Chapter 6 | Overview The Making of a State
Print ChapterKey Terms
Jump to a term…
Chapter Objectives
Learning Outcomes:
The learner will be able to…
- Identify how the Sequoyah Movement reflected the Indigenous resistance to statehood.
- Explain how the ideals of the national Progressive movement are reflected in the Oklahoma Constitution and government.
- Explain the impact of the Enabling Act on statehood.
- Describe the impact that statehood had on tribal sovereignty and governments.
- Describe specific Oklahoma constitutional provisions such as direct primary, initiative, referendum, and recall.
Compelling Question:
- What was gained and what was lost when Indian Territory became the state of Oklahoma?
Chapter Overview
Oklahoma became the 46th state in the US in 1907. In this chapter, learners will trace the events that led to statehood. The milestone was an achievement for some but a setback for others. The legal transition from Indian Territory to the state of Oklahoma was deeply contested by tribal governments and Black Oklahomans, who continued to fight for their sovereignty and human rights in the face of mounting pressure for statehood. The events leading to statehood took place during the national Progressive Movement, fueled by widespread support for social activism and political reform in the areas of labor rights, voting rights, and education. The Oklahoma Constitution contained many reformist principles that gave citizens a larger voice in state government than people had in other states.
Men. Women. Republicans. Democrats. Populists. Progressives. Native Americans. Blacks. Whites. Immigrants. Speculators. Rich. Poor. Farmers. Sharecroppers. Entrepreneurs. Missionaries. The adventurous and the afraid. The swindlers and the well-intentioned. All these people looked to Oklahoma as a place they could remake and refashion into a land where they could thrive. Their vision would shape what Oklahoma would become. Many saw it as a place where opportunity was alive and well. However, opportunity for one came at an expense to others, and so it is important to understand that from the beginning, the statehood process—that is, the making of Oklahoma into a US state—proved equally contentious and optimistic, because some people benefited from the outcome and some did not.
Before Oklahoma became a state, though, much remained unclear. Would the twin territories of Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory become one or two states? Surely, the twin territories could just as easily become twin states. Or that is what many involved in the statehood process hoped would happen.
The curriculum at the Cherokee Female Seminary, a boarding school operated by the Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, was based on the academic method of study at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in Massachusetts. Students of the Cherokee Female Seminary, seen here in 1902, with the school building in the background, often attended eastern colleges with expectations of returning to their nation to serve in leadership roles. Jennie Ross Cobb, a graduate of the seminary and great-granddaughter of Chief John Ross, took this photograph with her box camera.
Courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society.