Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma

```mediawiki The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma are two federally recognized Native American nations whose territories and historical homelands encompassed vast regions of the Great Plains, including present-day Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma, and Kansas. Though their primary tribal headquarters and reservation lands are located in Oklahoma, the Cheyenne and Arapaho peoples maintain deep historical and cultural connections to Colorado, where both nations originated and developed their distinctive cultures for centuries before forced removal in the nineteenth century. The two tribes have maintained a government-to-government relationship with the United States and continue to govern their respective nations through sovereign tribal institutions. Today, the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma represent approximately 12,000 enrolled members living in Oklahoma and across the United States, preserving language, traditions, and historical memory of their ancestral territories in the Rocky Mountain region and the High Plains.

History

The Cheyenne and Arapaho peoples developed as distinct tribal nations over centuries of residence in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountain regions. Archaeological and ethnographic evidence indicates that the Cheyenne migrated westward from the Great Lakes region during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, eventually settling in present-day Colorado, Wyoming, and the surrounding plains. The Arapaho similarly migrated to the central Great Plains and developed a closely aligned culture with the Cheyenne, establishing trade relationships, military alliances, and intermarriage that bound the two nations closely together. Both tribes became skilled equestrian hunters and warriors following the introduction of horses to the North American continent, developing sophisticated societies organized around buffalo hunting, seasonal movement, and spiritual practices tied to the natural cycles of the plains. The nineteenth century brought profound disruption to both nations as European American settlement expanded into their territories. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 and subsequent agreements attempted to define tribal boundaries and establish peaceful coexistence, but these agreements were systematically violated by settlers and the U.S. government.

The 1860s marked the most devastating period in Cheyenne and Arapaho history. The Sand Creek Massacre of November 29, 1864, resulted in the killing of over 150 Cheyenne and Arapaho people, primarily women, children, and elderly, by Colorado volunteer militia under the command of Colonel John Chivington. This massacre, perpetrated against a peaceful encampment that believed itself under U.S. government protection, became one of the defining traumas in tribal memory and catalyzed continued warfare, resistance, and ultimately the forced displacement of both nations from their ancestral homelands. The Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867 subsequently assigned Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho to a reservation in Indian Territory, in present-day Oklahoma, in exchange for relinquishing their claims to the central Great Plains.

Following the Sand Creek Massacre and the Medicine Lodge Treaty, conflict continued across the southern plains. The Battle of the Washita in November 1868, in which Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer's 7th Cavalry attacked a Cheyenne encampment along the Washita River in present-day Oklahoma, resulted in the death of Chief Black Kettle — who had survived Sand Creek just four years earlier — along with dozens of his people. By the early 1870s, military campaigns had effectively broken the ability of the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho to resist relocation, and both nations were confined to a reservation in the western Oklahoma Territory centered near present-day Darlington and Concho. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 separately assigned the Northern Cheyenne to the Tongue River Reservation in Montana, creating a geographic separation between the northern and southern branches of the Cheyenne Nation that persists to the present day. Despite their removal from ancestral Colorado lands, both tribes maintained cultural and familial connections across regional boundaries.

The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries brought further disruption through federal allotment policies. The Jerome Agreement of 1890 opened the Cheyenne and Arapaho reservation to non-Indian homesteaders, dramatically reducing the tribal land base and scattering allotted parcels across western Oklahoma. Throughout the twentieth century, the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes worked within the constraints of the reservation system and shifting federal Indian policy — including the termination era of the 1950s and the subsequent self-determination era launched by the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 — to rebuild tribal governmental institutions and reclaim a measure of sovereignty over their own affairs.

Government and Sovereignty

The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma operate as a unified tribal government under a constitution that provides for an executive branch led by a governor and lieutenant governor, a legislative branch composed of a tribal council, and a judicial branch with independent tribal courts. The tribal government is headquartered in Concho, Oklahoma, in Canadian County, where the tribes maintain administrative offices, social services, and cultural facilities. Tribal members elect their governor and council representatives in regular elections, and the government maintains a government-to-government relationship with the United States, interacting directly with federal agencies including the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service.

Governor Reggie Wassana has served as a prominent public voice for the tribes in recent years, particularly regarding land rights and federal legislative matters. The tribal government exercises sovereignty over tribal lands and members in a range of areas including law enforcement, courts, education, healthcare, and environmental regulation, reflecting the broader framework of tribal self-determination established in federal law and affirmed through decades of legal development.

Land and Territory

The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes hold trust lands scattered across several counties in western Oklahoma, including Canadian, Blaine, Custer, Dewey, and Roger Mills counties. The fragmented nature of the tribal land base reflects the legacy of the allotment era, during which the original reservation was broken into individual parcels and surplus lands sold to non-Indian settlers. Efforts to consolidate and expand the tribal land base through federal trust acquisitions remain ongoing, and land issues represent a persistent area of engagement between the tribes and the federal government.

One of the most significant contemporary land disputes involves Fort Reno, a former U.S. Army post located in Canadian County near El Reno, Oklahoma. Fort Reno was established in 1874 adjacent to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Agency and sits on land that the tribes have long asserted should be returned to them as part of their historical territory. The property has been managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as an agricultural research station, but its long-term federal status has been contested. In recent years, draft farm bill legislation has included provisions that would permanently block the transfer of Fort Reno to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, drawing strong opposition from tribal leadership. Governor Reggie Wassana has publicly condemned such provisions, arguing that they represent a continued pattern of legislative action that undermines tribal land rights and circumvents the government-to-government relationship the tribes maintain with the United States. The Fort Reno dispute remains active and represents one of the most visible ongoing land rights issues for the tribes in the contemporary period.

Culture

The Cheyenne and Arapaho maintain distinctive cultural practices rooted in their historical experience as Great Plains peoples and shaped by centuries of spiritual and social traditions. Language preservation remains a central cultural priority for both tribes, though decades of government policies suppressing Native languages created significant challenges. The Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family and possesses a complex grammatical structure reflecting the sophistication of traditional Cheyenne culture. The Arapaho language similarly belongs to the Algonquian family and retains many archaic linguistic features that scholars recognize as significant for understanding historical linguistics and cultural identity. Both tribes operate language immersion programs and educational initiatives to revitalize linguistic knowledge among younger generations, recognizing language as fundamental to cultural continuity and spiritual practice.

Spiritual traditions and ceremonial practices remain central to Cheyenne and Arapaho identity and community life. The Sun Dance ceremony, performed annually by both tribes, represents one of the most sacred and significant religious observances, involving fasting, ritual sacrifice, and community renewal. The Cheyenne maintain the Sacred Arrows and the Sacred Buffalo Hat as sacred objects central to tribal spiritual identity and governance; these objects are housed at the Cheyenne Cultural Center and represent the spiritual foundation of the nation. The Arapaho maintain their own sacred traditions and ceremonial calendars that mark seasonal and spiritual cycles. Both tribes practice traditional crafts including beadwork, hide tanning, and regalia creation, with distinctive artistic styles that reflect each nation's aesthetic traditions. Contemporary tribal members engage in powwows, cultural demonstrations, and educational programs that transmit cultural knowledge and maintain connection to ancestral traditions. Art, music, and dance continue to flourish within tribal communities, adapting to modern contexts while maintaining historical authenticity and spiritual significance.

Economy

The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma maintain a mixed economy incorporating tribal enterprises, individual employment, natural resource revenue, and federal trust responsibilities. Historically, the tribes depended on buffalo hunting and trading as primary economic activities until the late nineteenth century, when forced settlement on reservations required adaptation to agricultural and pastoral economies. Contemporary tribal economies incorporate gaming operations, which have become significant revenue sources for tribal governments and programs. The Cheyenne and Arapaho operate gaming facilities that generate funding for tribal services, healthcare, education, and infrastructure development. Like many federally recognized tribes, the Cheyenne and Arapaho manage trust lands and natural resources, including timber and mineral resources that provide ongoing revenue streams. Agricultural operations continue on tribal and individual allotted lands, though agricultural productivity remains constrained by land quality and climate factors.

Employment and business development remain priorities for both tribal nations as they work to reduce poverty and create economic opportunity for tribal members. The tribes operate various business enterprises including hospitality services, retail operations, and service industries that provide employment to tribal and non-tribal workers. Federal trust responsibility creates unique relationships with the U.S. government regarding healthcare, education, and social services, with funding allocated through federal agencies and tribal appropriations. Economic development initiatives focus on sustainable development that respects cultural values and environmental stewardship. Tourism related to historical sites, cultural events, and powwows generates supplementary revenue and creates opportunities to share tribal history and culture with broader audiences. Both tribes continue to work toward economic self-determination while maintaining connection to traditional lifeways and values that prioritize community welfare alongside economic growth.

Notable People

The Cheyenne and Arapaho nations have produced leaders, activists, scholars, and cultural figures who have shaped tribal history and contributed to broader American discourse on Native American rights and sovereignty. Chief Black Kettle (c. 1803–1868), a Cheyenne leader who survived the Sand Creek Massacre, became a symbol of resilience and continued advocacy for his people despite devastating losses. Though the massacre marked him indelibly, he continued seeking peaceful resolution and protection for his band until his death in the U.S. Army attack at the Washita River in November 1868. Chief Left Hand, an Arapaho leader who was also present at Sand Creek, similarly worked for peaceful coexistence and is remembered as one of the most significant Arapaho leaders of the nineteenth century.

Contemporary tribal leaders, historians, and cultural practitioners have worked to document tribal history, preserve languages, and advocate for tribal sovereignty and historical recognition. Tribal historians and scholars have published important works documenting tribal history and challenging dominant historical narratives. Artists, musicians, and performers continue traditions of cultural expression while engaging contemporary audiences. Educational leaders within tribal schools and universities work to develop culturally appropriate curricula that honor tribal knowledge systems. Activists and advocates have worked on historical recognition projects, including efforts to commemorate the Sand Creek Massacre and challenge historical erasure of tribal perspectives. Governor Reggie Wassana has been a visible contemporary leader, speaking out on issues including the Fort Reno land dispute and the protection of tribal sovereignty in federal legislative processes. The tribes continue to recognize and celebrate members who contribute to tribal welfare, cultural preservation, and external advocacy on behalf of tribal interests and sovereignty.

Attractions and Historical Significance

Though the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma maintain their primary institutional presence in Oklahoma, their historical presence in Colorado remains culturally and politically significant. The Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site, established by Congress in 2000 and administered by the National Park Service in cooperation with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, commemorates the 1864 massacre and represents one of the most important historical sites related to Cheyenne and Arapaho history. The site attracts visitors seeking to understand this pivotal historical event and its ongoing significance in tribal memory and American history, and tribal members participate in the site's interpretation and management as part of a formal partnership with the federal government.

The Cheyenne Cultural Center in Oklahoma houses sacred objects and artifacts significant to understanding Cheyenne history and culture during their historical occupation of Colorado territories. Historical markers, museums, and educational institutions throughout Colorado preserve and interpret Cheyenne and Arapaho history, helping broader audiences understand