Dick Rowland
Encyclopedia
Dick Rowland was an African American
teen-age shoeshiner
whose arrest in May 1921 was the impetus for the Tulsa Race Riot
. When he was arrested for attempted assault, Rowland was 19 years old. The white teenager, who was supposed to have been the victim, declined to prosecute. According to some reports, the arrest was prompted after Rowland tripped in an elevator on his way to a segregated bathroom, and a white store clerk misconstrued the incident as an "assault."
Rowland's birth name was Jimmie Jones. It is not known where he was born, but by 1908 he and two sisters were orphans living in Vinita, Oklahoma
. Jones was informally adopted by Damie Ford, an African American woman. In approximately 1909 Ford and Jones moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma
to join Ford's family, the Rowlands. Eventually, Jones took Rowland as his last name, and selected his favorite first name, Dick, as his own. Rowland attended the city's segregated
schools, including Booker T. Washington High School.
He dropped out of high school to take a job shining shoes in a white-owned and white-patronized shine parlor on Main Street in downtown Tulsa. As Tulsa was a segregated city where Jim Crow practices were in effect, black people were not allowed to use toilet facilities used by white people. There was no separate facility for blacks at the shine parlor where Rowland worked and the owner had arranged for black employees to use a segregated "Colored
" restroom on the top floor of the nearby Drexel Building at 319 S. Main Street.
On May 30, 1921, Rowland attempted to enter the Drexel building elevator and, although the exact facts are either unknown or in dispute, according to the most accepted accounts, he tripped, and while falling, latched on to the arm of the elevator operator, Sarah Page, then 17 years old. Startled, the elevator operator screamed and a white clerk in a first floor store called police to report seeing Rowland flee from the elevator and the building. The white clerk on the first floor reported the incident as an attempted assault
.
Rowland was arrested the following day, on May 31, 1921. Subsequent actions by white
citizens in an apparent attempt to lynch
him, and by black
citizens to protect him, sparked a riot that lasted 16 hours and caused the destruction by fire of 35 city blocks and 1,256 residences in Tulsa's prosperous African American neighborhood
of Greenwood
, and over 800 injuries and the deaths of 26 blacks and 13 whites.
The case against Dick Rowland was dismissed at the end of September, 1921. The dismissal followed the receipt of a letter by the County Attorney from Sarah Page in which she stated that she did not wish to prosecute the case.
According to Damie Ford, once Rowland was exonerated he immediately left Tulsa, and went to Kansas City. Little else is publicly known about the remainder of Rowland's life.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
teen-age shoeshiner
Shoeshiner
Shoeshiner or boot polisher is a profession in which a person polishes shoes with shoe polish. They are often known as shoeshine boys because the job is traditionally that of a male child. In the leather fetish communities, they are often called bootblacks...
whose arrest in May 1921 was the impetus for the Tulsa Race Riot
Tulsa Race Riot
The Tulsa race riot was a large-scale racially motivated conflict, May 31 - June 1st 1921, between the white and black communities of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in which the wealthiest African-American community in the United States, the Greenwood District also known as 'The Negro Wall St' was burned to the...
. When he was arrested for attempted assault, Rowland was 19 years old. The white teenager, who was supposed to have been the victim, declined to prosecute. According to some reports, the arrest was prompted after Rowland tripped in an elevator on his way to a segregated bathroom, and a white store clerk misconstrued the incident as an "assault."
Rowland's birth name was Jimmie Jones. It is not known where he was born, but by 1908 he and two sisters were orphans living in Vinita, Oklahoma
Vinita, Oklahoma
Vinita is a city in south-central Craig County, Oklahoma. As of 2009, the population estimate was 6,057. It is the county seat of Craig County.-Geography:...
. Jones was informally adopted by Damie Ford, an African American woman. In approximately 1909 Ford and Jones moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
to join Ford's family, the Rowlands. Eventually, Jones took Rowland as his last name, and selected his favorite first name, Dick, as his own. Rowland attended the city's segregated
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
schools, including Booker T. Washington High School.
He dropped out of high school to take a job shining shoes in a white-owned and white-patronized shine parlor on Main Street in downtown Tulsa. As Tulsa was a segregated city where Jim Crow practices were in effect, black people were not allowed to use toilet facilities used by white people. There was no separate facility for blacks at the shine parlor where Rowland worked and the owner had arranged for black employees to use a segregated "Colored
Colored
Colored is a term once widely used in the United States to describe black people and Native Americans...
" restroom on the top floor of the nearby Drexel Building at 319 S. Main Street.
On May 30, 1921, Rowland attempted to enter the Drexel building elevator and, although the exact facts are either unknown or in dispute, according to the most accepted accounts, he tripped, and while falling, latched on to the arm of the elevator operator, Sarah Page, then 17 years old. Startled, the elevator operator screamed and a white clerk in a first floor store called police to report seeing Rowland flee from the elevator and the building. The white clerk on the first floor reported the incident as an attempted assault
Assault
In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...
.
Rowland was arrested the following day, on May 31, 1921. Subsequent actions by white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
citizens in an apparent attempt to lynch
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
him, and by black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
citizens to protect him, sparked a riot that lasted 16 hours and caused the destruction by fire of 35 city blocks and 1,256 residences in Tulsa's prosperous African American neighborhood
African American neighborhood
African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American neighborhood is one where the majority of the people who live there are African American. Some of the earliest African American...
of Greenwood
Greenwood, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Greenwood was a district in Tulsa, Oklahoma. As one of the most successful and wealthiest African American communities in the United States during the early 20th Century, it was popularly known as America's "Black Wall Street" until the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921...
, and over 800 injuries and the deaths of 26 blacks and 13 whites.
The case against Dick Rowland was dismissed at the end of September, 1921. The dismissal followed the receipt of a letter by the County Attorney from Sarah Page in which she stated that she did not wish to prosecute the case.
According to Damie Ford, once Rowland was exonerated he immediately left Tulsa, and went to Kansas City. Little else is publicly known about the remainder of Rowland's life.