Short film showcases Black history in Stephens County

DUNCAN, Okla. (KSWO) – A short film bringing Oklahoma Black history to life debuted today in Stephens County.

Neighbors gathered at the Stephens County Historical Society Museum in Fuqua Park for the premiere of “Life in Stephens County and Beyond – An Oklahoma Black History Compilation.”

The film featured a 1:30 p.m. showing with encores through the afternoon. It shares stories of Black families and community leaders. The creators say they hope it helps keep that local history alive.

Preserving stories for future generations

Carlos Ivory, a board member at the Stephens County Historical Society Museum, said passing down history is critical.

“My goal is I’m hoping more young people will come and see these films because we really need to inform our young people about our history because if we don’t pass out stories down, we’re going to lose them and so that is so, so important,” Ivory said. “Because when I grew up that’s what we did. We sit on the porch and we would hear our parents and our grandparents tell the stories.”

Ivory said she and fellow filmmaker Natalie Crowdis Sloan worked on footage that is nearly a century old, so people today can see scenes from almost 100 years ago come back to life on screen.