Brooksville

History

One of more than fifty All-Black towns of Oklahoma, Brooksville is one of only thirteen still existing at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Located in Pottawatomie County southwest of Tecumseh, Brooksville was established in 1903. Originally the town was named Sewell, after a white doctor who owned much of the surrounding land and attended the residents. In 1909 the name changed to Brooksville in honor of the first African American in the area, A. R. Brooks, a cotton buyer and farmer. Brooks served as postmaster here from March 18, 1909, until January 27, 1913, at which time his son, William M. Brooks, became postmaster. In 1906 Rev. Jedson White organized St. John's Baptist Church. Soon afterward, the congregation built a church that still exists. White also promoted the town throughout the South, urging African Americans to settle in Brooksville. Brooksville had a Santa Fe Railroad station, three hotels, two doctors, and two mills. In 1924, with the aid of the Rosenwald Fund, a new school was built. Banneker School, under management of W. T. McKenzie, was a rock building of four large rooms, a three-hundred-seat auditorium, a small library, and a well-equipped domestic science room. George W. McLaurin, the first African American graduate student at the University of Oklahoma, taught at the school. After a fire, the original building was replaced by a wooden one that served students until the school closed in 1968. The building then became a community center for the town and stands next to the new city hall. A declining cotton market and the Great Depression made life difficult in Brooksville, as in many Oklahoma communities. Most of the residents departed, but the town survived. At the beginning of the twenty-first century Brooksville was steadily…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• SHAWNEE HS
  High · Shawnee · 987 students · 15:1 ratio
• TECUMSEH HS
  High · Tecumseh · 616 students · 16.2:1 ratio
• BETHEL ES
  Elementary · Shawnee · 572 students · 17.9:1 ratio
• TECUMSEH MS
  Middle · Tecumseh · 451 students · 17.3:1 ratio
• SOUTH ROCK CREEK PUBLIC SCHOOL
  Elementary · Shawnee · 428 students · 18.6:1 ratio
• CROSS TIMBERS ES
  Elementary · Tecumseh · 409 students · 14.6:1 ratio
• BETHEL HS
  High · Shawnee · 377 students · 14.5:1 ratio
• JEFFERSON ES
  Elementary · Shawnee · 293 students · 12.7:1 ratio