Exploring the Dawes Rolls Part 1

Learn what the Dawes Records are and about this large record set documenting Native American families.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• Cherokee
• Choctaw
• Chickasaw
• Creek
• Seminole Inidans
• Genealogy
• Black Indians
• Family Tree

[wowoak]

Most of my ancestors go way back in upper SC, bordering GA & NC. I can find them on census records, but am having a difficult time finding vital records for the one's we suspect have native ancestry. I have photos of one family who look native but they are listed as "white" on the census. I'm glad they chose to stay in the area and resist the government :) but wish I knew more about them. Thank you for your help with the Dawes Rolls by the way!

[AYWalton]

@wowoak What years are you looking for the vital records. Some states had them early and other states did not make them mandatory until the 20th century. There may be other resources for you in the local community where your ancestors lived.

[wowoak]

What happens if your ancestors intermarried with the surrounding non-natives and weren't recorded as native? My understanding is that some natives, in order to avoid the trail of tears and stay in their homeland, hid their native ancestry from the government and tried to blend in with their neighbors. It seems to me that unless they were recorded on the Dawes Rolls, it is almost impossible to prove they were native even when you have oral tradition. cont....

[AYWalton]

@wowoak Note that the Dawes Rolls reflect only those who were to receive land allotments in Indian Territory, and they have no names on them reflecting persons in the east. If individuals chose to "hide" their identity then they would not have been on any rolls, considering their preference not to be considered as native. However, I also urge you to stick to standard records and methods. If they were trying to be a part of the general population, there are records reflecting them.

[TheMidnightBell07]

Hey, I may have to make two of these because I have a lot to say lol. First of all I'd like to know if the Freedmen were just slaves or did they have actual Native blood. What do you do if you think you have Native blood but it's not from the five triibal affiliations listed. My grandma was born in Americus Georgia in 1910 and the hall of records burned down in 1921 so how do I find out her information?

[AYWalton]

You are encouraged to use standard genealogy methods to document your family history. Document your ancestor in every census year in which they lived. In ONE of those census years, if your ancestor was native, it will be reflected in the records. Note also that vital records also recorded native people as such. Vital records being birth/marriage/death records. If there was a native community, in the area, some of the records will reflect that fact.

[jcherise1]

My great great grandfather, william (willie) mcintosh, was on the dawes rolls as a cherokee freedmen. But his dad, Ben McIntosh (the son of D N McIntosh and Winnie Canard) is listed as Creek. But on some census theyre listed as only black and others indians. Its so confusing. Especially since it seems as though some had different aliases. Interesting and frustrating at the same time.

[TheMidnightBell07]

What do you do if you take a dna test and find a substantial Native blood quantam but don't have any connection or knowlege of where you recieve it? Thanks for sticking with me through these questions and statements but I have just one more question. Why are only five tribal affiliations listed on the Dawes?