Rebuilding Black Wealth: Lessons From Black Wall Street

In the early 20th century in the heart of Tulsa, Oklahoma, African American entrepreneur Ottawa W. Gurley defied the odds, purchased 40 acres of land, and built something extraordinary. The Greenwood district in Tulsa, famously known as Black Wall Street, was a thriving economic powerhouse where Black entrepreneurs, professionals, and families flourished. Barbershops buzzed with conversation, banks financed Black-owned businesses, and grand theaters hosted the finest performances. Between 1910 and 1920, Tulsa’s population surged nearly fourfold, and Greenwood grew into 35 successful city blocks, home to 108 Black-owned businesses, with a flourishing economy where each dollar circulating within the Black community nearly 30 times before leaving. Gurley’s real estate holdings were valued at over $150,000 at the time—equivalent to nearly $5 million today. Meanwhile, entrepreneur J.B. Stradford (who worked closely with Gurley) built his luxury hotel to rival the finest white-owned establishments in Tulsa with an estimated worth of $75,000 (about $2.5 million today). At a time when systemic racism sought to keep African Americans on the margins, Black Wall Street carved a path to economic mobility, proving that wealth and success were possible despite segregation. It became a testament to resilience, and a model of what Black economic empowerment...