In this episode of History Fix, I tell the stories of four historically Black towns that are now underwater: Oscarville, Georgia, Kowaliga (Benson), Alabama, Vanport, Oregon, and Seneca Village in New York City. We'll take a look at how and why these fledgling towns were destroyed and the ripple effect it's had on Black Americans even today. 

www.historyfixpodcast.com

Sources: 

• Travel Noire "5 Black American Towns Hidden Under Lakes and Ultimately From History Books"
• 11alive "Relative of Oscarville resident shares history behind the city underneath Lake Lanier"
• The Jerusalem Post "Dark Secrets of a Cursed Lake"
• Clio "Oscarville Georgia"
• civilandhumanrights.org "Commemorating the 117th anniversary of the 1906 Atlanta race massacre"
• census.gov "Quick Facts Georgia"
• Tampa Bay Times "Looking Back: Civil rights protestors take back Forsyth County"
• Newsone "The Black Town Under Lake Martin: A Father and Son's Dream of Greatness"
• centralparknyc.org "Before Central Park: The Story of Seneca Village"
• Smithsonian Magazine "How Oregon's Second Largest City Vanished in a Day"

Support the show! 

• Buy Me a Coffee
• Venmo @Shea-LaFountaine

Shoot me a message!

Support the show