1921 Graves Investigation: 2026 Field Season Update Oct. 14

1921 Graves Investigation: 2026 Field Season Update Oct. 14

10/14/2026

The third week of the City's sixth field season at Oaklawn Cemetery as part of the 1921 Graves Investigation is underway.

Yesterday, field experts exhumed three burials from two excavation areas. Each burial was accompanied by field staff, a funeral director, descendants of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and representatives from Tulsa's Greenwood and North Tulsa communities to the on-site osteology laboratory for further examination.

While none of the exhumed burials have shown visible signs of trauma, each burial (and associated artifacts) is being examined at the on-site osteology lab by Dr. Phoebe Stubblefield, Forensic Anthropologist with the University of Florida.

Current excavation work is on pause due to today's rainfall and will resume when conditions improve.

The City will continue to share additional information as the field season continues.
• For more information, visit: www.cityoftulsa.org/graves
• Follow the work of the 1921 Graves Investigation on Facebook at: @1921Graves