Oklahoma, Applications for Enrollment to the Five Civilized Tribes - FamilySearch Historical Records (2024)

What is in This Collection?[edit | edit source]

These records cover the years 1898 to 1914. They list the individuals who were accepted as eligible for tribal membership in the "Five Civilized Tribes": Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws, and Seminoles. This record set is also known as the "Final Rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes" and make up NARA publication M1301: Applications for Enrollment of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914. The records include 101,000 names from 1898-1914 (primarily from 1899-1906) and provide the enrollee's name, sex, blood degree, and census card number. Index provided by Fold3.com.

This index covers the collection titled "Applications for Enrollment of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914" which was created by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It is housed by the National Archives and Record Administration, Fort Worth, Texas. The NARA publication number for that collection is M1301. Additional records and/or images may be added to this collection in the future.

A Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes: Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole, also called the Dawes Commission after its chairman, Senator Dawes, was established by Congress in 1893. Its purpose was to exchange Indian tribal lands in the southeastern United States for new land allotments to individuals in Oklahoma. More than 250,000 people applied to this commission for enrollment and land. Just over 100,000 were approved. The rolls do not include the applications that were rejected, stricken, or judged to be doubtful. Those found eligible for the final rolls were entitled to an allotment of land, usually as a homestead. These records were created to provide a final list of those individuals who were enrolled as members of the Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole). They are generally reliable.

Related National Archives Collection[edit | edit source]

• Department of the Interior. Office of Indian Affairs. Office of the Commissioner to the Five Civilized Tribes. 1893-1914. Organization Authority Record
• Applications for Enrollment in the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898–1914 NAID 617283 Digital Images
• Enrollment Cards, 1898–1914 NAID 251747 Digital Images

Index and Image Visibility[edit | edit source]

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What Can These Records Tell Me?[edit | edit source]

The following information may be found in these records:

Enrollment

Collection Content[edit | edit source]

Sample of indexed information:

How Do I Search This Collection?[edit | edit source]

Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:

• The name of your ancestor.
• The tribe affiliation.
• The census number assigned to your ancestor

Search the Index[edit | edit source]

Search by name on the Collection Details Page.

1. Fill in the search boxes in the Search Collection section with the information you know
2. Click Search to show possible matches

How Do I Analyze the Results?[edit | edit source]

Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?[edit | edit source]

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?[edit | edit source]

• Use the age to calculate a birth date and to find other records such as birth, christening, census, land and death records
• Use the Indian census card number to help you locate your ancestor in the Indian census

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?[edit | edit source]

• Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records
• If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality
• Standard spelling of names typically did not exist. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
• Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names, or even initials

Research Helps[edit | edit source]

The following articles will help you research your family in the state of Oklahoma.

• Oklahoma Guided Research
• Oklahoma Research Tips and Strategies
• Step-by-Step Oklahoma Research, 1880-Present

Other FamilySearch Collections[edit | edit source]

These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

FamilySearch Catalog[edit | edit source]

• Research in American Indians of Oklahoma Arlington, Virginia: National Genealogical Society, ©2017 FS Library 970.1 H862a 2017
• Applications for enrollment of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914
• Cherokee Indian rolls dealing with the Dawes Commission
• Chickasaw Indian rolls dealing with the Dawes Commission
• Choctaw Indian rolls dealing with the Dawes Commission
• Creek Indian rolls dealing with the Dawes Commission
• Enrollment cards for the five civilized tribes, 1898-1914
• Muskogee Area Office. Enrollment of the Five Civilized Tribes: Dawes Commission, 1896-1909
• Final rolls of citizens and freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory: as approved by the Secretary of the Interior on or before March 4, 1907, with supplements dated September 25, 1914

FamilySearch Historical Records[edit | edit source]

• United States, Native American, Eastern Cherokee Enrollment Records, 1908-1910
• United States, Native American, Eastern Cherokee Indian Reservation Rolls, 1848-1970
• Oklahoma Applications for Allotment, Five Civilized Tribes, 1899-1907

FamilySearch Digital Library[edit | edit source]

• Campbell's abstract of Creek Indian census cards and index.

Citing This Collection[edit | edit source]

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Collection Citation:
The citation for this collection can be found on the Collection Details Page in the section Cite This Collection.

Record Citation:
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