CLAREMORE, Okla. — Member of the Jackson 5 and music icon Tito Jackson died unexpectedly while driving home to Oklahoma.
Jackson recently moved to Claremore with big hopes for the town and downtown Tulsa.
The 70-year-old recently found a home there.
2 News spoke with Steve Robinson with the Claremore Museum of History, "he jumped into it, both feet and wanted to immerse himself into being a local citizen. We love that about him."
He met Jackson just a few months ago at the museum's Juneteenth event. He said Jackson was kind and gracious, and he stayed to sign and speak with every person there.
Despite the short period of time, he’s honored to have known Jackson.
"It was pretty amazing. Yeah, it’s not every day you get invited to Tito Jackson’s house," said Robinson.
WATCH: Tito Jackson dies at 70:
He said Jackson often invited the people of Claremore to his home, which made him a staple in the community.
Robinson said Jackson found a love for Oklahoma through his best friend, Tulsa native Terry Harvey. He also loved horses and fishing, making northeast Oklahoma the perfect place to set roots.
But Jackson’s Oklahoma roots go deeper than his recent move.
"A lot of people don’t realize the connection he had to Tulsa. But his uncle, his father’s brother, was Dr. Samuel Jackson, who was involved in Tulsa Race Riots and actually was in prison for a short while and was later tasked to bury everyone who died during that time," Robinson said.
Jackson was a big supporter of sharing black history. Even his own history.
From his family's involvement in the Tulsa Race Massacre to his time with Jackson 5. Jackson never failed to tell a story.
"He said he wanted to do something more and we say great and the next thing I know we received the guitar behind you there, where he sent us, that he decided to send us his own personally signed guitar," Robinson said.
Robinson said Jackson strived to be a member of the Claremore community.
"He couldn’t wait to get here and he loved getting away from all the buzz of his life and being able to come to Claremore get away from it all, but he still wanted to be a part of the community," said Robinson.
He had big plans for the Claremore community, from a music festival to expanding education on black history.
Robinson said they plan to continue Jackson's visions for Claremore and honor him with other inspirational figures.
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