You are standing at 108 South Greenwood in front of the two-story Bryant Building. Take a moment to examine the building’s façade. There, cobbled together around the doorway and window is a section of charred black and heat-warped bricks. These are actual bricks reclaimed from the aftermath of the massacre and speak to the incendiary violence of that day.

But the repurposing of these bricks illustrates something much deeper — something more profound: the indomitable human spirit.

Without help from the Tulsa Fire Department, arsonists’ fires spread and raged throughout all night. The heart of the Greenwood District burned to the ground. Only empty husks and smoldering ruins of its many businesses remained. How shocking this must have been to the recently returned Black World War I veterans. They never could have imagined the “scorched earth” tactics of Germany following them home to Tulsa, Oklahoma.

But the instigators and architects of this unchecked white mob violence did not have the final say. The Greenwood District would rise again, up from the ashes.

Neatly stacked columns of bricks formed on the sidewalks. Those stacked bricks were towering displays of courage and character — every brick an exclamation point for the community’s defiant reply.

Greenwood District rebuilding began within a day of its demolition. In the photo album, you can see pictures of the stacks of bricks. These were reclaimed from the piles of rubble, some located right where you stand now, clearly signifying the community’s immediate resolve and determination to rebuild.

“Burning them out” was not the only strategian for eradicating the Greenwood District and scattering the collective strength of its residents. The courts rejected property loss claims against the city and state. Insurers denied claims based on riot exclusionary clauses in policies. The extension of the city fire code — successfully challenged by attorney B. C. Franklin — would have made rebuilding in the Greenwood District financially difficult, if not impossible. White land speculators dangled low-ball offers before Black landowners who were now desperate to raise money to feed their families, rebuild their homes, and reopen their businesses. Against all odds, the perseverance, resilience, and community spirit of the Greenwood District shown through. The community’s best days lay ahead, made possible by remarkable people who never gave up on themselves.