Forever Black History

Anthony Smith

Forever Black History is a documentary-style podcast hosted by Anthony Smith that explores the powerful stories, people, and communities that shaped Black history and, ultimately, American history. From pioneering Black towns like Nicodemus, Kansas, to groundbreaking inventors, influential leaders, and historic movements, this podcast uncovers stories that deserve to be remembered and passed on to future generations. Each episode takes listeners on a journey through history, highlighting the resilience, innovation, and determination of Black Americans who helped build the cultural, economic, and social foundations of this nation. Forever Black History exists to educate, inspire, and preserve the legacy of those whose contributions changed the world—because Black history is not just part of the American story. It is the American story. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  1. Jun 20

    Episode 13- Juneteenth: Freedom Delayed, Freedom Celebrated

    In this special Juneteenth and Black Music Month edition of Forever Black History, host Anthony Smith explores the history of Juneteenth, from the delayed arrival of freedom in Galveston, Texas, to its significance as a symbol of resilience, hope, and liberation for Black Americans. Learn why Juneteenth remains one of the most important celebrations in Black culture and how its legacy continues to inspire generations. Plus, we honor Black Music Month by highlighting legendary pioneers whose contributions transformed gospel, blues, jazz, soul, rock and roll, R&B, and hip-hop. From Mahalia Jackson and Louis Armstrong to Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Michael Jackson, and more, discover how Black music became the soundtrack of Black history and helped shape American culture. Join us as we reflect on freedom, celebrate excellence, and prepare for our upcoming series on surviving and thriving Black towns across America. #ForeverBlackHistory #Juneteenth #BlackMusicMonth #BlackHistory #AfricanAmericanHistory #BlackCulture #Juneteenth2026 #GospelMusic #JazzHistory #SoulMusic #HipHopCulture #AmericanHistory Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

    Episode 13- Juneteenth: Freedom Delayed, Freedom Celebrated

  2. Jun 3

    Episode 12- Rise and Fall: Oscarville, GA

    **Part 4: Rise and Fall of Buried Black Towns: Oscarville, GA** focuses on the tragic history of Oscarville, a once-flourishing Black community established during the Reconstruction era in Forsyth County, Georgia. The episode breaks down the town's history through three core phases: ### 1. The Rise of Oscarville Following the Civil War, formerly enslaved African Americans established Oscarville. By 1910, it had grown into a thriving community of nearly 1,100 residents. The town boasted successful Black farmers, carpenters, blacksmiths, bricklayers, and business owners who had managed to buy and cultivate their own land despite the intense systemic barriers of the Jim Crow South. ### 2. The 1912 Expulsion and Fall The downfall of Oscarville was triggered in September 1912 following the rape and murder of a young white woman, Mae Crow, near the Chattahoochee River. Local white mobs used the tragedy to launch a coordinated campaign of racial terror across the entire county. Night riders burned down Black-owned homes, churches, and businesses, forcing more than 1,000 Black residents to flee for their lives. Stripped of their livelihoods, families were forced to abandon their properties, effectively erasing the Black population from Forsyth County for decades. ### 3. The "Buried" Legacy and Lake Lanier The episode details how the physical remnants of Oscarville were eventually submerged when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flooded the area in the 1950s to create **Lake Lanier**. The podcast highlights the massive economic disparity left in the wake of this destruction: while the creation of Lake Lanier went on to generate billions of dollars in tourism and economic growth for Georgia, the descendants of Oscarville's original landowners never received compensation or justice for the land stolen from them. > **The Big Picture:** The episode uses Oscarville as a case study to show how targeted racial violence and forced displacement systematically stripped Black communities of billions of dollars in generational wealth. > For a deep dive into the historical records, survivor testimonies, and the structural legacy of this event, you can watch The Lost History of Oscarville, GA, which explores how the destruction of thriving Black towns like Oscarville directly contributed to modern economic disparities and the racial wealth gap. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  3. May 9

    Episode 11 - Rise and Fall Erased Black Towns Series: Ocoee, Florida Blood on Election Day

    Closing Thoughts ANTHONY: Mose Norman and July Perry were not radicals. They were successful, hardworking men who believed in the promise of America enough to try to vote. Their story, and the story of Ocoee, shows the extreme lengths some would go to prevent Black political and economic power. In our next episode, we’ll continue this powerful series with another Black town that fought for survival against overwhelming odds. Thank you for listening with courage. Say the names: Mose Norman. July Perry. Remember Ocoee. I’m Anthony Smith. This is *Forever Black History*. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

    Episode 11 - Rise and Fall Erased Black Towns Series: Ocoee, Florida Blood on Election Day

  4. Apr 30

    Episode 9 - Rise & Fall: The Fall of Seneca Village Pt. 2

    Rise & Fall – Part 2: Seneca Village – Buried Under Central Park In Part 1, we uncovered how free Black New Yorkers built Seneca Village starting in 1825. Visionary founders like Andrew Williams, a 25-year-old shoeshiner who bought the first three lots, and Epiphany Davis, a store clerk who purchased twelve lots, laid the foundation. Together with the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church and other determined families, they created homes, three churches, a school, and a thriving community where Black men could even vote through property ownership. Now in Part 2, we witness the heartbreaking fall. In 1857, the city of New York used eminent domain to seize the land for the creation of Central Park. Homes and churches were demolished, residents were displaced, and the entire Black village was literally buried beneath what is now Central Park. For over 130 years, Seneca Village was erased from memory — another example of Black prosperity being deliberately destroyed. This episode reveals why Seneca Village was targeted and how its story was finally brought back to light. A powerful continuation of the Rise & Fall series on Forever Black History. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

    Episode 9 - Rise & Fall: The Fall of Seneca Village Pt. 2

  5. Apr 17

    Episode 8 - The Rise of Seneca Village

    Rise & Fall – Part 1: Seneca Village – The Dream Beneath Central Park Before Central Park existed, there was Seneca Village — New York City’s first major free Black community and a true Black Wall Street in Manhattan. In this powerful first episode of our new series, we uncover how free Black New Yorkers, many just one generation removed from slavery, came together in the 1820s and built a thriving, self-determined community from the ground up. Meet the visionary founders: Andrew Williams (the first landowner), Epiphany Davis, and the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. Discover how they purchased land, built homes, established churches and schools, planted gardens, and even gained voting rights through property ownership. This was Black excellence in action — right in the heart of America’s biggest city. But their success would eventually make them a target. Part 1 of 2: The Rise of Seneca Village. A must-listen chapter of Forever Black History Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

    Episode 8 - The Rise of Seneca Village

  6. Apr 8

    Episode 7 - 111 Year Witness Mother Viola Ford Fletcher Story: Don't Let Them Bury My Story Part 3

    self-determination, connects the past to the present, and explores modern revival efforts happening across America today. Whether it’s a deep dive into a single powerful figure, a destroyed Black community, or the ongoing fight for justice and reparations — Forever Black History refuses to let the truth stay silent. This isn’t just history. This is Forever Black History. New episodes every week. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

    Episode 7 - 111 Year Witness Mother Viola Ford Fletcher Story: Don't Let Them Bury My Story Part 3

  7. Apr 1

    Episode 6 - 111 Year Witness The Mother Viola Ford Fletcher Story: The Erasure Part 2

    Forever Black History: The 111-Year Witness – Part 2: The Century of Silence After the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre destroyed Black Wall Street, the city tried to erase the entire event from history. But one little girl carried the truth for a century. In Part 2 of this powerful three-part series, host Anthony Smith explores Mother Viola Ford Fletcher’s long road through silence and survival. Viola’s family fled Tulsa and joined the Great Migration. She later became a shipyard welder during World War II, building ships for a country that had firebombed her neighborhood as a child. For over 70 years she worked as a domestic, cleaning homes while quietly living with nightmares and the lights always on. This episode also connects Viola’s story to America’s larger pattern of destroyed Black towns — from Seneca Village buried under Central Park in New York, to Rosewood and Ocoee burned to the ground in Florida, Oscarville submerged under Lake Lanier, and Nicodemus, Kansas fighting to preserve its legacy on the prairie. As the silence around the Tulsa Massacre finally begins to crack, we see how one survivor refused to let her story — and the truth of Greenwood — be buried forever. Part 2 of the three-part series “The Mother Viola Ford Fletcher Story.” Listen to Part 1: The Night the World Ended and stay tuned for Part 3: Don’t Let Them Bury My Story. Follow @ForeverBlackHistory on Instagram and X for more untold stories from Black history. #TulsaMassacre #ViolaFletcher #BlackWallStreet #ForeverBlackHistory Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  8. Mar 24

    Episode 5- The 111 Year Witness The Mother Viola Ford Fletcher Story: The Night The World Ended

    "I still smell smoke. I still see fire." In the premiere episode of our 3-part special series, host Anthony Smith takes you back to May 1921. Before it was a crime scene, the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was "Black Wall Street"—a beacon of economic independence and Black excellence. Through the eyes of a seven-year-old girl named Viola Ford Fletcher, we explore the vibrant life of Greenwood and the horrific 24 hours that turned a Promised Land into an inferno. How did a community this strong fall so fast, and what did young Viola see from the back of that fleeing buggy? In this episode: The "Economics of Excellence": Why Greenwood thrived. The Elevator Incident: Separating fact from the 1921 friction. The Invasion: Private planes, firebombs, and the 111-year trauma Connect with us on X @4EverBlkHistory Email:foreverblackhistory2026@gmail.com Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  9. Mar 16

    Episode 4 - The Founders of Freedom: The Men Who Built Nicodemus, KS

    In this episode of Forever Black History, host Anthony Smith tells the powerful story of the founders of Nicodemus, Kansas — the first successful Black settlement on the Great Plains. In 1877, a group of determined Black leaders and pioneers set out to build a town where formerly enslaved families could finally own land, govern themselves, and create opportunities for future generations. Through courage, faith, and relentless determination, these men helped transform an empty stretch of prairie into a thriving community that became a powerful symbol of Black independence in the American West. This episode explores the lives and leadership of Reverend W. H. Smith, Reverend Simon Roundtree, Benjamin Carr, Jerry Allsap, Jeff Lenze, William Edmonds, and W. R. Hill — the visionaries who helped make Nicodemus possible. Their story reminds us that freedom was not simply given — it was built. And their legacy continues to stand today as proof that Black history is American history. Next Episode: The powerful story of Tulsa Race Massacre Viola Floyd Fletcher Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  10. Mar 11

    Episode 3- “The Man Who Exposed Lynching: The Courage of Walter Francis White”

    In this episode of Forever Black History, host Anthony Smith tells the remarkable story of Walter Francis White, one of the most courageous investigators in American civil rights history. As a leader of the NAACP, White used his unique ability to pass as white to secretly investigate lynchings across the American South during the early 20th century. Traveling into dangerous territories where racial violence had just occurred, he gathered firsthand accounts and exposed the brutal truth about mob violence and injustice in America. His fearless work helped bring national attention to the horrors of lynching and strengthened the growing civil rights movement. As executive secretary of the NAACP, White also helped expand the organization’s influence and contributed to the legal strategy that eventually led to the historic Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education. Join us as we explore the life, courage, and legacy of a man who risked everything to reveal the truth and fight for justice. Forever Black History reminds us that Black history is not just part of the American story—it is central to it. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  11. Mar 9

    Episode 2- The Story of Nicodemus, KS- America’s Historic Black Frontier Town

    Black History is American History is a storytelling podcast hosted by Anthony Smith that explores the people, communities, and untold stories that shaped Black history and American history. Preserving the past. Inspiring the future. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

  12. Mar 6

    Episode 1 - Intro to Black History

    Hello everyone, and welcome to Black History is American History I’m your host, Anthony Smith. This podcast was created for one powerful reason: to preserve, explore, and celebrate the stories that have shaped Black history and, in turn, shaped the history of America itself. But before we dive into the stories, we must ask an important question. What is Black history? Black history is more than a collection of names, dates, and events found in textbooks. Black history is the story of resilience. It is the story of a people who endured slavery, segregation, discrimination, and injustice… yet still found ways to build, to create, to lead, and to inspire. Black history is the story of communities like Nicodemus, Kansas, where formerly enslaved families moved west in search of freedom and built towns with their own hands. It is the story of educators who fought to teach when education was denied. Entrepreneurs who built businesses when opportunity was limited. Inventors who changed the world, even when recognition was often withheld. From the traffic signal improved by Garrett Morgan, to the refrigerated truck system developed by Frederick McKinley Jones, to the countless medical, agricultural, and technological innovations created by Black minds— Black Americans have helped build the very foundation of modern society. And yet many of these stories are not widely told. That is why this podcast exists. Because Black history is not just about the past. It is about understanding the journey that brought us to where we are today. And perhaps even more importantly, it is about educating the next generation. When young people know the stories of pioneers, inventors, leaders, and communities that came before them, it gives them something powerful: identity, pride, and possibility. They begin to see that history is not just something they read about. It is something they are part of. Here on Forever Black History, we will explore forgotten towns, historic movements, legendary figures, and untold stories that deserve to be remembered. Because these stories remind us of something important. Black history is not separate from American history. Black history is American history. And when we preserve these stories, we ensure that the legacy of those who came before us will continue to inspire those who come after us. So thank you for joining me on this journey. I’m Anthony Smith, and this is Black History is American History Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

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About

Forever Black History is a documentary-style podcast hosted by Anthony Smith that explores the powerful stories, people, and communities that shaped Black history and, ultimately, American history. From pioneering Black towns like Nicodemus, Kansas, to groundbreaking inventors, influential leaders, and historic movements, this podcast uncovers stories that deserve to be remembered and passed on to future generations. Each episode takes listeners on a journey through history, highlighting the resilience, innovation, and determination of Black Americans who helped build the cultural, economic, and social foundations of this nation. Forever Black History exists to educate, inspire, and preserve the legacy of those whose contributions changed the world—because Black history is not just part of the American story. It is the American story. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/forever-black-history--6902122/support.

Information

  • Creator
    Anthony Smith
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Anthony Smith
  • Show Website
    Forever Black History