The Keetoowah Nighthawk Society was a

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

organisation formed ''ca.'' 1900 that intended to preserve and practice traditional "old ways" of tribal life, based on religious nationalism. It was led by

Redbird Smith Redbird Smith (born ''To-Juwah Sequanitah'', Cherokee) (1850–1918) was a traditionalist and political activist in the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory. He helped found the Nighthawk Keetoowah Society, whose members revitalized traditional spi ...

, a Cherokee National Council and original Keetoowah Society member. It formed in the Indian Territory that was superseded by admission of Oklahoma as a state, during the late-nineteenth century period when the federal government was breaking up tribal governments and communal lands under the

Dawes Act The Dawes Act of 1887 (also known as the General Allotment Act or the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887) regulated land rights on tribal territories within the United States. Named after Senator Henry L. Dawes of Massachusetts, it authorized the Pres ...

and

Curtis Act The Curtis Act of 1898 was an amendment to the United States Dawes Act; it resulted in the break-up of tribal governments and communal lands in Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) of the Five Civilized Tribes of Indian Territory: the Choctaw, Chickasa ...

. The Nighthawks arose in response to weakening resolve on the part of Cherokee leaders—including the original Keetoowah Society (

: ᎩᏚᏩ ᎤᎾᏙᏢᎯ), a political organization created by Cherokee Native American full bloods, in or about 1859—to continue their resistance on behalf of the

after the

Dawes Commission The American Dawes Commission, named for its first chairman Henry L. Dawes, was authorized under a rider to an Indian Office appropriation bill, March 3, 1893. Its purpose was to convince the Five Civilized Tribes to agree to cede tribal title of I ...

began forcing the transfer of Oklahoma tribal lands in the Indian Territory to individual ownership in the 1890s (a process termed ''allotment'').This was done on the basis of recent federal legislative acts that included the Dawes Severalty Act (General Allotment Act, 1887) and the Curtis Act (1898). See Weber (2009), op. cit. Soon after forming, the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society grew to as many as 5,500 members, but they could not forestall the changes made by the Dawes Commission. In 1900 its representatives came to an allotment agreement with Cherokee leaders. After doing so, the Commission enrolled the generally non-compliant Nighthawks in the tribe without obtaining their consents, and registered them for allotments. In 1902, arrested Redbird Smith was arrested and also compelled to enroll for allotment. The Nighthawks would not acknowledge these forced commitments, and as other Cherokee become citizens of Oklahoma (statehood, November 16, 1907 Web document date appearing, 15 August 2016.), the traditionalists, believing that "acculturation represented the greatest threat to heirpeople," fled to hilly areas near Blackgum Mountain (in present-day

Sequoyah County, Oklahoma Sequoyah County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,281. The county seat is Sallisaw. Sequoyah County was created in 1907 when Oklahoma became a state. It was named after Sequoyah, wh ...

). There, on the strength of their commitment and numbers—and using the record of Cherokee and Keetoowah history of a sacred

wampum belt Wampum is a traditional shell bead of the Eastern Woodlands tribes of Native Americans. It includes white shell beads hand-fashioned from the North Atlantic channeled whelk shell and white and purple beads made from the quahog or Western Nor ...

that they had located—the remaining Nighthawks "strove to preserve the ancient Cherokee culture;" in 1908 they elected Smith as chief for life. But, as Michael Lee Weber notes, "his movement had already declined," and by the end of 1918, "Redbird Smith, 'the moving spirit'" of their society, had died. Hence, the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society became, alongside the original Keetoowah Society, a spiritual core of the Cherokee people during the years of the early 1900s, in the Indian Territory that would eventually become a part of Oklahoma.

Etymology

The word "Keetoowah" is the name of an ancient Cherokee Township in the Eastern Homeland of the Cherokee, where all Cherokee originated after the migration and integration of various groups from the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

and Ozark Plateau Regions of the United States 3,000 years ago, based upon cultural and archaeological evidence. There is also evidence in the modern culture to suggest that the ancient Keetoowah developed an ancient hereditary priesthood called the '' Ah-ni-ku-ta-ni'', who were a religious ruling class of the Keetoowah people and Cherokee Society for thousands of years. According to Cherokee legend, when the population grew too large to sustain the Mother city, groups moved to new areas and created new Cherokee Communities and Mound Cities. The residents of the city of Keetoowah called themselves "the Keetoowah People". The ancient site of the Mother City of Keetoowah is still visible in

Western North Carolina Western North Carolina (often abbreviated as WNC) is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains; it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It contains the highest mountains in the Eastern United ...

in the same general area as the Qualla Boundary. Keetoowah was an ancient "Mound" city and the central earthwork

mound A mound is a heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded area of topographically higher ...

is still visible at the ancient townsite. Moundbuilding was not confined to the Cherokee, but was a common construction method of various Mississippian cultures and earlier peoples for thousands of years throughout the

Mississippi Basin The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

. Some Cherokee traditionalists refer to themselves as ''Ah-ni-ki-tu-wa-gi'' (spelled variously in local Oklahoma dialects as ''Ki-tu-wa'' or ''Gi-du-wa''), Keetoowah People. The addition of the verb stem modifier "gi" indicates the word ''Ki-tu'-wa-gi'' means, "a gathering or putting together of the ''Ki-tu'-wa'' people", since "gi" means "to combine" in the Cherokee Language. Most modern Cherokee speakers can no longer translate the word "Ki-tu-wa," as the meaning of the word has been lost. Ki-tu-wa means "the mother city" or "the center (spiritual center)" in the ancient Ah-ni-ku-ta-ni dialect. The word ''Ki-tu'-wa-gi'', implies a religious or social gathering of the people. Honoring the mother city was analogous to honoring '' Selu'', the Cherokee Corn Mother of the ancient

Green Corn Ceremony The Green Corn Ceremony (Busk) is an annual ceremony practiced among various Native American peoples associated with the beginning of the yearly corn harvest. Busk is a term given to the ceremony by white traders, the word being a corruption of t ...

, a concept that pervades Cherokee culture. During the

as practiced by the Cherokee, one of the two social dances performed is of ancient origin, and originated from the mother city of Keetoowah. The dance is called ''ye-lu-le'' which means "to the center". During this dance, all of the dancers shout ''ye-lu-le'' and move towards the fire in the center of the sacred dance circle . The dance symbolizes the dispersal of the sacred fire given to the Keetoowah people by the Creator and the Thunder Beings in their ancient legends. During traditional Green Corn ceremonies, the Cherokee carried the coals of the central fire in Keetoowah to all the Cherokee communities; the coals were used to kindle the ceremonial fires for the dances in each Cherokee City or township. The home fires in outlying Cherokee communities were extinguished before the ceremonies and re-lit from the coals of the fire kindled during the Green Corn dances.

History

Redbirdsmithandblufordsixkillerwithchildren

The Cherokee Nation was divided by the

in the 1890s. The Dawes commission was tasked to force assimilation and breakup of tribal governments within Oklahoma by instilling the concept of land ownership among individual households of the

Five Civilized Tribes The term Five Civilized Tribes was applied by European Americans in the colonial and early federal period in the history of the United States to the five major Native American nations in the Southeast—the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek ...

. The commission divided large sections of land into household allotments to eliminate the traditional governments of the Cherokee and other tribes, which were based on communal holding of land. As a consequence of the Dawes Commission programs, the Cherokee culture and society was destabilized and strictly controlled. The federal government appointed chiefs of the tribe, who were reduced to administrators and carried out government programs intended to force assimilation of the Cherokee. As part of assimilation, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the government sponsored Indian boarding schools, where Cherokee and other Native American children attended away from their families. They were prohibited from speaking their own languages or practicing their own religions and cultures. Over time, much of the Cherokee culture was lost. The remaining Cherokee during this period in history begin to adopt and integrate cultural practices of other tribes who were being forcibly removed into Oklahoma Territory.

Redbird Smith

To resist the cultural erosion,

and other Cherokee leaders and elders formed a secret society, the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society, where they secretly practiced the traditional ceremonies and gatherings. This group aimed to preserve much of the pre-removal culture, ceremonies, and beliefs of the Cherokee.

was an influential Nighthawk member who revitalized traditional spirituality among Cherokees, beginning in the late 19th century. He was born July 19, 1850, near the city of Fort Smith, Arkansas to parents traveling with other Cherokee to the Indian Territory from Georgia. His father, Pig Redbird Smith, was a devoted supporter of the Long House's group of eastern Indians' ancient rituals, customs and practices. His mother, Lizzie Hildebrand Smith, was from a prominent Cherokee family. During Redbird's childhood, his father committed him to the service of the Cherokee people in harmony with the ancient customs, and eventually he became chairman of the council. In 1889 the Redbird Movement began, splitting from Keetoowah to create Keetoowah Nighthawk, a renewed and modernized Keetoowah Society that was more political, holding meetings at the ceremonial areas known as ''gatiyo'' (stomp grounds). Descendants of the late chief John Ross reintroduced Cherokee

wampum Wampum is a traditional shell bead of the Eastern Woodlands tribes of Native Americans. It includes white shell beads hand-fashioned from the North Atlantic channeled whelk shell and white and purple beads made from the quahog or Western Nor ...

belts to the Keetoowah. Although the Keetoowah Nighthawks were unsuccessful in forestalling the allotment of communal lands, they strongly opposed the program of allotment of the Cherokee tribal lands that the government had agreed to do, with much passion. In 1908, the Keetoowah Nighthawk Council held an election. As a result, Redbird Smith was chosen as chief and was known as the leader of the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society. Redbird Smith, great-grandfather of former Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chadwick "Corntassel" Smith, stated in the early 1900s: His goal was to retain all that was lost from the Keetoowah. He was eventually jailed, along with some followers, for resistance to the land allotment and registration of tribal members. Smith died in 1918, along with the Redbird Movement.

In modern times

The Keetoowah Nighthawk Society has been revived by the Cherokee in Oklahoma. In Redbird Smith's time, there were more than 20 Cherokee Stomp Grounds; the seven ceremonial dance grounds in Oklahoma today belong either to the Keetoowah tradition or the

Four Mothers Society The Four Mothers Society or Four Mothers Nation is a religious, political, and traditionalist organization of Muscogee Creek, Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw people, as well as the Natchez people enrolled in these tribes, in Oklahoma. It was forme ...

. The society is fractured and is not affiliated with any particular Cherokee Nation, Band, or Tribe. Members of the fragments of the original society are affiliated with many Cherokee communities in Oklahoma. Some of the modern groups claiming to represent the original Keetoowah culture have integrated Christianity and various new age beliefs into their religious practices.

In popular culture and media

The KJRH-TV documentary, ''Spirit of the Fire'' (1984) documented the history of the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society, recounting their preservation of traditional ceremonies and rituals practiced and by the early Oklahoma Cherokee people.

References and notes

External links

''Spirit of the Fire'' Video

" Access Genealogy, Web. 21 Oct. 2011. {{Cherokee Cherokee Nation (1794–1907) Native American rights organizations Native American religion