Boley
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Boley

Boley

Central Oklahoma town founded as an all-Black community, with a nationally significant historic district.

Located on Highway 62 in Okfuskee County in central Oklahoma, Boley is a town of about 1,100 people and one of the most significant towns in Black American history. Established on September 22, 1904, Boley is one of the few surviving towns originally founded as an all-Black community.

By 1911 Boley had a population of 4,000 and was thriving. It was home to the first Black-owned electric company and the first Black-owned bank in the United States. Booker T. Washington called it "the most enterprising, and in many ways the most interesting of the Negro towns in the U.S."

The Boley Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, preserves the original commercial streets from the town's peak years. The Farmers and Merchants Bank building still stands — site of the famous 1932 robbery attempt by Pretty Boy Floyd's gang, which the townspeople repelled. The Masonic Lodge, three stories of brick, was the tallest building between Okmulgee and Oklahoma City when it was built in 1912.

The Annual Boley Rodeo and Bar-B-Que Festival, held over Memorial Day weekend, is one of the oldest Black rodeos in the United States and the best time to visit.

Hannibal B. Johnson's book No Place Like Home: A Story about an All Black, All American Town tells the fictional story of a boy growing up in Boley in 1920, when the town was at its peak.

Guide

Things to Do

Boley is a small town, and you won't need more than a few hours to take it in — but those hours are some of the most historically resonant you can spend in Oklahoma. This was one of the most successful all-Black towns in the United States at its early-20th-century peak, and what remains carries the weight of that story.

The Boley Historic District, listed as a National Historic Landmark, preserves the original business streets from the town's prosperous era. Walk along Seward Avenue and you'll pass buildings that once housed a bank, a hotel, a newspaper, a cotton gin, a telephone exchange, and a waterworks — all founded and run by Black Oklahomans at a time when such institutions were routinely denied to them elsewhere.

The Farmers and Merchants Bank building, site of the 1932 Pretty Boy Floyd robbery attempt, still stands. The Masonic Lodge, a three-story 1912 structure, was the tallest building between Okmulgee and Oklahoma City when it was built.

The biggest annual event is the Boley Rodeo, held over Memorial Day weekend — one of the oldest and most celebrated Black rodeos in the United States, drawing competitors and visitors from across the country.