Black Wall Street Honors 10 As Part Of 'Maid's Day Off' Greenwood Tradition

A group of women and men are being honored for their work in Tulsa during the 1900s to 1950s as maids and domestic servants. Many of these women and men were part of a Greenwood Tradition called "Maid's Day Off."

Black Wall Street would be flooded with tons of people like it is now for Maid's Day Off.

That one day allowed these women and men to return to their families, socialize with friends, and shop. Deborah Brisco’s mom Luella Wheatley is 95 years old.

"She worked for several different families and of course, she was a typical maid that would have Thursdays off,” Brisco said.

Wheatley worked as a maid for a few influential families in Tulsa. She says she worked hard to take care of children, cook, and clean.

"She was a wonderful, wonderful cook, wonderful mother, and bonus mom to so many people,” Brisco said.

Wheatley is one of the 10 people who were honored on Saturday. Princetta Newman with Black Wall Street Tours says these people helped contribute to the unity and work ethics that made Greenwood the original Black Wall Street.

"Honoring people who shopped in the area and who made Black Wall Street wealthy, made the merchants wealthy and gave it the kind of notoriety it had in its day," Newman said.

A lot of those people were former maids, chauffeurs, and butlers.

Because of segregation, many of these women and men could not eat or shop in establishments outside of North Tulsa.

"They knew what it was to go to the bus stops in the snow and stand in the heat to catch the bus to go to their jobs in south Tulsa,” Newman said.

They're remembered as hard-working people.

"Most of those are of course deceased who were in the 20s and 30s, but we caught some who were in the 40s and we’re lucky to get at least 10 of them," Newman said.

Brisco says it's wonderful these people are being honored, and she's happy her mother is getting the recognition she deserves.

"She went on to do lots of catering. She's fed many people in Tulsa, so it's a great honor," Brisco said.