Off to Camp

JULY 9, 2010

Tomorrow I fly to Tulsa to attend the 2010 Cherokee Heritage Camp, a 2-week intensive course of all things Cherokee. The camp will be held at Northeastern University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the capital of Cherokee Nation.

MAP OF CHEROKEE NATION (in Northeastern Oklahoma)

Once I land in Tulsa, I will get a car and drive to Sallisaw, the birthplace of my grandfather, Alfred Akin.  I am hoping to find my great grandfather's (William Polk Akin) grave along with other family members I have learned about during my genealogy research.

I've been told to meet at the Beta Field on campus at 5:30 pm for a hog fry and orientation.  School begins at 8 am on Monday.

Northeastern State University

I spent Sunday driving around the Sallisaw area and visited 8 cemeteries.  (Those photos are on a different blog - http://wheremypeoplerest.blogspot.com/).  I arrived in Tahlequah in time for the 5:30 pm hogfry.  There was a huge tent out in front of the campus welcoming us.  Eight of us are from the Cherokee Satellite Communities:  Wendi from Riverside, Missy from Orange, Daniel and Joyce from Central Florida (although Joyce had just recently moved to Oklahoma), Jessie from the Bay Area Group but now attending Haskell University in Kansas, Heidi from Bakersfield, and Scott and I from the Silicon Valley Group.  All our other classmates are from the local area.  It is a good mix of people.

PHOTOS OF THE CAMPUS

MY DORM BUILDING IN SEMINARY SUITES

MY ROOM

AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE UNIVERSITY

SEQUOYAH AND ME

JOHN VAUGHN LIBRARY

I spent a lot of time in the library, especially in the Special Collections section, which has many Cherokee historical and genealogical resources.

SEMINARY HALL WITH STATUE OF SEQUOYAH

Seminary Hall is the oldest building on campus.  Our class is held in Room 218 and we have spent a lot of time in this room.  We attend class from 8am to 5:30pm on Mondays through Thursdays; on Fridays we take field trips.  This building was the original site of the Female Seminary.  The Cherokees started the first free public co-educational schools in the U.S.  They believed strongly in the education of both boys and girls.

THE ORIGINAL PILLARS

These two pillars are from the original seminary buildings parts of which were destroyed by fire.  One pillar is from the Male Seminary and the other is from the Female Seminary.

STREAM RUNNING THROUGH CAMPUS

Principal Chief, Chad Smith, came to our class one morning and lectured for about an hour on the Cherokee Land Allotments.  It's his belief that this period in history did more harm to the Cherokee people than the Trail of Tears.  He was a very engaging presenter and spent a lot of time after answering our questions.

THE BACKSIDE OF THE SIGN AT THE ENTRANCE

This fountain is a constant reminder of why the Cherokees are so invested, both financially and emotionally, in education.

Around Tahlequah

We spend so much time in class that we haven't had much time to explore the city of Tahlequah.  On a few evenings we have visited some of the local landmarks and parks.

Sequoyah Park is located along a stream and is very busy on these hot evenings.  There is a public swimming pool, the Tahlequah History Trail, and picnic tables.

Near the Park is the Cherokee National Capitol which was built in 1869.  It now serves as the courthouse for the Cherokee Nation.

In another park is a wonderful statue of Billy from the book, Where the Red Fern Grows.  Wilson Rawls was born in Scraper, Oklahoma, a town fairly close to Tahlequah.

Many of the signs in Tahlequah are in both English and Cherokee.  This stop sign is a good example.

I was looking at a map of Tahlequah and discovered that way off in the outskirts of town was a newer neighborhood.  One of the streets was Walkingstick Street, named for Simon Walkingstick, a descendent of James Walkingstick, brother of my great, great, great grandmother, Akey Walkingstick.

Cherokee Warriors Memorial

Located at the Cherokee Nation Complex is the Cherokee Warriors Memorial.  The Memorial opened in 2005 and honors Cherokee citizens who have served in the military.

I first learned of this Memorial at the 2009 Northern California Cherokee Picnic, where both Principal Chief, Chad Smith, and Deputy Chief, Joe Grayson, pinned the Cherokee Warrior Medals on war veterans who attended the Picnic.  It was very touching to see the men and women receive these medals.  I emailed Joe Grayson's office to find out how I could get a medal for my father.  This all occured during the week my father was visiting me.  I was told to email a brief bio on my Dad with his contact information and Cherokee Nation would do the rest.  I talked with my Dad to learn more about his service with both the U.S. Merchant Marine and the U.S. Army.  I emailed the information to Cherokee Nation and the very next day I received a FedEx shipment with both the medal and a certificate signed by the Chief.  My father was so honored.  Another item in the package was a form to complete to have a brick in his name added to the Cherokee Warrior Memorial.  This was all for free.

I was very anxious to see if his brick was there and was thrilled to see that it was.

 
 

This is me pointing to Dad's brick.  He has a good spot.

Nearby Cemeteries

Ross Cemetery

Ross Cemetery is where Principal Chief John Ross is buried along with his brother, Lewis Ross, as well as others from the family. The cemetery is thought to be haunted and many of the locals who are in the Summer Camp have stories of things heard and seen during nighttime visits.

Principal Chief John Ross's Grave

1790 - 1866

Worcester Cemetery

Worcester Cemetery is where both Samuel Worcester and Elias Boudinot are buried.  Samuel Worcester was a missionary to the Cherokees and moved west with them.  His grave did not photograph well.

Elias Boudinot is noted for being the first editor of the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper and for being one of the signers of the Treaty of New Echota in 1835.  This Treaty is what led to the forced removal of the Cherokees west to Indian Territory.  Boudinot was killed in 1839 along with Major Ridge and John Ridge, all three signers of the Treaty.

First Bus Tour - Cherokee Historical Tour

JULY 16, 2010
On Fridays, we have bus tours conducted by the Cherokee Nation Tourism Office.  Our tour guide is Joe and the bus driver is Daryl.  This first tour focused on sights around Tahlequah.  We started at the Cherokee National Capitol and the Cherokee Supreme Court Building, which is across the street.  The Supreme Court was recently remodeled and has all new exhibits.

This is Joe at the beginning of our tour in Cherokee-themed clothing.  Our tour began at the statue of Sequoyah at Centennial Plaza in front of Northeastern University.

This photo is of most of our class listening to our guide.

SUPREME COURT MUSEUM

Inside the Supreme Court Museum

Cherokee beadwork

Cherokee keyboard

The Printing Press for the Cherokee Advocate, the newspaper of the Cherokees

NEXT STOP - THE CHEROKEE HERITAGE CENTER

These three spires are from the original Cherokee Female Seminary built in 1850.

Cherokee National Museum

ANCIENT VILLAGE

The next photos are of the Ancient Village, a complete reproduction of a mid-1700s Cherokee Township as it would have been encountered by European explorers or settlers.

GEORGE MURRELL HOME

This historic mansion built in 1845 by wealthy merchant, George M. Murrell, who married the niece of Cherokee Chief John Ross, is the only antebellum mansion remaining in Oklahoma. During the Civil War, the area surrounding the Murrell Home was frequently raided by both the Union and Confederacy forces.

BACK TO THE CHEROKEE HERITAGE CENTER

We went back to the Heritage Center to see Under the Cherokee Moon, an outdoor play based on Cherokee history.  This is the emcee warming up the audience and teaching us some words in Cherokee.

Saturday - On My Own

JULY 17, 2010
On Saturday, I left the campus early to drive around the northern part of Cherokee Nation.  My first stop was the Talbot Museum in Colcord.  In my searching for information on the Walkingstick Family, I had discovered that the Talbot Museum had a special research collection of historical and genealogical resources.  They had named the area the Walkingstick Research Room in honor of Jack and Ollie Walkingstick Rooks.

TALBOT MUSEUM

WILL ROGERS MUSEUM

Next I drove to Claremore to visit the Will Rogers Museum.  By the time I got there, the temperature was over 100 degrees.  Fortunately the museum had the air conditioner on full blast and it felt great.  The museum does a great job of explaining how popular Will Rogers was in his day.  Much of what he said then applies to our politicians today.  Learning more about his Cherokee heritage was especially interesting. 

After Will Rogers was killed in a plane crash, he was buried in Los Angeles.  He and his wife are now buried here at the museum.