Ophelia Colbert

In the heart of Oklahoma, the town of Boley stands as a landmark of Black perseverance and ambition. Founded in 1903 and incorporated in 1905, it grew into one of the nation’s most prosperous all-Black towns, a place Booker T. Washington once called "the most enterprising... of the Negro towns in the United States." Built on land allotted to the daughter of a Creek Freedman, Boley became a haven from the oppression of the Jim Crow era, boasting its own banks, schools, newspapers, and a majestic Masonic Temple that was once the tallest building between Oklahoma City and Okmulgee. It was a community defined by self-reliance and the fierce protection of its citizens, a legacy cemented in 1932 when armed townspeople thwarted a robbery by members of Pretty Boy Floyd's gang.

Within this historic and close-knit community lived Ophelia Perry Colbert, a 79-year-old woman who had witnessed much of Boley’s journey. Her life was rooted in the rhythms of the town, a place of quiet streets and familiar faces. As a longtime resident, she was part of a generation that carried the stories of Boley's peak and its struggles through the Great Depression and the population shifts of the mid-20th century. Her presence was a thread in the rich fabric of the town's history. But on a summer evening in 1989, the peace of her life and the security of her home were violently shattered.

On Wednesday, June 21, 1989, a fellow churchgoer made a devastating discovery. Concerned after not hearing from Ophelia, the friend went to her home to check on her. Around 7 p.m., she found Ophelia inside, the victim of a fatal gunshot wound. The sense of safety that had long defined her home and her town was gone. Investigators with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) were called to the scene in Okfuskee County and quickly determined that the motive was likely robbery. The crime sent a chill through Boley, a town where neighbors looked out for one another and violent crime was not a common fear.

The investigation yielded a critical but frustratingly vague lead. A witness reported seeing two slender, young Black men driving away from Ophelia’s residence in a white car. This sighting occurred approximately an hour before her body was discovered, placing the men in the vicinity of the crime within a crucial timeframe. Despite this lead, the identities of the two men and the ownership of the white car have remained a mystery for decades. Without forensic evidence or further witnesses coming forward, the trail went cold.

Decades have passed since Ophelia Colbert was killed, and the questions surrounding her death remain unanswered. The two young men seen leaving her home have never been identified, and the case has faded from public memory, eclipsed by the passage of time. For a town built on the principles of community and mutual protection, the unsolved murder of an elderly resident in her own home represents a deep and lingering wound.

As of October 2026, the murder of Ophelia Colbert is still listed as an active cold case by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. Her name is preserved in public records, a reminder of a life taken and a crime yet to be solved. The OSBI continues to ask for the public’s help, hoping that someone, somewhere, holds the piece of information that could finally bring clarity and justice. Anyone with information regarding the homicide of Ophelia Colbert is encouraged to contact the OSBI at 1-800-522-8017 or [email protected].