Joe Carson American Legion Post 1 coordinated Tulsa's first "Remembrance Day"--what would come to be known first as Armistice Day, and then Veteran's Day--on Tuesday, November 11, 1919. The Tulsa World reported the celebration in Tulsa. Here is their sequence of events:
At 4:00 a.m. "the entire populace [of Tulsa] was aroused from slumber. . .by the blowing of factory whistles, ringing of bells, and discharge of firearms." The paper reported this duplicated the events (noise and all) that occurred at 4:00 a.m. on November 11, 1918 when news of the Armistice was announced in Tulsa. The noise lasted for an hour, though some noisemakers continued their efforts until dawn.
That morning, a county-wide parade was held in Sand Springs, followed by a athletic contests and a banquet in honor of Sand Springs veterans. Though no parade was held in Tulsa, the city was alive with celebratory activity (probably since everyone had been up since 4:00 a.m.).
At noon, Tulsa schools were dismissed, with many families taking the afternoon off from work to visit amusement parks and theaters. Also at noon, all of Tulsa's civic clubs (including Joe Carson Post 1) attended a luncheon at the Hotel Tulsa hosted by the Advertising Club. The World describes a roaring victory celebration in a ballroom decorated in red, white and blue, with a program that included patriotic songs and speeches. The festivities ended with the crowd singing the Star Spangled Banner.
That evening, thousands of Tulsans attended a dance at Convention Hall hosted by Joe Carson Post 1. In addition to music and dancing, vaudeville acts were performed courtesy of several local theaters.
Although the war ended a year before, many service members had yet to return home. Soldiers were still being demobilized; others were serving in Germany in the occupation forces, in Russia, and elsewhere across the globe. Joe Carson Post 1 was not yet six months old, but it would soon become a leading civic organization in Tulsa, and the parade and other festivities held each November 11th became a barometer of the community standing of Joe Carson Post 1.
