Reconstructing Greenwood's Past

A hundred years ago a thriving black neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma was destroyed by a white mob. The New York Times has done an excellent job of recreating what was there piecing together old maps, photos census records and other archives to create maps and a 3D model.

Images via New York Times

This is a "scrollytelling" piece - you scroll through the page to get a tour of the neighborhood including 3D buildings, pictures and maps.

The screen shot below illustrates the extent of the damage - only part of the map is shown here, for the entire map and text go to the article.

This Sanborn Insurance Map from 1915 - via the Library of Congress gives some idea of the character and prosperity of the neighborhood before it was destroyed. 

While much of the neighborhood was rebuilt and thrived for a second time, it was destroyed again, this time by urban renewal. An aerial photo via Google Maps shows a neighborhood of expressways, parking lots, empty land and a baseball stadium. 
 

To take the tour visit the New York Times. There is also a detailed map (featured previously here) from the Tulsa World.