Sequoyah Constitutional Convention
Encyclopedia
The Sequoyah Constitutional Convention was an American Indian-led attempt to secure statehood for Indian Territory
as an Indian-controlled jurisdiction, separate from the Oklahoma Territory. The convention met in the Hinton Theater in Muskogee
, on August 21, 1905.
The convention drafted a constitution, drew up a plan of organization for the government, put together a map showing the counties to be established, and elected delegates to go to the United States Congress
to petition for statehood. The convention's proposals were put to a referendum
in Indian Territory, and received overwhelming endorsement by voters.
The delegation received a cool reception in Washington
, due to party politics. Indian Territory was bordered by two southern Democratic states. The U.S. President
, Theodore Roosevelt
, was a Republican, and the Republican-controlled Congress wanted joint statehood of the two territories to eliminate the possibility of the territory joining the Union as a Democratic state. On June 16, 1906, President Roosevelt signed the Oklahoma Enabling Act, which ruled that the Indian and Oklahoma territories
would be granted statehood only as a combined state.
The work of the Sequoyah State Constitutional Convention was not entirely lost. When representatives from Indian Territory joined the Oklahoma State Constitutional Convention in Guthrie
the next year, they brought their experience with them. The Sequoyah Constitution served in large part as the basis for the constitution of the State of Oklahoma, which came into being with the merger of the two territories in 1907.
General Pleasant Porter
, Principal Chief of the Creek Nation, was selected as president of the convention. The elected delegates decided to appoint the executive officers of the Five Civilized Tribes
as vice-presidents of the convention: William Charles Rogers
, Principal Chief of the Cherokee
s; William H. Murray
, appointed by Chickasaw
Governor Douglas H. Johnston
to represent the Chickasaws; Chief Green McCurtain
of the Choctaw
s; Chief John Brown
of the Seminoles; and Charles N. Haskell
, selected to represent the Creeks (as General Porter had been elected President).
and other tribes in Indian territory were generally opposed to all local and national efforts for statehood. As mandated by the 1898 Curtis Act, however, tribal governments were to end March 4, 1906, as part of a federal push toward assimilation of Native Americans.
James A. Norman (Cherokee) promoted a constitutional convention to organize an American Indian state. In a 1904 pamphlet he suggested naming the state "Sequoyah" to honor the Cherokee who had developed the Cherokee syllabary, the first independently created written form of an indigenous language in North America.
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
as an Indian-controlled jurisdiction, separate from the Oklahoma Territory. The convention met in the Hinton Theater in Muskogee
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
, on August 21, 1905.
The convention drafted a constitution, drew up a plan of organization for the government, put together a map showing the counties to be established, and elected delegates to go to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
to petition for statehood. The convention's proposals were put to a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
in Indian Territory, and received overwhelming endorsement by voters.
The delegation received a cool reception in Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, due to party politics. Indian Territory was bordered by two southern Democratic states. The U.S. President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, was a Republican, and the Republican-controlled Congress wanted joint statehood of the two territories to eliminate the possibility of the territory joining the Union as a Democratic state. On June 16, 1906, President Roosevelt signed the Oklahoma Enabling Act, which ruled that the Indian and Oklahoma territories
Oklahoma Territory
The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as the State of Oklahoma.-Organization:Oklahoma Territory's...
would be granted statehood only as a combined state.
The work of the Sequoyah State Constitutional Convention was not entirely lost. When representatives from Indian Territory joined the Oklahoma State Constitutional Convention in Guthrie
Guthrie, Oklahoma
Guthrie is a city in and the county seat of Logan County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City Metroplex. The population was 9,925 at the 2000 census.Guthrie was the territorial and later the first state capital for Oklahoma...
the next year, they brought their experience with them. The Sequoyah Constitution served in large part as the basis for the constitution of the State of Oklahoma, which came into being with the merger of the two territories in 1907.
General Pleasant Porter
Pleasant Porter
Pleasant Porter , was a respected American Indian statesman and the Principal Chief of the Creek Nation from 1899 until his death. He served with the Confederacy in the 1st Creek Mounted Volunteers, as Superintendent of Schools in the Creek Nation , as commander of the Creek Light Horsemen , and...
, Principal Chief of the Creek Nation, was selected as president of the convention. The elected delegates decided to appoint the executive officers of the Five Civilized Tribes
Five Civilized Tribes
The Five Civilized Tribes were the five Native American nations—the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole—that were considered civilized by Anglo-European settlers during the colonial and early federal period because they adopted many of the colonists' customs and had generally good...
as vice-presidents of the convention: William Charles Rogers
William Charles Rogers
William Charles Rogers was born near Claremore, Oklahoma on the 13th of December 1847. A successful farmer, he entered local politics in 1881.A member of the Downing Party, he was elected Principal Chief in 1903, defeating E. L. Cookson of the National Party...
, Principal Chief of the Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
s; William H. Murray
William H. Murray
William Henry Davis "Alfalfa Bill" Murray was an American teacher, lawyer, and politician who became active in Oklahoma before statehood as legal adviser to Governor Douglas H. Johnston of the Chickasaw Nation...
, appointed by Chickasaw
Chickasaw
The Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the region that would become the Southeastern United States...
Governor Douglas H. Johnston
Douglas H. Johnston
Douglas Hancock Cooper Johnston , also known as “Douglas Henry Johnston”, was Governor of the Chickasaw Nation from 1898 to 1902 and from 1904 to 1939.- Background :...
to represent the Chickasaws; Chief Green McCurtain
Green McCurtain
Greenwood "Green" McCurtain was Principal Chief of the Choctaw Nation and , serving four two-year terms. He was the third of his brothers to be elected as chief, and after 1906 and the dissolution of tribal governments under the Dawes Act, he was appointed as chief by the United States government...
of the Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
s; Chief John Brown
John Brown (Seminole Chief)
John Frippo Brown, a Seminole of the Tiger Clan, was a Confederate States Army officer during the American Civil War. He was elected by the tribal council as the last principal chief of the Seminole Nation before Oklahoma statehood.-Early life and education:...
of the Seminoles; and Charles N. Haskell
Charles N. Haskell
Charles Nathaniel Haskell was an American lawyer, oilman, and statesman who served as the first Governor of Oklahoma. Haskell played a crucial role in drafting the Oklahoma Constitution as well as Oklahoma's statehood and admission into the United States as the 46th state in 1907...
, selected to represent the Creeks (as General Porter had been elected President).
Background
The Five Civilized TribesFive Civilized Tribes
The Five Civilized Tribes were the five Native American nations—the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole—that were considered civilized by Anglo-European settlers during the colonial and early federal period because they adopted many of the colonists' customs and had generally good...
and other tribes in Indian territory were generally opposed to all local and national efforts for statehood. As mandated by the 1898 Curtis Act, however, tribal governments were to end March 4, 1906, as part of a federal push toward assimilation of Native Americans.
James A. Norman (Cherokee) promoted a constitutional convention to organize an American Indian state. In a 1904 pamphlet he suggested naming the state "Sequoyah" to honor the Cherokee who had developed the Cherokee syllabary, the first independently created written form of an indigenous language in North America.
List of prominent delegates to Convention
- William H. MurrayWilliam H. MurrayWilliam Henry Davis "Alfalfa Bill" Murray was an American teacher, lawyer, and politician who became active in Oklahoma before statehood as legal adviser to Governor Douglas H. Johnston of the Chickasaw Nation...
(Constitutional Convention President, ninth Governor of OklahomaGovernor of OklahomaThe governor of the state of Oklahoma is the head of state for the state of Oklahoma, United States. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma...
, first Speaker of the Oklahoma House of RepresentativesSpeaker of the Oklahoma House of RepresentativesThe Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Oklahoma Legislature, the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The Speaker exercises administrative and procedural functions in the House, but most importantly remains a representative of his...
) - Charles N. HaskellCharles N. HaskellCharles Nathaniel Haskell was an American lawyer, oilman, and statesman who served as the first Governor of Oklahoma. Haskell played a crucial role in drafting the Oklahoma Constitution as well as Oklahoma's statehood and admission into the United States as the 46th state in 1907...
(first Governor of Oklahoma) - Robert L. WilliamsRobert L. WilliamsRobert Lee Williams was an American lawyer, judge, and politician who served as the third Governor of Oklahoma. Williams would also play a role in the drafting of the Oklahoma Constitution...
(third Governor of Oklahoma, first Chief Justice of OklahomaOklahoma Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of Oklahoma is one of the two highest judicial bodies in the U.S. state of Oklahoma and leads the Oklahoma Court System, the judicial branch of the government of Oklahoma....
) - Henry S. JohnstonHenry S. JohnstonHenry Simpson Johnston was an American lawyer and politician who served as a delegate to the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention, the first President pro tempore of the Oklahoma Senate, and the seventh Governor of Oklahoma...
(Constitution Convention President Pro Tempore, seventh Governor of Oklahoma, first President pro tempore of the Oklahoma SenatePresident pro tempore of the Oklahoma SenateThe President pro tempore of the Oklahoma Senate is the second-highest-ranking official of the Oklahoma Senate and the highest-ranking State Senator. The Oklahoma Constitution states the Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma serves ex officio as President of the Senate, and is the highest-ranking...
) - Pete Hanraty (Constitution Convention Vice President)
- Albert H. Ellis (Constitutional Convention Second Vice President)
- Charles M. McClain (Constitutional Convention Secretary)
- Chas H. Filson (Secretary of Oklahoma)
See also
- Government of OklahomaGovernment of OklahomaThe government of the US State of Oklahoma, established by the Oklahoma Constitution, is a republican democracy modeled after the Federal government of the United States. The state government has three branches: the executive, legislative, and judicial...
- Oklahoma LegislatureOklahoma LegislatureThe Legislature of the State of Oklahoma is the biennial meeting of the legislative branch of the government of Oklahoma. It is bicameral, comprising the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the Oklahoma Senate, with all members elected directly by the people. The House of Representatives has 101...
- Oklahoma Supreme CourtOklahoma Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of Oklahoma is one of the two highest judicial bodies in the U.S. state of Oklahoma and leads the Oklahoma Court System, the judicial branch of the government of Oklahoma....
- Politics of OklahomaPolitics of OklahomaPolitics of Oklahoma takes place in a framework of a presidential republic modeled after the United States, whereby the Governor of Oklahoma is both head of state and head of government, and of a pluriform two-party system. Executive power is exercised by the Governor and the government...