her wealth, but she became involved in the civil rights movement.

She passed away in 1967.

Celebrating Black History Month: E. Melvin Porter, Oklahoma's first black senator

Edward Melvin Porter, born May 22, 1930 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, was the first African American to sit in the Oklahoma State Senate.  He was a layer and served as the president of the Oklahoma City NAACP.

He was elected to the Oklahoma State Senate in 1964 and served until 1987.

He passed away in Oklahoma City in June 2016.

Elaine Massacre, Arkansas 1919

The summer following the end of World War I in 1919 became known as the Red Summer, in which mobs of white men attacked and killed black men in dozens of cities across the United States.  In Arkansas, landowners used the black man's ability to read or write to their advantage and ensured the black population remained mired in debt.  

Robert Hill, a black farmer from Winchester, Arkansas, founded the Progressive Farmers and Household Union of American (PFHUA) to help farmers get fair pay for their crops and negotiate for better conditions.  

Whites saw this as a prelude to insurrection.  On September 30, 1919, the PFHUA met with about 100 black farmers at a church near Elaine to discuss their options.  They placed armed guards outside to protect the meeting.  When two deputized, white men and a black trustee showed up, shots were fired.  One of the white men was killed and the other wounded.  It has never been determined who fired the first shot, but it ignited a powder keg.

The sheriff called for a posse to capture the suspects and prevent a black insurrection.  As many as 1000 men were estimated to have answered the call.  They attacked and killed black people on sight.  Arkansas Governor Charles Brough called it a Negro uprising, saying black people planned to kill white leaders. 

Official records at the time count eleven black men and five white men killed.  Other estimates claim up to 237 black men killed.  An investigation resulted in indictments against 122 blacks for the murders of the white men.  

Twelve defendants, known as the Arkansas Twelve (or Elaine Twelve) were eventually convicted by all-white juries and sentenced to death in the electric chair.  The NAACP appealed to the Supreme Court, who overturned the death sentences since they determined the men's convictions lacked due process.  In 1923, the Arkansas Twelve were released.