Tulsa Race Massacre: A History from Beginning to End by History Hourly

Author:History, Hourly
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hourly History
Published: 2023-09-23T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

The Oklahoma National Guard

“While the records show 763 wounded, this does not include wounded people afterwards found on practically all roads leading out of Tulsa.”

—Maurice Willows

The governor of Oklahoma called out the Oklahoma National Guard on hearing of events in Tulsa during the night. These troops arrived in the city at around 9:30 in the morning of June 1, having traveled by train from Oklahoma City. By the time they arrived, the destruction of Greenwood was almost complete, and when martial law was declared in Tulsa at 11:30 that morning, there was little left to steal or burn. At this time, the state troops moved across the city, setting up roadblocks. Any black people found were taken into custody. Whites were told to go home.

Unlike the Tulsa police and Home Guard, the Oklahoma National Guard seems to have arrived with the genuine intention of stopping the rioting and the attacks on Greenwood. Most of the residents of Tulsa, including black people, praised the actions of the National Guard, though most also noted that if they had arrived earlier, it might have been possible to prevent some of the killing and destruction.

Later, there would be a great deal of debate about why the National Guard was not called in earlier. Under Oklahoma law, the National Guard can only be called out at the request of local authorities. Tulsa Police Chief Gustafson later testified under oath that he had called Adjutant General Barrett of the Oklahoma National Guard during the evening of May 31, virtually as soon as the shooting had started. He claimed that he had requested at that point that the National Guard should be dispatched to Tulsa. Barrett was equally vehement that Gustafson had not called him but that he had called Gustafson on hearing of the situation in the city. He claimed that he was told by Gustafson that the situation was in-hand and that there was no need to send in troops.

It wasn’t until two o’clock in the morning of June 1 that a formal telegram was sent to Barrett requesting that the National Guard be sent to Tulsa. It would take the Guard some hours to arrive, and by that time, it was too late to prevent the large-scale assault on Greenwood that happened at dawn on June 1. In addition, when the Guard finally arrived in Tulsa, they were not initially able to do anything at all. The law required that they be directed by the police chief, but he couldn’t be found.

Due to this delay, it wasn’t until more than two hours after arriving in Tulsa that the members of the National Guard finally began to restore order. By that time, it was too late for Greenwood and for many of that area’s residents. To many people, the late arrival of the National Guard and the delay in having them take up positions in the city were directly caused by the actions (and inaction) of Police Chief Gustafson. That, in turn, suggested to some that he had been complicit in the destruction of Greenwood.

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