Andrew J. Smitherman: A Pioneer of the African American Press, 1909-1961 (Essay‪)‬

From the time of their inception, African American newspapers served both as an instrument for disseminating information, and as a platform for social and political advocacy within the African American community. They were in many instances the only source for documenting and preserving African American history. This article examines the life and work of one of the most persevering and inspiring examples of African American newspaper editors, whose long and productive career is not recognized among the historical community. His name is Andrew J. Smitherman, the first African American newspaper editor and publisher to produce a long-running daily in the state of Oklahoma. (2) Who after his exile from Oklahoma following the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, went on courageously and against all odds to lead a successful career in journalism for an additional 35 years. Smitherman appears in several scholarly works, which examine his role in the Tulsa race riot of 1921. (3) However, these works do not examine his life beyond his sudden departure from Oklahoma in 1921. His partial autobiography and related sources in Buffalo, New York have been overlooked as evidence for documenting his life and career. Some historians of the African American press mention Smitherman, but these references are usually limited to his work in Tulsa. Despite the identification of Smitherman with Tulsa Oklahoma, it needs to be recognized that his life did not begin in Tulsa, Oklahoma, nor did it end there in 1921, but continued on to Buffalo, New York, where he resurrected his work as a successful journalist, publishing for another 35 years.