Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored
Gaming and chiefing. Imposters and freedmen. Distinguished novelist Robert J. Conley examines some of the most interesting facets of the Cherokee world. In 26 essays laced with humor, understatement, even open sarcasm, this popular writer takes on politics, culture, his people’s history, and what it means to be Cherokee.

Readers who think they know Conley will find an abundance of surprises in these pages. He reveals historical information not widely known or written about, such as Cherokee Confederate general Stand Watie’s involvement in the infamous Reconstruction treaty forced upon his people in 1866, and he explains his admiration for such characters as Ned Christie and Henry Starr, whom some might consider criminals. From legendary figures Dragging Canoe and Nancy Ward to popular icons like Will Rogers to contemporary “Cherokee Wannabes”—people seeking ancestral roots whether actual or fanciful—Conley traces the dogged persistence of the Cherokee people in the face of relentless incursions upon their land and culture.

“Cherokees are used to controversy,” observes Conley; “in fact, they enjoy it.” As provocative as it is entertaining, Cherokee Thoughts will intrigue tribal members and anyone with an interest in the Cherokee people.

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Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored
Gaming and chiefing. Imposters and freedmen. Distinguished novelist Robert J. Conley examines some of the most interesting facets of the Cherokee world. In 26 essays laced with humor, understatement, even open sarcasm, this popular writer takes on politics, culture, his people’s history, and what it means to be Cherokee.

Readers who think they know Conley will find an abundance of surprises in these pages. He reveals historical information not widely known or written about, such as Cherokee Confederate general Stand Watie’s involvement in the infamous Reconstruction treaty forced upon his people in 1866, and he explains his admiration for such characters as Ned Christie and Henry Starr, whom some might consider criminals. From legendary figures Dragging Canoe and Nancy Ward to popular icons like Will Rogers to contemporary “Cherokee Wannabes”—people seeking ancestral roots whether actual or fanciful—Conley traces the dogged persistence of the Cherokee people in the face of relentless incursions upon their land and culture.

“Cherokees are used to controversy,” observes Conley; “in fact, they enjoy it.” As provocative as it is entertaining, Cherokee Thoughts will intrigue tribal members and anyone with an interest in the Cherokee people.

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Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored

Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored

by Robert J. Conley
Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored

Cherokee Thoughts: Honest and Uncensored

by Robert J. Conley

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Overview

Gaming and chiefing. Imposters and freedmen. Distinguished novelist Robert J. Conley examines some of the most interesting facets of the Cherokee world. In 26 essays laced with humor, understatement, even open sarcasm, this popular writer takes on politics, culture, his people’s history, and what it means to be Cherokee.

Readers who think they know Conley will find an abundance of surprises in these pages. He reveals historical information not widely known or written about, such as Cherokee Confederate general Stand Watie’s involvement in the infamous Reconstruction treaty forced upon his people in 1866, and he explains his admiration for such characters as Ned Christie and Henry Starr, whom some might consider criminals. From legendary figures Dragging Canoe and Nancy Ward to popular icons like Will Rogers to contemporary “Cherokee Wannabes”—people seeking ancestral roots whether actual or fanciful—Conley traces the dogged persistence of the Cherokee people in the face of relentless incursions upon their land and culture.

“Cherokees are used to controversy,” observes Conley; “in fact, they enjoy it.” As provocative as it is entertaining, Cherokee Thoughts will intrigue tribal members and anyone with an interest in the Cherokee people.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780806139432
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date: 10/06/2008
Edition description: New Edition
Pages: 212
Product dimensions: 5.50(w) x 8.60(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Robert J. Conley (1940–2014) was the author of the Real People series, The Witch of Goingsnake and Other Stories, Mountain Windsong, and Wil Usdi. Conley was a three-time winner of the Spur Award and was named Oklahoma Writer of the Year in 1999. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Professional Writers Hall of Fame in 1996.

Table of Contents


Acknowledgments vii Introduction 3 Indian Casinos 6 Ricochet 15 Stand Watie and the Treaty of 1866 18 Cherokee Wannabes 33 Oklahoma 40 All Indians Are Alike, or "Chiefing" 45 Cherokee Outlaws 49 Grafters, Sooners, and Other Crooks 66 Why the DAR Did Not Like Me 70 Cherokee Women and the Clan System 75 Henry Starr 81 Cherokee Literature 87 Cherokee Celebrities 96 Indian Humor 102 The Five Civilized Tribes 110 Cherokee Names 114 Will Rogers: Cherokee Writer and So Much More 121 Linking Back 129 The Freedmen Controversy 133 John Oskison and Me 145 Cherokee Cards 151 Keetoowah 154 The Dragging Canoe-Nancy Ward Controversy 158 California Cherokees 161 Tribally Specific Historical Fiction 164 Cherokees and Sports 174 Parris: My Cherokee Family 185 Old-Time Cherokee Warriors: Charlie Wickliffe, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Port of Catoosa 190 Notes 193 Index 197
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