The Cherokee Male Seminary was a

tribal college Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are a category of higher education, minority-serving institutions in the United States defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965. Each qualifies for funding under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Univ ...

established in 1846 by the

Cherokee Nation The Cherokee Nation ( or ) is the largest of three list of federally recognized tribes, federally recognized tribes of Cherokees in the United States. It includes people descended from members of the Cherokee Nation (1794–1907), Old Cheroke ...

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

. Opening in 1851, it was one of the first institutions of higher learning in the United States to be founded west of the Mississippi River.Conley, 56

Creation

After removal to Indian Territory, the Cherokee Nation worked to rebuild its institutions and society. In October 1846, Chief John Ross submitted a proposal to the Cherokee National Council to pass legislation for the creation of institutions of higher learning for both

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

men and women. On November 26, 1846, the Council passed a bill stating that, "Whereas, the improvement of the moral and intellectual condition of our people is contemplated by the Constitution, and whereas, we are now in possession of means sufficient to carry out, to a further degree of maturity, the National system of education already commenced."Foreman, 393 In a ceremony on October 28, 1847, the first cornerstone of the male seminary, containing books and documents, was laid by Chief Ross. Before the school opened, representatives from the Cherokee Nation visited New England seeking teachers and recruited faculty from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

, and

Newton Theological Seminary Newton Theological Seminary or Newton Theological School may refer to: * Newton Theological Institution (1825–1965) * Andover Newton Theological School Andover Newton Theological School (ANTS) was a graduate school and seminary in Newton, Mas ...

.Agnew, Brad
"Cherokee Male and Female Seminaries."
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.'' (retrieved 30 August 2009) $80,000 of tribal funds was allocated for the construction of Cherokee Male Seminary and the

Cherokee Female Seminary The Cherokee Female Seminary was built by the Cherokee Nation in 1889 near Tahlequah, Oklahoma, Tahlequah, Indian Territory. It replaced their original girls' seminary, the First Cherokee Female Seminary Site, first Cherokee Female Seminary, that ...

.Foreman, 408

1851–1856

The Cherokee Male Seminary opened its doors to 27 new students on May 6, 1851. The boarding school occupied a three-story red brick building on a campus located southwest of

Tahlequah Tahlequah ( ; , ) is a city in Cherokee County, Oklahoma located at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It is part of the Green Country region of Oklahoma and was established as a capital of the 19th-century Cherokee Nation in 1839, as par ...

. Curriculum included English grammar, composition,

arithmetic Arithmetic is an elementary branch of mathematics that deals with numerical operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. In a wider sense, it also includes exponentiation, extraction of roots, and taking logarithms. ...

algebra Algebra is a branch of mathematics that deals with abstract systems, known as algebraic structures, and the manipulation of expressions within those systems. It is a generalization of arithmetic that introduces variables and algebraic ope ...

elocution Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compel ...

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

, and language classes in

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Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

. To gain admission, prospective students had to pass a two-day examination. The tribe paid for the students' tuition and expenses. By 1856, 13 men graduated from the Male Seminary. New students were not accepted in the fall of 1856. Reopening of the school was delayed until the 1870s due to the effects of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

1870s

After the war, the school was reopened in the 1870s. Students had to pay for their room and board, and the Cherokee Nation opened enrollment to men from other Native American tribes. At the time "the Cherokee Nation had a better common school system than either Arkansas or Missouri," writes historian Grant Foreman.

Closing

Under the assimilationist

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, Chickasa ...

, the US federal government systematically dismantled Cherokee tribal institutions, including the Cherokee Male Seminary. The tribe continued using the school building as a co-educational facility after

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

statehood, but it burnt down in 1910. The last students graduated that year, with commencement ceremonies being held at Northeastern State Normal School. The Cherokee Nation has not operated a tribal college since then.

Notable alumni

William Wirt Hastings William Wirt Hastings (December 31, 1866 – April 8, 1938) was an American lawyer, educator and politician who served nine terms as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Oklahoma between 1915 and 1935. Biography B ...

(1866–1938), US Representative *

Joel B. Mayes Joel Bryan Mayes (''Tsa-wa Gak-ski'', in Cherokee) (1833 – 1891) was Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. Early life and education Mayes was born on October 2, 1833, in present-day Carterville, Bartow County, Georgia to the former Nancy ...

(1833–1891),

Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation Principal Chief is today the title of the chief executives of the Cherokee Nation, of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, the three federally recognized tribes of Cherokee. In the eighteenth ...

* Samuel Houston Mayes (1845–1927),

* J. B. Milam (1884–1949),

* Clement V. Rogers (1839–1911), Cherokee Nation senator and judge, father of humorist

Will Rogers William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...

Conley, 190

Notes

References

*Conley, Robert J.
A Cherokee Encyclopedia.
' Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2007. . *Foreman, Grant.
The Five Civilized Tribes: Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole.
' Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1982. . {{authority control Cherokee Nation (1794–1907) buildings and structures Education in Cherokee County, Oklahoma Universities and colleges established in 1851 Tribal colleges and universities 1851 establishments in Indian Territory Defunct private universities and colleges in Oklahoma