Copyright © 2001 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 18, 1998
Contact: Jana Lillie, GenRef
Phone: 801-225-3256

OREM, Utah, USA--GenRef, Inc. introduced a new Windows CD in 1998, the Native American Collection. Developed with the assistance of the Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS), the CD contains an assortment of items to help the Native American researcher.

These include:

*A fully searchable OHS catalog.
The Oklahoma Historical Society, Oklahoma City, OK, houses an extensive collection of Native American materials. Its Archives section alone has several million manuscript pages, plus thousands of photographs and taped interviews. This section of the CD contains a searchable, comprehensive catalog of the Archives' microfilm holdings available for purchase.

*Scanned book images.
The CD contains graphic images of the following references: Dawes Final Rolls, Indian Territory (O'Beirne), Notable Men of Indian Territory (Dewitz) and Indian Territory (Gideon). These books are considered standard references in Native American research,and are searchable either page by page or through online indexes. Pages can be printed out as desired.

*Searchable databases.
These databases include the Chilocco Indian School alumni records, the Dawes Final Rolls, an electronic index to applications for enrollment (1896-1897), and Dawes Rejected Names. Of particular value is the ability to search the Dawes databases by surname, given name, tribe, age and gender-- no more searching through page after page!

*Bonus:
The Dawes Final Rolls, Dawes Rejected Names and applications databases automatically generate printed requests to the National Archives for copies of an individual's Dawes enrollment, land allotment or case files. These files are an excellent way to confirm names, dates and other important details.

*Links to National Archives holdings.
This section of the CD contains a fully searchable version of the Native American catalog offered through the main office of the National Archives. It also includes a Native American catalog from the National Archives' Fort Worth branch, plus sample enrollment and land allotment files to show what users can request directly through the Dawes and application databases.

*Historic photos.
Ever wondered what Sequoyah looked like, or Allen Wright, the man who gave Oklahoma its name? This section of the CD contains photographs of notable leaders, the Dawes Commission, representative faces from the Five Civilized Tribes, and more.

*Supplementary info.
This section of the CD contains an Indian Q&A (question and answer) section with helpful information from the Bureau of Indian Affairs; a Native American directory with addresses and some phone numbers for Indian affairs offices, Indian tribes and more; an alphabetized list of over 50,000 "missing" Indians due money from the Individual Indian Monies program; and a text version of the original Dawes agreement.

The Windows CD runs on an IBM PC compatible (386 minimum, 486/33 or higher recommended) running at least Windows 3.1. Other system requirements include a color VGA monitor, double-speed CD-ROM drive, and 4MB RAM, 2MB hard disk space. Suggested retail price for "The Native American Collection" is an introductory $59.95 plus $3 S&H.