The Fort Sill Apache Tribe of Oklahoma is the federally recognized Native American tribe of

Chiricahua Chiricahua ( ) is a band of Apache Native Americans. Based in the Southern Plains and Southwestern United States, the Chiricahua historically shared a common area, language, customs, and intertwined family relations with their fellow Apaches. ...

Warm Springs Apache in

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

Government

The Fort Sill Apache Tribe is headquartered in Apache, Oklahoma. Tribal member enrollment, which requires a minimum

blood quantum Blood quantum laws or Indian blood laws are laws that define Native Americans in the United States status by fractions of Native American ancestry. These laws were enacted by the Federal government of the United States, federal government and S ...

(equivalent to one great-great-grandparent), stands at 650. The tribe continues to maintain close connections to the

Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

who were moved to the Mescalero Apache Reservation in the late 19th century. Lori Gooday Ware is the elected tribal chairperson; the position has a two-year term, as do the elected tribal council positions.

Lands

1270R Fort Sill Apache Indian Reservation Locator Map

The tribal jurisdictional area, as opposed to a reservation, spans

Caddo The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, who ...

Comanche The Comanche (), or Nʉmʉnʉʉ (, 'the people'), are a Tribe (Native American), Native American tribe from the Great Plains, Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the List of federally recognized tri ...

, and Grady Counties in Oklahoma. A private landholder returned four acres of sacred land in Cochise County,

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

to the tribe, and it is included in their trust lands. In 2011, the tribe won the right to establish a reservation in

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

. They now control near Deming, New Mexico.

Economic development and tribal programs

The tribe operates its own housing program, Fort Sill Apache Industries, and the Fort Sill Apache Casino in Lawton. The tribe's 2008 economic impact was $10 million. Working with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in 2007 the Fort Sill Tribe began to set up an environmental protection office: to abate illegal dumping, encourage

recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. This concept often includes the recovery of energy from waste materials. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the propert ...

, train certified water operators, and to educate the public about environmental issues.

History

The Fort Sill Apache Tribe is composed of Chiricahua Apache, who were made up of 4 bands: * Chihende (''Chinde'', ''Chihenne'' – ‘Red Painted People’, known as Warm Springs Apache Band or Gila Apaches, Eastern Chiricahua) * Chukunende (''Chokonende'', ''Chokonen'' – ‘Ridge of the Mountainside People’, known as Chiricahua Band, proper or Central Chiricahua) * Nde’ndai (''Ndénai'', ''Nednai'', ''Ndé'ndai'' – ‘Enemy People’, ‘People who make trouble’, sometimes known as Pinery Apache Band, known as Sierre Madre Apaches, Southern Chiricahua) * Bidánku (''Bedonkohe'' – ‘In Front of the End People’, ''Bi-da-a-naka-enda'' – ‘Standing in front of the enemy’, sometimes known as Bronco Apache Band, known as Mogollon Apaches or Gila Apaches, Northeastern Chiricahua) The Apache are southern

Athabaskan Athabaskan ( ; also spelled ''Athabascan'', ''Athapaskan'' or ''Athapascan'', and also known as Dene) is a large branch of the Na-Dene language family of North America, located in western North America in three areal language groups: Northern, ...

-speaking peoples who migrated many centuries ago from the subarctic to the southwestern region of what would become the United States. The Chiricahua settled in southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico of the present-day United States, northern

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

, and northern Chihuahua of present-day Mexico. By the late 19th century, the Chiricahua Apache territory encompassed an estimated 15 million acres.Turcheneske, John Anthony, Jr. "Historical Territory"
, ''Fort Sill Apache Tribe'', 2003 (retrieved 1 Feb 2009) In 1886, to break up the

Apache Wars The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States Army and various Apache tribal confederations fought in the Southwestern United States, southwest between 1849 and 1886, though minor hostilities continued until as l ...

and resistance to European-American settlement, the US federal government took the Chiricahua into custody as

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

and seized their land. The Army forcibly removed 400 members of the tribe from the Fort Apache and San Carlos Reservations in present-day Arizona, and transported them to U.S. Army installations in

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

.Coppersmith, Clifford P
"Apache Fort Sill."
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture.'' (retrieved 1 Feb 09) Some warriors were held at Fort Pickens in Florida. Their ledger drawings are held in a collection by the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. Many of the Apache Scouts who serve in the capture of

Geronimo Gerónimo (, ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a military leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache bands the Tchihen ...

were arrested by the order of General Nelson A. Miles forced on the same train as Geronimo, the Apache Scouts came from the Tonto, Pinal, Aravaipa, Apache Pecks, Chiricahua, San Carlos, and White Mountain Apache bands, some of the Apache Scouts where also Apache chiefs were from different Apache bands. In 1894, the US Congress passed a special provision to allow the Chiricahua to be relocated to

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

. They were the last Indian tribe to be relocated into what is now Oklahoma. When the Chiricahua arrived at

Fort Sill Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (137 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost . The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark a ...

, they had been promised the lands surrounding the fort as theirs to settle. Local non-Indians resisted Apache settlement, and the tribe was pressured to leave. Many wanted to return to their traditional lands in the Southwest, and the

Mescalero Apache Mescalero or Mescalero Apache () is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan languages, Southern Athabaskan–speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the M ...

offered them land on their reservation. A third of the Chiricahua stayed in Indian Territory, demanding that the US fulfill its promise to give them the Fort Sill lands. As a compromise, the government gave the remaining Chiricahua land which it had classified as surplus after allotment of tribal lands to individual households under the

Dawes Act The Dawes Act of 1887 (also known as the General Allotment Act or the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887) regulated land rights on tribal territories within the United States. Named after Senator Henry L. Dawes of Massachusetts, it authorized the P ...

, on the nearby

Kiowa Kiowa ( ) or Cáuigú () people are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe and an Indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colora ...

-Apache Reservation. In 1914, the US government finally released 84 individuals from prisoner status and granted them household allotment lands around Fletcher and Apache, Oklahoma. The Fort Sill Apache struggled for survival in the ensuing years in the economically depressed areas of southwestern Oklahoma. The tribe seized the opportunity afforded by Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936. Persevering through the difficulty of satisfying documentation requirements for tribal continuity, they were recognized by the federal government (Department of Interior) as a tribe in 1976. The first chairperson, elected in 1976, was Mildred Cleghorn, one of the last Chiricahua Apache born under "prisoner of war" status. She was an educator and traditional doll maker and was regarded as a cultural leader among the elders.Everett, Dianna
"Cleghorn, Mildred Imoch (1910–1997)"
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture.'' (retrieved 1 Feb 09) She served as tribal chairperson until 1995 and focused on sustaining history and traditional Chiricahua culture. Allan Houser was the first Fort Sill Apache child to be born free. He became one of the most celebrated Native American sculptors of the 20th century. His sons, Bob Haozous and Phillip Haozous, are successful sculptors today and are both enrolled members of the tribe.

Education

Like other areas in Luna County, the Fort Sill Apache Indian Reservation is in the Deming Public Schools school district.

Notable tribal members

* Mildred Cleghorn (1910–1997), first chairperson of the tribe, textile artist * Nancy Marie Mithlo, professor, curator, visual anthropologist * Bob Haozous (b. 1943), postmodern sculptor * Allan Houser (1914–1994), modernist sculptor and painter *

(1829–1909), tribal leader prior to imprisonment

Notes

External links

Fort Sill Apache Tribe-Chiricahua Warm Springs Apache
official website
Fort Sill Apache Industries

Fort Sill Apache Tribe of Oklahoma {{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Sill Apache Tribe Native American tribes in Oklahoma Federally recognized tribes in the United States