Historical Marker Program

Langston

Logan County
Location: on Langston University campus in Langston
Coordinates: 35.942474, -97.260493
Material: Other (Interpretive panel)
Sponsor(s): Oklahoma Historical Society
Topics: Education; Ethnic Diversity; Land Openings; Settlement Patterns; Urban Development

Langston is one of 13 All-Black towns, out of more than 50 that once existed, remaining in Oklahoma. While Tullahassee is reportedly the oldest, most were established between 1889 and 1907 as African Americans sought security and control of their own destiny in a segregated world. Most of the towns began to decline in the 1920s and 1930s as rural African Americans faced economic hardships and began to move to urban areas. Langston was organized in 1890 by E. P. McCabe, who also boosted Oklahoma as an All-Black state. It takes its name from John M. Langston, a well-known educator and member of Congress. Langston became home to the Colored Agricultural and Normal University (Langston University) in 1897.