"the People's Paths!" Cherokee News Path - Cherokee Nation Offers Registration Outreach

TAHLEQUAH, OKLAHOMA – Assistance with Cherokee Nation citizenship is coming soon to a location near you. A Cherokee Nation Registration department field clerk will be available to assist Cherokees with applications for Certificate Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) cards and tribal citizenship at convenient locations throughout the tribe’s 14-county jurisdictional area. The sites and schedule includes:

* Cherokee Nation Muskogee Health Center, 1805 N York Street, Muskogee, OK, on March 3, 2007, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
* Cherokee Nation Tag Office, 105 E Main Collinsville, OK, on February 12 and March 14, 2007, from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
* Sallisaw Sub-Office, 101 W Quisenbury, Sallisaw, OK on February 9 and March 9, 2007, from 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
* Tom Buffington Heights, 900 W McNelis #31-B, Vinita, OK, on January 17, February 21 and March 21, 2007, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
* AMO Salina Community Health Center, 900 N Owen Walters Blvd., Salina, OK, on March 16, 2007, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
* Claremore Indian Hospital, 101 South Moore Ave., Claremore, OK, on January 24, February 28, and March 28, 2007, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

To be eligible for tribal citizenship with the Cherokee Nation, you must either qualify for a CDIB card or be able to provide documents that connect you to an enrolled lineal ancestor, who is listed on the Dawes Commission Final Rolls of citizens and freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes, Cherokee Nation.

In order to obtain a CDIB, applicants must complete the application paperwork and provide acceptable legal documents which connect them directly to an ancestor who is listed with a roll number and a blood degree from the final rolls of citizens and freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes, Cherokee Nation, commonly called the Dawes Commission Final Rolls. These rolls were compiled between 1899 and 1906. Blood quantum is computed from the nearest direct ancestor(s) of Indian blood listed on the Final Rolls.

Many descendents of Cherokee Indians can neither be certified nor qualify for tribal citizenship in the Cherokee Nation because their ancestors were not eligible or did not participate in the final enrollment. The requirements at that time included being listed on previous tribal rolls of 1880 or 1896 and having a permanent residence within the Cherokee Nation (now the 14 northeastern counties of Oklahoma). If the ancestor had separated from the tribe and settled in states such as Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri or Texas, they forfeited their citizenship with the Cherokee Nation. Only enrolled citizens of the Cherokee Nation named on the Final Rolls and/or their descendents qualify to obtain a CDIB card and/or tribal citizenship.

The Cherokee Nation Registration department is located in the W.W. Keeler Complex in Tahlequah and is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. There is no charge to apply for tribal citizenship or CDIB cards.

For more information about registration services contact 918-453-5575.