The Elbow, OK

The Elbow was an African American community built just West of downtown Guthrie in the late 1800s/ Early 1900s. Its location in a floodplain led to its eventual abandonment by the 1980s due to extensive flood damage. It was one of the many all-black communities built in the period after the Civil War when Reconstruction Treaties led to the loss of  Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw and Seminole tribal lands due to their support of the Confederacy. The allotment process of the Reconstruction Treaties of 1866 created an opportunity for freed African Americans to become landowners in what would become the State of Oklahoma.

The Elbow formed because Guthrie was the last stop on the Santa Fe rail line on the way to Langston, Oklahoma, a town 13 miles northeast of Guthrie that was developed to be owned and operated by African Americans. That distance was hard for families with little economic opportunity to travel, which led to many families settling in abandoned rail cars and wheat houses along Cottonwood Creek. 

According to an interview collected by the Works Progress Administration with Fanny Allen, one of the original settlers of The Elbow, many African American families gathered in Guthrie because a section of land west of town was being considered to become part of Guthrie. Once the Supreme Court decided the section should become part of the town, word spread quickly and overnight black families set out to stake claims on the land. It was named The Elbow because of the shape of the Cottonwood River which encircles the land- making it an island.

Unfortunately, the creek that led to the community’s name also led to its downfall. The area was plagued by flooding, disrupting business and damaging homes. After a particularly damaging flood in the 1970s destroyed multiple bridges connecting the elbow to the rest of Guthrie, families began leaving the historic community. By the 1990’s everyone had left the island. Now nature is slowly reclaiming the area, and more and more buildings are damaged and washed away by floodwaters every year.

Conservation Efforts

In 2022, The City of Guthrie announced plans to build new bridges to the island, which will connect to walking trails around the island. Some funding has been secured from the state from the tourism department, with plans to build an ADA-accessible parking lot and trailhead connected to a paved trail.  Plans for benches, signs explaining the history of the area, and even an augmented reality mobile app to show the area before flood damage are also being considered. Various approvals and additional funding are still needed for the project to continue, but with the help of community groups like the Guthrie Collective, one day The Elbow may become the symbol of hope and community it once was. 

Mount Zion Baptist Church

Built: 1923 Abandoned: 1970s

The remains of Mount Zion Baptist Church are of the few buildings still recognizable from its former glory. Built in 1893 on 7th and Perkins Street,, the church was founded by Reverend A.P. Jordan, George House and Susanna Wiley.

The Church was very popular, hosting many Baptist conventions and gatherings, Speeches from higher-ups at the nearby Langston University, and traveling preachers, attracting visitors from across the country.

On June 28th, 1921, the church completely burned down overnight. The congregation immediately set to work rebuilding the church, starting with the basement, where churchgoers gathered as they finished building the rest of the building. By 1923, the Church had been completely restored, thanks to the hard work of its Parishioners. 

The front steps that hundreds of community members climbed for Sunday Service stand to this day, alongside several walls with recognizable dome-shaped openings where windows used to be. Eventually, the church moved and is still open on Vilas Avenue, where they recently celebrated their 130th anniversary in 2023.

Noble Park Pavillion

Built: 1936 Abandoned: 

The creation of Noble Park was fraught with controversy- In November 1892, Trustees of the town of Guthrie officially made The Elbow part of Guthrie, and allotted 17.9 acres of that land for a public park. According to Department of the Interior records, 20-30 people, led by a man named George Nichols, applied for deeds claiming occupancy on the land set aside for the park. This led to a series of appeals which lasted until 1895, escalating the matter to the Commissioner of the General Land office, who eventually sided with the trustees to set the land aside for a park.

Noble Park’s controversy didn’t end after its construction- Jim Crow laws and segregation led to it being designated a park for African Americans. Its existence was used to justify not allowing Black residents to visit Mineral Wells Park in Downtown Guthrie, except to gather water from the fountains. 

A pavilion was constructed in 1910 for the park but was destroyed by fire in the 1930s. At the start of 1936, a delegation of citizens started a campaign to re-construct a pavilion at the park. Then mayor, R. A. Estus said that he would take the matter up with the city council at their next session.

Come fall the new Noble Park Pavilion was announced under a National Youth Administration project. The NYA was originally a component of the Works Progress Administration but soon broke off to be its own project. With that four crews consisting of ten boys each worked five days a week to rebuild the pavilion in Noble Park. This time it would be constructed of stone to prevent burning down like the last one.

Like the rest of the Elbow, Noble Park was damaged by floodwaters, with the low lying open field being particularly susceptible to high waters. As far back as 1911, community members were raising concerns about water levels rising from 5 to 20 feet in the park, making it impossible to enjoy year round, unlike the supposedly separate but equal Mineral Wells Park.  

Despite the flooding and segregation, Noble Park was constantly used by the community, with frequent picnics, political rallies, church meetings, and other events being held there. 

To this day, the pavilion is in remarkably good condition, with a solid roof and little structural damage.  A small bathroom building next to the pavilion also stands, but its roof has caved in. Monkey bars and other play equipment still stand on the edge of the clearing, slowly getting overgrown.

Gallery Below of The Elbow, OK

 

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