The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes are a united, federally recognized tribe of Southern

Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho ba ...

and Southern

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...

people in western

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

History

The Cheyennes and Arapahos are two distinct tribes with distinct histories. The Cheyenne (Tsitsistas/ The People) were once agrarian, or agricultural, people located near the Great Lakes in present-day

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. Grinnell notes the Cheyenne language is a unique branch of the Algonquian language family and, The Nation itself, is descended from two related tribes, the Tsitsistas and the Suh' Tai. The latter is believed to have joined the Tsitsistas in the early 18th century (1: 1–2). The Tsitsistas and the Suh' Tai are characterized, and represented by two cultural heroes who received divine articles which shaped the time-honored belief systems of the Southern and Northern families of the Cheyenne Nation. The Suh' Tai, represented by a man named Erect Horns, were blessed with the care of a sacred Buffalo Hat, which is kept among the Northern family. The Tsitsistas, represented by a man named Sweet Medicine, were bestowed with the care of a bundle of sacred Arrows, kept among the Southern Family. Inspired by Erect Horn's vision, they adopted the horse culture in the 18th century and moved westward onto the plains to follow the buffalo. The

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the ...

Sweet Medicine organized the structure of Cheyenne society, including the Council of Forty-four peace chiefs and the warrior societies led by prominent warriors.Moore, John H. Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture. (retrieved 7 Feb 2009) The Arapaho, also Algonquian speaking, came from

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...

, eastern

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

, and western

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large po ...

in the 18th century. They adopted horse culture and became successful nomadic hunters. In 1800, the tribe began coalescing into northern and southern groups. Although the Arapaho had assisted the

and Lakota in driving the

Kiowa Kiowa () people are a Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th and 18th centuries,Pritzker 326 and e ...

and Comanche south from the Northern Plains, in 1840 they made peace with both tribes. They became prosperous traders, until the expansion of American settlers onto their lands after the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

.Fowler, Loretta
Arapaho, Southern.
, ''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture'', retrieved 7 Feb 2009 The Cheyenne and Arapaho formed an alliance in the 18th and 19th centuries. Together they were a formidable military force, successful hunters, and active traders with other tribes. At the height of their alliance, their combined hunting territories spanned from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. The Arapaho signed the Fort Laramie Treaty with the U.S. in 1851. It recognized and guaranteed their rights to traditional lands in portions of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming. The U.S. could not enforce the treaty, however, and European-American trespassers overran Indian lands. There were repeated conflicts between settlers and members of the tribes. The U.S. government brought the tribes to council again in 1867 to achieve peace under the Medicine Lodge Treaty. It promised the Arapaho a reservation in

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

, but they disliked the location. They accepted a reservation with the Cheyenne in

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

, so both tribes were forced to remove south near Fort Reno at the Darlington Agency in present-day Oklahoma. 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 ...

broke up the Cheyenne-Arapaho land base. All land not allotted to individual Indians was opened to settlement in the Land Run of 1892. The

Curtis Act of 1898 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, Chickasaw ...

dismantled the tribal governments in an attempt to have the tribal members assimilate to United States conventions and culture. After the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act passed in 1936, the Cheyenne and Arapaho organized a single tribal government in 1937. The Indian Self-Determination Act of 1975 further enhanced tribal development.

Economic development

The tribe operates three tribal smoke shops and five casinos: the Lucky Star Casino in Clinton, the Lucky Star Casino in Concho, the Lucky Star Casino in

Watonga Watonga is a city in Blaine County, Oklahoma. It is 70 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. The population was 5,111 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Blaine County. History Watonga is located on former Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian Re ...

, the Lucky Star Casino in Hammon, and the Lucky Star Casino in

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

.Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma.
2007 (retrieved 7 Feb 2009) They also issue their own tribal vehicle tags. Their economic impact is estimated at $32 million.

Government

The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes are headquartered in Concho, Oklahoma. Of 12,185 enrolled tribal members, 8,664 live within the state of Oklahoma. The tribal jurisdictional area includes Beckham, Blaine,

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

, Custer, Dewey, Ellis,

Kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

, Roger Mills, and Washita Counties.2011 Oklahoma Indian Nations Pocket Pictorial Directory.
''Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commission.'' 2011: 7. Retrieved 2 Jan 2012. The tribal government consists of the Tribal Council, Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, and Judicial Branch. The Tribal Council includes all tribal members over the age of 18. The Executive Branch is led by the Governor and Lieutenant Governor. The Legislative Branch is made up of legislators from the four Arapaho districts and four Cheyenne districts. The Judicial Branch includes a Supreme Court, including one Chief Justice and four Associate Justices; a Trial Court, composed of one Chief Judge and at least one Associate Judge; and any lower courts deemed necessary by the Legislature. In 2006 the tribes voted and ratified the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Constitution which replaced the 1975 constitution.

Institutions

''The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal Tribune'' is the tribe's newspaper. ''CATV channel 47'' is the tribe's low power FCC licensed television station. CATV's call letters are K35MV-D. The Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma Culture and Heritage Program teaches

hand games Hand games are games played using only the hands of the players. Hand games exist in a variety of cultures internationally, and are of interest to academic studies in ethnomusicology and music education. Hand games are used to teach music liter ...

powwow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations communities. Powwows today allow Indigenous people to socialize, dance, sing, and honor their cultures. Powwows may be private or p ...

dancing and songs, horse care and riding, buffalo management, and Cheyenne and Arapaho language, and sponsored several running events.

College

In partnership with Southwestern Oklahoma State University, the tribe founded the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal College on August 25, 2006.

Henrietta Mann Henrietta Mann (Southern Cheyenne, b. 1934) is a Native American academic and activist. She was one of the designers of the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Montana and Haskell Indian Nations University's Native American ...

, enrolled tribal member, was president in 2009. The campus was in Weatherford, Oklahoma and the school offered programs in Tribal Administration, American Indian Studies, and General Studies. The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal College Board of Regents voted to dissolve the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal College at the end of the 2015 spring semester. However, in September of 2019 the tribe developed a replacement by chartering

Bacone College Bacone College, formerly Bacone Indian University, is a private tribal college in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Founded in 1880 as the Indian University by missionary Almon C. Bacone, it was originally affiliated with the mission arm of what is now Ameri ...

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of the 2020 census, a 6.0 percent decreas ...

as its school.

Buffalo program

For cultural and food sovereignty purposes, a buffalo herd has been established. The herd expanded to 530 bison in 2021 when Denver Parks and Recreation donated 13 animals which will improve the herd's genetic diversity. Bison is the correct taxonomic term for

Bison bison The American bison (''Bison bison'') is a species of bison native to North America. Sometimes colloquially referred to as American buffalo or simply buffalo (a different clade of bovine), it is one of two extant species of bison, alongside the ...

, but buffalo is the common vernacular term.

Notable tribal members

* Ross Anderson, professional World Cup skier * William "Hawk" Birdshead, founder of Indigenous Life Movement * Archie Blackowl (1911–1992), Flatstyle painter * Chris Eyre, film director and producer, directed the films: '' Smoke Signals'' and '' Skins'' *

Suzan Shown Harjo Suzan Shown Harjo (born June 2, 1945) (Cheyenne and Hodulgee Muscogee) is an advocate for Native American rights. She is a poet, writer, lecturer, curator, and policy advocate who has helped Native peoples recover more than one million acres (4, ...

, Southern Cheyenne/

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsViola Hatch Viola Hatch (February 12, 1930 – April 22, 2019) was a Native American activist, founding member of the National Indian Youth Council, and former Tribal Chair of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes. She successfully sued the Canton, Oklahoma schools ...

(1930–2019), activist, policymaker, tribal elder, former tribal chairperson * Lance Henson, poet,"Henson, Lance David 2004,"
University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, Accessed June 29, 2015. painter * Yvonne Kauger, Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice *

Chief Little Raven Little Raven, also known as Hosa (Young Crow), (born — died 1889) was from about 1855 until his death in 1889 a principal chief of the Southern Arapaho Indians. He negotiated peace between the Southern Arapaho and Cheyenne and the Comanche, ...

(ca. 1810–1889), Arapaho chief and signer of 1867 Medicine Lodge Treaty * Merlin Little Thunder, Southern Cheyenne artist, noted for miniature paintings *

(born 1934) academic and developer of Native American studies curricula at the University of California, Berkeley; University of Montana; and Haskell Indian Nations University * Chief Niwot (1825–1864), Southern Arapaho leader * St. David Pendleton Oakerhater, Okuhhatuh, or Making Medicine, Southern Cheyenne (1847–1931), veteran of the Red River War, Fort Marion prisoner of war, ledger artist, deacon of Whirlwind Mission, sun dancer, canonized saint in the Episcopal Church * Tommy Orange (born 1982), Southern Cheyenne novelist * Harvey Pratt (Cheyenne-Arapaho), artist, peace chief, forensic artist * Henry Roman Nose (1956–1917), Southern Cheyenne chief * W. Richard West Sr., Dick West, or Wahpahnahyah (1912–1996), Southern Cheyenne painter, educator, and Director of Art at Bacone College * W. Richard West Jr., Cheyenne lawyer and first director of the

National Museum of the American Indian The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. The museum has three ...

* Wolf Robe (ca. 1840–1910),

Notes

References

* Grinnell, George B. ''The Cheyenne Indians: Their History and Lifeways Vol 1''. Bloomington: World Wisdom, Inc. 2008. Print.

External links

The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes
official website

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20090505213955/http://www.swosu.edu/academics/catc/index.asp Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal College {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheyenne And Arapaho Tribes Native American tribes in Oklahoma Plains tribes Algonquian peoples Federally recognized tribes in the United States