There is a class of citizen amongst us who, while they have equal advantage with our Indian youth in the neighborhood schools, are yet comparatively neglected in the higher branches of education. I refer to our African descent. 

If not legally, we are morally bound to give to the children of these citizens every possible educational advantage. It is, moreover, necessary to our safety and welfare as a nation.

Chief Wilson N. Jones, State of the Nation Address, 1890

The Talihina Historic Preservation Office is proud to publish a portion of our recent presentation “Black Warrior” which focused on the untold history of Tushkalusa Academy, the Choctaw Nations’ sole Freedman boarding school.

Our work focused not only on the history of the building, but also the socio-political history of the people who could be linked to the school. The initial goal for the project was limited to an examination of surviving documents associated with the school but when it concerned the lives of individuals, we felt it was important to dig deeper into their stories and identities. 

It is important to note that most of this information has been identified without the assistance of relatives; if you know someone in this list and can assist us in correcting or expanding the information about them, we would love to hear more about their stories and what became of them. 

Tushkalusa… What was it?

To understand the significance of Tushkalusa Academy, there must first be a brief understanding of the educational infrastructure of the Choctaw Nation at the time. 

The struggle of educating disadvantaged tribal members was all too well known for many Chiefs of the Choctaw Nation. Many tribal leaders can be quoted on their thoughts about educating the youth and how access to education was a gateway to prosperity. The educational system of the Choctaw Nation was continually developed and different eras of the Nation saw more focus on certain aspects such as the boarding school system, access to local neighborhood schools, and their foreign education policies. 

What almost all leaders post-removal agreed upon though, was that developing education was one of the only ways to ensure the future of the tribe. Choctaw Principal Chief Issac Garvin (1878–80) famously declared “I say educate! Educate! Or we perish!”

Choctaw Nation’s leadership invested into the continual development of education and implemented a system that over decades increased the content, quality and impact on Choctaw students. It was also developed expressly for the long-term benefits that citizens of the Nation would reap by educating those around them including their children. Generations of prosperity could be developed by proper education.

Education developed leaders, educators and skilled professionals that ensured communities could be developed from within. Change could be enacted by those who benefited from the access to education who would in turn use their developments to return real and material value to the tribe as a whole. Many tribal leaders, even some Chiefs, like Allen Wright were beneficiaries of this educational system. Remnants of this methodology and its core thesis still persist in the Choctaw Nation today. 

For those unaware, prior to 1900, Choctaw Nation had a strong and developed educational system that existed outside of the control of the federal government. The Nation, after removal, continually developed this system and by the time of the late 1880s’, they had a board of education which enacted early forms of standardized curriculum and teacher certifications which were controlled by a board and superintendent of schools.

Changing the system and developing it into something greater took many direct hands from the faculty all the way up to the highest members of the Choctaw government. In many cases, these changes were inspired or enacted through the voting body and were the direct result of lobbying and long-term political work. 

Significantly, prior to 1883, the Choctaw Freedmen who existed within the Nation were not recognized as citizens of that place, and therefore were disconnected from the growing educational advantages offered to Choctaw youth.

In 1874, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs wrote the following on the status of the Freedmen:

“The negros who were formerly owned as slaves by the Choctaw and Chickasaws are in an anomolous condition. They have their freedom, but are without equal rights and privileges. There is no reason in justice and equity why these negros should not be treated by the government as a constituent part of these Indian Nations, and share with them in all the right of landed property and educational facilities. They are orderly, industrious, and eager for the education of their children, and yet are obliged to spend their labor upon farms to which they have no title, and which when once well improved are not infrequently taken from them. Their children grow up in ignorance in sight of school houses in which they may not enter.“

United States. Office of Indian Affairs Annual report of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, for the year of 1874

After they were adopted as citizens in the early 1880s, there were no official academies for the Freedmen to go to. It was not until 1885 when the first Choctaw sanctioned Freedmen neighborhood schools were opened that education became readily available through the Nation. 

Chief Wilson Jones’ 1890 statement signals that he intended on creating an academy of higher education for the Freedmen. This was a landmark decision. Jones emphasized the importance of extending the Choctaw Nation’s educational opportunities to their Freedmen, something that had been far from a priority at any point in the previous history of the Nation.

In 1891 he expanded on this idea stating: 

“Choctaw Freedmen

In regard to this class of our citizens I would say that as we have them in our midst as citizens it becomes our duty to provide Neighborhood schools for them. This we have done. In addition to these schools although we are not bound by any agreement to do so yet as a matter of justice to them I deem it necessary that we erect and furnish one high school for their exclusive benefit. Therefore I recommend that you do pass an act authorizing the building of such a school and appropriate as much money as may be necessary for such purpose, said building to be ready for occupancy by Sept 1 1892, and to be under the control of the National Authorities as other such schools of this Nation are.”

Jones is signaling that he wants to provide a direct hand in educating the Freedmen through this show of solidarity. He is saying that the future of the Freedmen should be tied to the future of the tribe as a whole. He is referring to what would later become a portion of his magnum opus—the three Elite Academies.

Jones Academy was constructed for Choctaw boys, Tuskahoma Seminary for Choctaw girls, and Tushkalusa Institute for the Choctaw freedmen co-ed youth.

The significance of the creation of this Academy cannot be overstated. Few educational opportunities existed for the Freedmen with the options largely limited to those provided by the tribal governments in Indian Territory or religious organizations. Rarely were those educational opportunities considered higher education. While the Choctaw Freedmen could ban together and create their own schools, it required a vast amount of resources including land and a building along with it. Sourcing reliable teachers, administrators and sustaining a school was an issue for nearly all communities in the Territory.

The neighborhood schools provided a teacher and curriculum if the community could furnish a site and provide enough students to justify the school being run. While it offloaded a great deal of administrative and funding work, it still was not equivalent to one of the academies of the Nation. 

Oak Hill Industrial School was one of the sole academies available to Freedmen in the Nation. Notably, it was not provided by the Choctaws. They had no control over it and moreover, at the time, it had non-local white teachers. Oak HIll was also a religious school, established by Presbyterians  and while some did prefer their children to go to these places, it was not a universal solution for the Freedmen and it did not honor their inclusion as full citizens into the Nation.

Another significant detail is that the systems of education presented by the Presbyterian Church and other religious organizations were largely provided by non-local establishments. The Choctaw Freedmen were heavily invested in having systems that were representative of their own people. With the Choctaw educational system, they could interact with it as tribal members and engage in actively changing and expanding the system through their recently gained voting status after 1883. 

The Choctaws with Tushkalusa were embracing the “Separate but Equal” doctrine by opening a literally separate and seemingly equal academy to Jones and Tuskahoma. Rather than allowing the freedmen’s children to attend either of those schools, they constructed them an entirely separate academy. It is significant because the school was constructed several years before the historic Plessy V. Ferguson decision. The equity of the academy will be discussed at length in the full publication that this article is a portion of.

In the scope of this article, it is most important to examine the opportunity that Tushkalusa and the other elite academies gave to those involved. Typically articles about Jones and Tuskahoma cite the fact that they accepted approximately 100 students and Tushkalusa accepted about 30-40. 

It is more important to focus on cultural impact. We should be recognizing that each pupil educated could provide a real and life-changing opportunity for an entire family. It was more important than educating a single student, because for many, higher education could provide life changing resources for a community. It could aid those children in breaking their generational curses. 

This article will examine the very real lives of all identified students and staff members as well as examining their families and any significant impact that education may have had on their lives. 

Tushkalusa was designed with the intent of providing intergenerational impact in the same way that Jones and Tuskahoma were. While there are nuanced conversations that can be had about the overall success and impact of the Elite Academies (as well as their association with the federal reservation school system) it is important to note that while the other two Academies survived into Federal control, Tushkalusa stopped accepting students before that transition. Discussions about the federal boarding school systems do not apply to this institution.

Tushkalusa served students for a period of 8 years, from 1892 to 1900. Within this timeframe it was the sole Choctaw Nation academy for the Freedmen. While there were other schools that served freedmen in the area, aside from the Neighborhood Schools, none of them were part of the Choctaw Nation educational system.

For ease of reading, each portion of this article will begin with a header indicating the focus group.  

Known Students

Of the records left from the school, there exists one roster and two teachers reports. There are 34 known students ranging from approximately 10 to 23 years old. 

In most cases, these students and their ages as identified in school paperwork correspond to a record submitted with the Dawes Commission which began activity during the timeframe that the school was still in operation. The overlap of these two time periods allows for an accurate identification of not just the students, but also their parents and in many cases their grandparents as well. The school being in operation during the Dawes Era ensures that students who filed with the Commission are very identifiable and their family units are well documented.

When the school opened, there was no modern blood quantum or universal tracking method for Choctaw ancestry. Many of Tushkalusa’s students were verified to be members of the Nation because their parents or grandparents were in Indian Territory prior to emancipation in 1866. Dawes records are now a standard of genealogical research but at the time of the schools operation, many cases had not been adjudicated so a Dawes record would not have been a part of the enrollment process. When the recommendation of a student’s enrollment was made, their identity and relation within the tribe was verified. This information was paired with academic and attendance requirements for the existing educational programs.

Recently placed regulations at the time of Tushkalusa’s founding meant that a student had to be already doing well in a neighborhood school to be admitted to one of the more prestigious academies. They also had to be specifically recommended by one of the Trustees of their residing county. Based on research and an interview from one of the students in her adulthood, it appears the same was true for Tushkalusa. (See student profile for Emma Thompson.)

In writing, it was also a requirement that only one person per family be admitted to those schools but in practicality, just like with the other Choctaw schools, there were children of the same household admitted at the same time. It should be assumed, in this line of thought, that some of the other requirements could also be bypassed. 

The records to be examined will go in the order of: Students who are not positively identified, girls and then boys. In instances where a Dawes card is found, all relevant information from the card will be written in that child’s entry. In some cases, life-events of note will also be attached. Some students have surviving interviews or other documentation that will be included.

The reader shall be reminded at this time that research is still being conducted and as a result there may be inaccuracies or missing information in the students profiles. If you believe that you are descended from one of these individuals or have further information, we implore you to reach out.

Not Positively Identified

Sarah Gross

Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 4th Grade
Gender: Female
Known Locations: Talihina
Notes: No known records exist outside of school documents.

“L” Hunter 

Age on 1894 Roster: 17 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd and 4th Grade (Note: 5th and 6th were joined. 3rd and 4th were not. She appears on both class rosters.)
Possible Card Number: CHF – 636
Birth Date: Approximately 1879
Possible Known Locations: Talihina, Mayhew
Possible Parents: Peggy and William Hunter
Possible Associated Enslaving Families: Benny Hunter
Notes: It is believed she could be Lavissa Hunter.

Rhiena [Unknown Surname]

Age on 1894 Roster: 23 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 4th Grade
Known Locations: Talihina
Notes: No known records exist outside of school documents. [Unknown Surname, believed to start with “V”. Student is placed on the list alphabetically between Emma Thompson and Amanda Young. Beginning letter is not comparable to the teacher’s “T” or “Y” shapes as shown on other students.]

Henry Colbert 

Known Locations: Talihina
Notes: He is mentioned in Dora’s 1895 report. It stated that he was excused from school for a month at the end of the year. There are multiple possibilities in the Dawes catalog, but without additional records, it is not possible to positively identify him.

Girls

When referring to the female students, their enrolled name is used. If their surname changed due to marriage, it will be noted in their individual entry. 

Lucretia Shoals 

Other Known Names: Creasie, Lucretia Watson, Lucretia Fields
Age on 1894 Roster: [Illegible]
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 805
Birth Date: Approximately 1877 – 1879
Known Locations: Talihina, Oberlin
Parents: Nellie and William Shoals
Paternal Grandparents: Elvina and Pink Shoals
Associated Enslaving Families: Mitchell Harrison, Robert M Jones, Susan Jones
Spouse(s): John Watson, William Fields
Known Children: Maria Ann Watson, Benjamin Franklin Fields
Notes: Oberlin was a black township in Bryan County. A majority of the population were former slaves from the Robert M. Jones plantation.

Sophia James

Other Known Names: Sophia Beatrice James, Sophia Brackeen, Sophia Thomas
Age on 1894 Roster: [Illegible; Possibly 12]
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CN – 1726
Birth Date: February 12, 1888
Birth Place: Boswell
Known Locations: Talihina, Boswell, Mayhew, Kings (California), Pittsburg (California)|
Parents: Mary McKinney and David James
Paternal Grandparents: Vina and Blue James
Associated Enslaving Families: Harriet James, Ben James
Spouse(s): Ray Brackeen, Joseph Thomas
Known Children: Roseta Bracken
Death Date: October 15, 1982
Grave Location: Oak View Memorial Part, Antioch, California

Notes: Sophia James was accepted on to the blood roll with a 1/4 blood quantum. This makes her the only student to be accepted on the blood roll. Supporting evidence includes the existence of her brother, Noah, on her card. Her father on this card is David James, a non-citizen. Her dawes interview is marked “empty”, but on the 1910 census she is listed with her daughter, Roseta, as “mulatto.” In her daughter’s dawes interview, it says Sophia is the daughter of a freedmen and Choctaw woman.

Martha Rodgers

Other Known Names: Martha Rogers, Martha Clark, Martha Star, Martha Dunnings
Age on 1894 Roster: 12 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 726
Birth Date: April 4, 1890
Birth Place: Spiro
Known Locations: Talihina, Spiro, Sanbois, Hartshorne
Parents: America Harlan and Anderson Rogers
Associated Enslaving Families: Aaron Harlan
Spouse(s): Earnest Clark, William M. Star, Thomas Dunnings
Known Children: Bessie Clark, John Star, Atha Star, Wallace Star, Earnest Star, Viola Star, and Gussie Star
Possible Death Date: There is a record for a Martha Dunning (maiden name Rogers) born in Oklahoma on April 4, 1892 who passed in Los Angeles on April 18, 1959.
Notes: In 1899, Martha was living with her father and step-mother, Nancy Rogers. She is listed on her step-mother’s Dawes Card. Based on the card of Effie Washington and other records, her mother had several children—including a daughter with Squire Hall.

Amelia Nail 

Other Known Names: Amelia Cobb, Amelia Boyd
Age on 1894 Roster: 14 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CKF – 1066
Birth Date: 1880
Known Locations: Talihina, Atoka, Coalgate, Caddo, Phillips, Calhoun
Parents: Hannah and Peter Nail
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie Nail and Sam Perry
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail, Catherine Nail
Spouse(s): Arthur Cobb, Isom Boyd
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Henry Nail’s niece through his brother, Peter. Sister of Lee Nail. Cousin of Annie Nail, Dicie Nail, and Ben Nail.

Amanda Young 

Age on 1894 Roster: 14 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 585
Birth Date: Approximately 1872-1880
Known Locations: Talihina, Goodland, Hugo
Parents: Maria and Dick Young
Maternal Grandparents: Malinda Jackson and Sam Franey
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie Gary (Choctaw) and George Young
Associated Enslaving Families: Robert M Jones, Mary Ellis, Robert Franeu
Known Partner(s): Aleck Mattubbee [Maytubby] (Chickasaw), Emanuel Everidge
Known Children: William Mattubee [Maytubby], Parker Everidge
Notes: It should be noted that her paternal grandmother is a Choctaw woman, but her father was born enslaved by Robert Jones and enrolled as a freedman. According to the rules, he should have been placed on the blood roll to make him eligible for the larger allotment.

Amanda Peachlyn

Other Known Names: Amanda Burris, Amanda Pitchlynn
Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 427
Birth Date: August 31, 1877
Known Locations: Talihina, Eagletown, Yreka City (California)
Parents: Jenny and Horace Pitchlynn
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie and Solomon Pitchlynn
Associated Enslaving Families: Peter Pitchlynn
Spouse(s): Ned Burris
Known Children: Roosevelt Burris, Davidson Burris, Clara Burris, Robert Burris, Jeffrie Burris
Future Profession(s): Farmer (1920), Houseworker (1936-1944)
Death Date: September 14, 1952
Grave Location: Mountain View Cemetery in Fresno, California

(The Fresno Bee – Fresno, California •  Mon, Sep 15, 1952 Page 19)

Emma Thompson

Other Known Names: Emma Hampton
Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 1224
Perry Case File: F – 022
Birth Date: December 4, 1880
Birth Place: Box Springs
Known Locations: Talihina, Box Springs, Doaksville, Hugo
Parents: Lucy and Pink Thompson
Maternal Grandparents: Mary Sifax and Billy Fall
Paternal Grandparents: Mahala Thompson and Jack Yacambe
Associated Enslaving Families: Mary Folsom, Henry Folsom, Pamanche
Spouse(s): Wilburn Hampton
Known Children: Lying Hampton, Mary Hampton, and Edgar Hampton
Future Profession(s): Farm Laborer (1910, 1920), Worker in a Private Home (1940)
Grave Location: Unknown. Possibly in Box Springs (nearby modern day Sawyer) with her parents and two of her children.
Notes: Lucy Thompson filed with the Joe & Dillard Perry files under case number F-022, where she said her father was a fullblood Choctaw man. Emma was interviewed as part of the Indian Pioneer papers where she mentioned her maternal grandmother was forcibly sold away from her daughter and had to return after emancipation to retrieve her. In a sworn affidavit given to the Dawes Commission by Albert Bird, Lucy Thompson referred to her enslaver Pamanche as “grandfather.” Emma confirmed in her  Indian Pioneer Paper interview that she also attended Oakhill Industrial Academy prior to Tushkalusa.

“I attended school at Box Spring school until I was about twelve years old, then I was sent to Oak Hill Academy. It was a boarding school just for girls then.

 […]

I was at Oak Hill Academy four years. Four years there entitled a student to a scholarship, or good grades entitled one to a scholarship in less time. It took me four years to get mine. I was slow to learn. 

[…]

I attended Oak Hill Academy four terms and then was about sixteen I went to the Tushkalusa Academy up about Talihina. Henry Nail was Superintendent. My father tied my grip full of clothes to his saddle horn and put me on another horse and took me to Goodland to the train and there I had my first train ride when I went to Talihina. I went there three years, but I never graduated. I was too slow to learn. But I liked to go to school. I got out of chopping cotton and other field work.

[…]

Oak Hill Academy was a school for negroes on Clear Creek about nine miles east of Doaksville, which operates now under the name of Elliott Hall. But they have negro superintendents and teachers now. Tushkalusa Academy up close to Talihina was abolished because of lack of funds, and was used for a residence for years before it was finally destroyed by fire. The Henry Nail who was superintendent when I was there was part negro and part Choctaw.”

Emma Gross

Other known names: Emma Neal, Emma Brown
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 4th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: Currently believed to be CHKF – R22 (Rejected)
Birth Date: Approximately 1872-1878
Known Locations: Talihina, Muskogee
Parents: Laura and Richard Gross
Maternal Grandparents: Savannah Thompson and Unknown Cherokee Man
Associated Enslaving Families: James Allen Thompson
Spouse(s): Louis Neal, Andrew Brown
Known Children: Ora Neal, Joanna Neal
Death Date: November 25, 1904
Grave Location: Green Hill Cemetery, Muskogee
Notes: Emma and her mother/siblings were denied because they were not listed on the census of 1880.

(Muskogee Daily Phoenix and Times-Democrat – Muskogee, Oklahoma •  Sat, Nov 26, 1904 Page 9)

Sarah Butler 

Other known names: Sarah Burris
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 195
Birth Date: Approximately 1876
Known Locations: Talihina, Eagletown, Tom, Idabel
Parents: Jane and Willie Butler
Associated Enslaving Families: Lorenza and Willie Harris
Spouse(s): Charley Burris
Known Children: Annie Burris, Irma Burris, Emex Burris, Hickman Burris
Grave Location: Unknown. Her grave is currently believed to be the “Sarah Harris Burris” located at Mount Zion Cemetery in McCurtain County. The grave does not have birth or death dates. The oldest graves in that cemetery date back to 1921, the year her husband remarried.
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Half Sibling to Mary Butler through their mother, Jane. Believed that “Billy” and “Willie” Butler are the same person, which would make Sarah and Mary full siblings.
Notes: Willie Butler was alive at the time of the Dawes Commission and testified for Sarah, but did not appear to have applied for allotment/citizenship.

(McCurtain Gazette – Idabel, Oklahoma •  Sat, Sep 7, 1918 Page 3)

Mary Butler 

Other known names: Mary E., Mary Shoals
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th Grade and 6th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 282
Birth Date: Approximately 1876
Known Locations: Talihina, Lukfata, Hunter, Everidge, Grant, Atoka, Goodland
Parents: Jane and Billy Butler
Associated Enslaving Families: Henry Harris, Lorenza Harris
Spouse(s): Joe Shoals
Known Children: General Butler, Richmond Shoals, Bennie Shoals (Step Daughter), Ed Hagkins (Orphan living with them in 1900)
Death Date: Sometime prior to 1909
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Half Sibling to Sarah Butler through their mother, Jane. Believed that “Billy” and “Willie” Butler are the same person, which would make Sarah and Mary full siblings. In 1898, she was listed as one of the trustees for a neighborhood school near Goodland.

Membra Humes 

Other known names: Membra McGuire, Membra Moton
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 4th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 291
Birth Date: May 25, 1878
Birth Place: Idabel
Known Locations: Talihina, Shawnee Town, White, Madera (California)
Parents: Martha and Dennis Humes
Paternal Grandparents: Fanny and Alex Folsom
Associated Enslaving Families: Robert Jones, Sim Folsom
Spouse(s): Lemon McGuire, Cal Moton
Known Children: Raphy McGuire, Annie McGuire, Sarah McGuire, Estella McGuire, Levella McGuire, Lattie McGuire, Elmira McGuire, Lemon McGuire, Elmer McGuire, Leo McGuire, Cleo McGuire, Leola McGuire, Elmo Moton
Future Profession(s): Farm Laborer (1910)
Death Date: January 20, 1953
Grave Location: Arbor Vitae Cemetery, Madera, California
Notes: Her maternal grandparents were an unnamed couple enslaved on Robert Jones’ Texas property, likely somewhere near Sherman.

Dicie Nail

Other known names/spellings: Dicy, Dicey, Dicie Shepard
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: Preparatory Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CKF – 982
Birth Date: September 1878
Known Locations: Talihina, Fort Smith (Arkansas)
Parents: Sophronia and Henry Nail
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie Nail and Samuel Dumas
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail, Minerva Colbert
Spouse(s): George Shepard
Known Children: Albert Shepard, Henry Nail Shepard, Edith Shepard, Geo Shepard, Louise Shepard, Luella Shepard
Future Profession(s): Homemaker (1910), Laborer in Cotton Oil Mill (1920)
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Daughter of Henry Nail. Sister of Annie Nail. Cousin of Amelia Nail, Lee Nail, and Ben Nail.

Annie Nail

Other known names: Sally Ann
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHK – 981
Birth Date: Approximately 1884
Known Locations: Talihina
Parents: Sophronia and Henry Nail
Paternal Grandparents: Samuel Dumas and Sallie Nail
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail and Minerva Colbert
Known Children: Willie Viola Justice Nail (Illegitimate)
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Daughter of Henry Nail. Sister of Dicie Nail. Cousin of Amelia Nail, Lee Nail, and Ben Nail.

Tena Shoals 

Other known names: Tena Dorcas Shoals, Tena Woods
Age on 1894 Roster: 18 years old [Possibly 17]
Grade on 1894 Roster: Preparatory Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 1297
Perry Case File: F – 016
Birth Date: November 28, 1875
Birth Place: Shawnee Town
Known Locations: Talihina, Shawnee Town, Idabel, White, Boss, Boley, Paris (Texas)
Parents: Creasie Jones and Mitchell Shoals
Maternal Grandparents: Membry and Robert M. Jones
Associated Enslaving Families: Susan Jones
Spouse(s): George C Woods
Known Children: Oliver H Woods, George C Woods, Belma R Woods, Zelma C Woods
Future Profession(s): Retail Salesman (1920), Postmaster (Boss, OK) (1914)
Death Date: July 8, 1966
Grave Location: Woods Family Cemetery, Idabel
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Sister-in-law of Julia Coleman through Tena’s half brother, Oliver Williams.
Notes: While active as a teacher, she was a certified “Class One” Choctaw Educator, which was the highest classification available. Creasie Shoals filed with the Jo& Dillard Perry files under case number F-016, where she said her father was Robert M. Jones. Tena’s daughter, Elma, was a professor at Langston University. There is an article from the Black Dispatch (Apr 19, 1947 Page 2) that includes a photo of Tena and a short bio on her work in the local area.

Birda Howell

Other Known Names: Birdie, Birda L., Birda Nail, Birda Fortune
Age on 1894 Roster: 18 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: Preparatory Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 1185
Birth Date:  July 18, 1876
Birth Place: McAlester
Known Locations: Talihina, McAlester, Wilburton, Chickasha, Phoenix (Arizona), Los Angeles (California)
Parents: Salina and John Howell
Paternal Grandparents: Lila and John Wade
Associated Enslaving Families: Isaac Burris, Mary Johnson, John Spring, Isaac Burris
Spouse(s): Henry Nail, Robert Fortune
Known Children: Hastings Fortune, Evans Fortune, Zelma Fortune, Cleo Fortune
Future Profession(s): Salesman (1900)
Death Date: December 25, 1968
Grave Location: Evergreen Cemetery in Los Angeles, California
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Second wife of Henry Nail.
Notes: Her father, John, filed on the 1900 census as Indian, not black. He was living with Birdie at this point. She filed as Indian on this census as well. Her second husband, Robert Fortune, was one of two hundred deputy US marshals appointed by Judge Parker in IT. He received his first regular field deputy commission on May 1, 1895. He served until 1907. He was admitted into the Oklahoma Bar in 1912 and set up a practice in Chickasha, where he developed a reputation as a civil rights activist.

During the early 1910s, Birdie was the assistant principal for the Wilburton Colored schools. She also helped form the Negro Constitutional and Political League in Phoenix, Arizonia with her husband and others. In 1926, she was listed as the grand scribe of the Arizona Grand State Lodge of the Mosaic Templars of America, a fraternal organization.

(The Wilburton News – Wilburton, Oklahoma •  Fri, Oct 8, 1909 Page 1)

(The Wilburton News – Wilburton, Oklahoma •  Fri, May 10, 1912 Page 9)

(The Wilburton News – Wilburton, Oklahoma •  Fri, Oct 11, 1912 Page 2)

Eliza Riley

Other known names: Eliza Walker
Age on 1894 Roster: 19 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: Preparatory Grade
Gender: Female
Card Number: CHF – 386
Birth Date: Approximately 1875 – 1877
Known Locations: Talihina, Eagletown
Parents: Rachel and Shepard Riley
Paternal Grandparents: Simy and Austine Riley
Associated Enslaving Families: Robert M. Jones, Peter Pitchlynn
Spouse(s): Giles Walker
Known Children: Willie Walker
Death Date: January 17, 1900

Boys

Solomon Sexton 

Other known names: Solomon Sexton
Age on 1894 Roster: 10 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 727
Birth Date: Approximately 1883
Known Locations: Talihina, San Bois, Stigler
Parents: Patsy and Jimmie Sexton
Maternal Grandparents: Jennie Lewis
Associated Enslaving Families: Jack Riddle
Spouse(s): Lonella Sexton, Rosa Cass, Sarah Sexton
Future Profession(s): Farm Laborer (1900), Farmer (1920)
Death Date: June 3, 1946
Grave Location: Louisville Cemetery, Stigler
Notes: In 1900 he listed himself as “Indian” on the census.

(Stigler News-Sentinel – Stigler, Oklahoma •  Thu, Jun 6, 1946 Page 6)

Lee Nail 

Age on 1894 Roster: 13 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CKF – 1065
Birth Date: Approximately 1883
Known Locations: Talihina, Caddo, Sapulpa
Parents: Hannah and Peter Nail
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie Nail and Sam Perry
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail, Catherine Folsom
Death Date: December 1916
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Henry Nail’s nephew through his brother, Peter. Brother of Amelia Nail. Cousin of Annie Nail, Dicie Nail, and Ben Nail.
Notes: Lee was arrested by Deputy Marshal Bass Reeves for grand larceny in 1905. He was injured during an attempted jail escape and died from resulting injuries.

(Muskogee Daily Phoenix and Times-Democrat – Muskogee, Oklahoma •  Fri, May 5, 1905 Page 1)

Jesse Garrett

Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Male
Birth Date: Approximately 1879
Known Locations: Talihina, Skullyville
Parents: Emma and Albert Garrett
Maternal Grandparents: Cloria Coleman and Jesse Moncrief
Maternal Great-Grandparents: Nancy Hall and Tom Harper
Associated Enslaving Families: Jim Coleman, Julia Coleman, Sam Moncrief, Susan Hall
Death Date: Approximately 1896
Related to Known Student/Faculty: Nelson Coleman’s nephew through his sister, Emeline.
Notes: In the 1896 census, Jesse was living with their older sister, Annie. He passed away prior to Dawes enrollment. Annie and other siblings are alive by the time of the Dawes Commission; their interviews were pulled to bolster this section.

Ben Nail

Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 4th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 1203
Birth Date: July 22, 1880
Known Locations: Talihina, Sapulpa
Parents: Mary Nonubby and Ben Nail
Paternal Grandparents: Sallie Nail and Sam Perry
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail, Catherine Folsom, Jane Nonubby
Spouse(s): Sarah Nail
Known Children: Sallie Nail, Rosabell Nail, and Kasey Nail
Future Profession(s): Odd Job Laborer (1910), Glass Worker (1918), House Cleaner (1920)
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Henry Nail’s nephew through his brother, Ben. Brother of Amelia Nail. Cousin of Annie Nail, Dicie Nail, Amelia Nail, and Lee Nail.
Notes: He registered for the WW1 draft on September 12, 1918.

Marion Reed

Age on 1894 Roster: 15 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 1461
Birth Date: Approximately 1877
Known Locations: Talihina, Buck, McAlester, Alderson, Dow
Parents: Catherine “Kitty” and James T. Reed
Maternal Grandparents: Violet Austin and Martin Beams
Associated Enslaving Families: Mary and Jack Johnson
Spouse(s): Avise Reed
Future Profession(s): Coal Digger (1910)
Death Date: March 1, 1914
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Cousin to Walter Choate through their mothers.
Notes: In his mother’s Dawes interview, Henry Cole gave a sworn interview stating that her father, Martin Beams, was a Choctaw by Blood. When asked about her father’s blood, she was quoted saying: “I claim it but it is no good to me.” In October 1913, Marion was charged for burglarizing a store in Dow. The following year he was killed in the same town.

(The M’Alester News-Capital – McAlester, Oklahoma •  Wed, Jan 20, 1915 Page 1)

John Richards 

Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 313
Birth Date: Approximately 1878
Known Locations: Talihina, Lukfata
Parents: Winnie and Primis Richards
Maternal Grandparents: Sylvania and John Lewis
Paternal Grandparents: Katy and George Richards
Paternal Great-Grandparents: Dick James
Associated Enslaving Families: Peter Pitchlynn, Calvin Howell, Sophia Pitchlynn

Miles Burris

Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 2768
Birth Date: Approximately 1880
Birth Place: 
Known Locations: Talihina, Lukfata, Broken Bow
Parents: Frances and Sam Burris
Maternal Grandparents: Celin Burris
Paternal Grandparents: Lenny and Ben Pitchlynn
Associated Enslaving Families: Calvin Howell, Wm. Harris, Loren Folsom, Pitchlynn
Spouse(s): Aruella Culut, Lucy Pitchlynn
Known Children: Martin Burris, Conway Burris, Harrison Burris (Step Son), Oscar Hill (Nephew living with them in 1920)
Future Profession(s): Farmer (1910, 1920, 1930)
Notes: His Dawes card is filled out particularly badly and implies that his mother was also his father’s daughter, but this was most likely just a result of the recorders doing it improperly.

John Stanley

Other known names: John Henry Stanley
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 571
Birth Date: August 1882
Known Locations: Talihina, Frogsville, Wilson
Parents: Clarissa and Joe Stanley
Paternal Grandparents: Susan Everidge and Ben Stanley
Associated Enslaving Families: Joel Everidge, Basil LeFlore, Tom Everidge
Future Profession(s): Farm Laborer (1910, 1930)
Death Date: March 4, 1958

Walter Shoat

Other known names: Theophilus Walter Choate
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 3rd Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CKF – 46
Birth Date: May 9, 1877-1878
Birth Place: Alderson
Known Locations: Talihina, Krebs, Wilburton
Parents: Julia Grey and Henry Choate
Maternal Grandparents: Violet and Henry
Associated Enslaving Families: Mary Johnson, Wm Wilson, John Choate
Spouse(s): Mattie Choate
Future Profession(s): Miner (1918, 1920)
Death Date: February 10, 1952
Grave Location: Wilburton City Cemetery, Wilburton
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Cousin to Marion Reed through their mothers.
Notes: He was drafted in WW1 and WW2. The local newspaper in 1952 referred to his as a “negro leader” in Wilburton.

Israel Tyms

Other known names: Israel William Tims
Age on 1894 Roster: 16 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 621
Birth Date: March 1, 1879
Known Locations: Talihina, Mayhew, Hunter, Boswell, Antlers
Parents: Penelope and Tims
Paternal Grandparents: Suzanna McIntosh and Sam Tims
Associated Enslaving Families: John McIntosh
Spouse(s): Hattie Tims, Maud Callier
Known Children: Joseph Tims, Jerry Tims, Elmo Tims
Future Profession(s): Farmer (1910, 1918, 1940), Farm Laborer (1920)
Death Date: November 1, 1961
Grave Location: Mayhew Cemetery, Choctaw County
Notes: Drafted during WW1 and WW2.

(The Hugo Daily News – Hugo, Oklahoma •  Tue, Nov 13, 1934 Page 4)

Caesar Eubanks

Other known names: John Caesar Eubanks
Age on 1894 Roster: 17 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: Preparatory Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 1183
Birth Date: November 28, 1878
Known Locations: Talihina, Brazil, Milton, Latham, McCurtain, Boynton, Pine Valley
Parents: Frances and Henry Eubanks
Maternal Grandparents: Sophia and Caesar Boyd
Associated Enslaving Families: James Boyd, Sophie Eubanks, Nancy Boyd
Spouse(s): Lutitia (Letitia) Pulcher
Known Children: Beulah Eubanks, Brunett Eubanks, Lillie Eubanks, Tina Eubanks, Andy Eubanks, Mabel Eubanks, Johnie Eubanks
Future Profession(s): Farm Laborer (1900), Farmer (1910, 1918, 1920), Laborer (1940)
Death Date: September 28, 1982
Grave Location: Doyle Cemetery, Muskogee County
Notes: Drafted in WW1 and WW2.

Nathan Davis

Age on 1894 Roster: 19 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 968
Birth Date: March 15, 1878
Birth Place: Spiro
Known Locations: Talihina, Atoka, Spiro, Chicago (Illinois)
Parents: Elizabeth Gunter and Albert Gary
Paternal Grandparents: Maria Davis and Dave Brook
Associated Enslaving Families: Jim Gary, Peggy Geary-Ring
Spouse(s): Modessie Davis, Mattie Bills
Known Children: Nathaniel Davis, Alla Davis (later Bryant)
Future Profession(s): Railroad Laborer (1900), Station Hand for Railroad (1930), Office Worker (1942)
Notes: Nathan wrote a letter to the Dawes Commissioners saying:

“I go by Nathan Davis […] Nathan Davis is my real name, but my father and other brother go by Geary, as Geary was the man that used to own my father.” 

He offered to change his last name to Gary if he needed to. He was not required to change this name. He was drafted in WW2.

Walter Pickens

Other known names: Walton Pickens 
Age on 1894 Roster: 21 years old
Grade on 1894 Roster: 5th and 6th Grade
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 611
Birth Date: Approximately 1873
Known Locations: Talihina, Goodland, McAlester, Hugo
Parents: Charity and Henry Pickens
Paternal Grandparents: Bitsy and Haven Pickens
Associated Enslaving Families: Edmund Pickens, Dina Miller
Spouse(s): Lou Pickens
Known Children: Lena Dunford (Step Daughter), Josephine Dunford (Step Daughter) Jesse Pickens, Frank Pickens, Eugene Pickens
Future Profession(s): Railroad Laborer (1910), Farmer (1918)
Notes: Drafted in WW1.

Teachers

Contemporary documentation that survives can be found establishing Dora Johnson as principal, Julia Coleman as Teachers Assistant and also one S. M. Echols as a teacher. For the additional faculty, newspaper clippings were used from the time. As we know that the school did not expand in capacity, it is safe to assume that we have identified a majority of the other staff members that were employed after 1896 during the Henry Willis era.

For many of the faculty members, they passed before 1917 when death records were required for Oklahoma. Large scale adoption of the death records system in Oklahoma was sporadic until after the 1940s and even then no vital records can be found for many of the mentioned individuals. 

S. M. Echols

Known Years Employed: 1892, 1893, 1894, 1895
Hired Position: Teacher
Gender: Female
Known Locations: Talihina, Possibly Fort Smith (Arkansas)
Notes: She is the longest standing, known teacher. Receipts from the school reference an “Echols Groceries and Dry Goods” business in Fort Smith. This business was later renamed “William J. Echols Dry Goods”, he had a wife named Sadie M., who was an appropriate age for this individual. However, she is not Choctaw, Freedmen, or African American. If this is the correct person, this would make her the only white school employee.

Julia Coleman

Other known names: Julia I., Julia Williams, Julia Mabrie [Mabry], Julia Marchbanks
Known Years Employed: 1894, 1895
Hired Position: Teacher’s Assistant
Gender: Female
Birth Date: Approximately 1875
Known Locations: Talihina
Parents: Nelson Coleman
Paternal Grandparents: Cloria Coleman and Jesse Moncrief
Paternal Great-Grandparents: Nancy Hall and Tom Harper
Associated Enslaving Families: Jim Coleman, Julia Coleman, Sam Moncrief, Susan Hall
Spouse(s): Oliver Williams, Aaron Mabrie [Mabry], Robert Andrew Marchbanks
Known Children: Olive Williams, Herman Mabry, Lawrence Mabry, Ethel Marchbanks
Future Profession(s): Teacher Assistant (1894), Teacher (1895)
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Nelson Coleman’s daughter. Sister-in-law to Tena Shoals through her first husband, Oliver.
Notes: Her first husband, Oliver, and her daughter, Olive, are filed through the Perry Files under case number F-016—this makes her daughter the great-granddaughter of Robert M. Jones. In her second husband’s Dawes interview, he says (when asked if Julia was Indian or Freedmen):

“Indian I learn. She has always been enrolled as a Freedmen, but since we married I learn her mother was a Choctaw.”

In that interview, it is documented in a response to W. A. Welch that Julia was attempting to press her claim as a member of the Choctaw Nation by blood. While active as a teacher, she was a certified “Class One” Choctaw Educator, which was the highest classification available.

Superintendents, Principals and Administrative Staff

As leaders associated with Tushkalusa Academy, these individuals were outspoken, driven and, in almost all cases, very well documented as active members of their communities. For many of the highlighted people in this portion of the article, there exists interviews from their associated Dawes submissions, newspaper editorials and other supporting documents. 

While the students are an important examination of the lives of early Choctaw Freedmen who were born into and aged out of tribal inclusion—this older generation are an invaluable look at the individuals who had to fight for those rights to exist. And in the case of Nelson Coleman, are documented as outspoken leaders fighting for those rights to return. Many of these case studies began their lives as enslaved individuals or were born almost immediately after the 1866 treaty and were informed by early reconstruction.

Examining the lives and journeys of the older generation associated with Tushkalusa is a stark contrast from that of the students. Examining the students gives one the thought of what could have been possible had they retained rights and privileges within the tribe. Examining the staff shows fully realized adults who spent their entire lives advancing in a system that would collapse before their very eyes.

Henry Nail

Known Years Employed: 1892, 1893, 1894, 1895
Hired Position: Superintendent
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 665
Birth Date: Approximately 1850
Known Locations: Talihina, Double Springs, Tushkahoma. Kenefic, Nail’s Crossing
Parents: Sallie Nail and Samuel Dumas
Associated Enslaving Families: Jonathan Nail
Spouse(s): Sophronia Nail, Birda Howell
Known Children: Irena Nail, Henrietta “Etta” Nail, Byington Nail, Dicie Nail, Sally Ann Nail, Katie Nail
Death Date: June 18, 1899
Grave Location: Believed to be an unmarked grave in the Old Talihina Cemetery.
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Father of Dicie and Sally Ann Nail. Uncle of Amelia, Lee, and Ben Nail. Husband to Birda Howell.
Notes: Jonathan Nail operated a toll bridge at the Blue River (Nail’s Crossing) as a stop on the Butterfield trail—contemporary sources claim that Nail occasionally had young slave boys working there (until it was sold to David Folsom in 1868), it is possible this could have been Henry and his siblings.

Throughout the 1880-1890s, Henry was deeply involved with Freedmen politics. In 1886, he attended a freedmen convention where he nominated himself for the Choctaw Nation’s House of Representatives and became the primary voice at the convention. He also attended the conventions at Double Springs and Brazil. It is believed that he may have attempted to run for the office of County Judge in Blue County. In August 1895, Henry was appointed as a special deputy sheriff by Judge Thompson. In this role, Henry Nail would have been responsible for transporting the votes of the Choctaw Nation District he was appointed to and transporting them to the Council House to be tabulated.

Sometime after 1888, Henry moved to Talihina and began to operate a local store he named “Nail and Son’s”—most likely a reference to his son, Byington. In Spring of 1895, his wife, Sophronia, opened an ice cream parlor next to her husband’s store. She passed away a year later on April 10, 1896. She was buried on the Coleman plot next to Nelson’s son-in-law, Oliver Williams.

In 1892, Henry was made Superintendent of Tushkalusa Academy. This appointment was after Lewis Battiest, the original appointee, passed up the opportunity to be a secretary and translator for the Senate under G. W. Dukes. It is significant that Henry Nail was chosen as he was a freedman and he replaced Battiest, a fullblood. Until this point, there are no recorded freedmen Superintendents ever existing within the Choctaw Nation educational system.  

Following a controversy related to payments received for the school, Henry Nail was involved in a deposition by the Choctaw Nation in 1896. While he was not found guilty of misappropriating the funds, he was placed on suspension which quickly became permanent. Henry resumed working at Nail and Son’s, where he would continue to service the school by selling goods to the last Superintendent, Henry Willis.

Following his passing on June 18, 1899, his Dawes Card was “canceled.” There is no known gravesite tied to Henry but a large unmarked stone occupies the grave next to his wife, Sophronia, in the Old Talihina Cemetery. 

(A snip from Dick Young’s interview.)

Posthumously, several of Henry’s assets, as well as land inherited by his son, Byington, were liquidated to build wealth. Byington was involved in a Dawes Commission case that allowed him to relinquish a portion of his land received to the Talihina Townsite Commission. He quoted the wealth and business acumen that he possessed as reason that he could responsibly steward the sale of those lands to the townsite. 

The last known mention academically of Henry Nail is from his student, Emma Hampton-Thompson’s 1938 interview where she specifically mentions Henry and states that he was bi-racial. 

“I attended Oak Hill Academy four terms and then when I was about sixteen I went to the Tushkalusa Academy up about Talihina. Henry Nail was Superintendent, 

[…] 

The Henry Nail who was superintendent when I was there was part negro and part Choctaw”

Below is a picture believed to be Henry Nail. The photo is from Talihina in front of the W. B. Miller Pharmacy in 1889 and depicts many business owners during the first full year of the town’s existence. At the time, Henry and his son Byington would have just moved to the area and set up shop. Byington, born in approximately 1876, would have been about 13 at the time. 

Henry Willis

Other known names: 
Known Years Employed: 1897, 1898, 1899
Hired Position: Superintendent
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 1335
Birth Date: Approximately 1851
Known Locations: Talihina, Goodland, Fort Smith (Arkansas
Parents: Aggie and Jim Willis
Associated Enslaving Families: Britt Willis
Spouse(s): Delilah Willis, Ada Brown
Known Children: Henrietta Willis (Niece, later adopted), Robert Willis (Nephew, later adopted)
Related to Known Student/Faulty: 
Notes: The earliest mentions of Henry Willis surround his history of law and lawlessness during the 1880s. In the Indian Pioneer Papers, Brannan Asbury describes the early history of Fort Towson and brings us face to face with our subject. It is important to know that the Fort was virtually overlapping with Doaksville, the town in which Henry lived. This mentioning of Henry is undated but it can be assumed to be in the 1870s or 1880s.

“Si Walker was there, and so were Calvin and Joe Willis, Indian-negroes, first thing anybody knew, Si had mounted his horse to ride off and he took a shot or two at Calvin and Joe Willis, who then opened fire on Si and shot him to death. Nothing was ever done about that either. Calvin and Joe and Henry were brothers and plenty smart negroes too. Henry Willis became Superintendent of a negro academy.”

At the age of 35, in his home of Doaksville, he was charged with murder for the slaying of Charles Jackson and sent before the Western District Federal Court at Fort Smith. Charles Jackson was killed in the living room of Henry Willis with Willis claiming self-defense. Testimonies were gathered by friends, family and acquaintances as well as character references for both Willis and Jackson. In the end, he was acquitted by Isaac Parker in Fort Smith in 1885.

After the trial was settled, Henry Willis returned to farming and ranching but occasionally traveled with Joe Everidge, a US Marshal, and assisted with transferring prisoners back to Fort Smith. One surviving receipt is for the arrest of John Kilpatrick. At least two other times Henry Willis would work officially for the Western District Federal Courts, assisting Joe Everidge with prisoner transportation. This period spanned from approximately 1885-1888. 

Only a few years later, Willis found himself a participant in the famous “Everidge Blood Feud.” This was a series of murders involving members of the Everidge family and their in-laws, claiming the lives of Robert Peeler, William Arthur (Texas) Ford and Bill Luther among several others. Robert Peeler was previously the son-in-law of Britt Willis. 

During these murders, Henry was present and implicated in the slaying of both Luther and Peeler. Peeler was murdered by Texas Ford outside of Willis’ home. The final death occurred in the train station of Goodland, Indian Territory and resulted in the death of Bill Luther in 1889. 

Initially, those involved with the Luther slaying turned themselves in, expecting the jurisdiction to be within the Choctaw Nation. Due to the nature of the violence and frequency of the slayings, the three Everidge brothers and Henry Willis were arrested by US Marshals on specific orders of the federal courts and were held without bail in Paris Texas to await trial. 

The thought was that the final victim, Bill Luther, could be proven to be a former US Deputy Marshal or Posse member which would allow the federal courts to make an example of the “unruly gang”. Ultimately there was no proof that Luther had ever operated in such capacity. 

During the examination trial in Paris, Texas, it was contested if the slaying of Luther had been in self-defense and who actually fired the shots which killed him. They were also unable to prove how many people and who had fired their guns at the shootout.

Governor Smallwood, then Chief of the Choctaw Nation, asked for all involved men to be extradited home and tried locally. The Federal Courts released them back to the Choctaw Nation and the new trial lasted 3 hours and ended with acquittal. This may be one of the only examples of a Choctaw Chief extraditing a Freedmen back to the Nation and publicly recognizing him as a citizen of the Nation.

In 1897 Henry Willis became the Superintendent of Tushkalusa Academy. It is worth noting that Joe Everidge’s father, Joel, was made the Superintendent of Schools at approximately the same time. This may have influenced the decision to choose Henry Willis over the much more qualified Louis Benton.

After the school closed in 1900, Henry remained caretaker of the building until about 1903 when it was sold off to pay his salary and overdue fees. The order for this was signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. 

In September of 1904, Henry Willis became the official guardian of his nephew and niece, Robert and Henrietta–the children of Calvin Willis. Calvin had been killed a few years prior after being accused of arson and fleeing a crime. He was slain by one of Joel Everidge’s sons.

Shortly after statehood, in 1909, Henry Willis found himself in yet another gunfight, this time outside of Talihina at a new school where he was the Superintendent. A dispute over access to the combination Church/Schoolhouse led Mr. Palmer, a teacher, to fire several shots at Willis. Willis attempted to return fire and pulled his Winchester but it immediately jammed. No injuries were reported at this altercation.

While his date of death is unknown, it is believed he lived until the late 1930s or early 1940s. The old Willis Homestead where Henry and his nephew Robert lived bears an unmarked cemetery which is assumed to be their final resting place.

He is likely one of the two men portrayed in the 1899 photo which is the only known photo of Tushkalusa.

Dora E. Johnson

Other known names: Dora Yates
Known Years Employed: 1894, 1895, 1896
Hired Position: Principal and Teacher (Preparatory Grade)
Gender: Female
Card Number: CKF – 876
Birth Date: Approximately 1874
Known Locations: Talihina, Hartshorne, Lulling (Texas)
Parents: Hannah and William Yates}
Associated Enslaving Families: Edmund Pickens
Spouse(s): Clay Johnson

Notes: Dora wrote the surviving principal’s reports. She takes her time to outline the function of the school along with suggested changes to curriculum, scope of education and the overall organization of the school. Her thoughts on the relationships between pupils and parents as well as her direct compliments of her fellow staff survive. 

Here are a few choice selections from her surviving report.

Report of Principal of Tushkalusa Academy 

Talihina I.T. Feb 8, 1896

Superintendent H. Nail

Dear Sir: In compliance with your request I hand you here with a brief statement of my work as principal of Tushkalusa Academy for the past scholastic year.

[…]

It has been the special object of the teachers to do thorough work.

No other kind of work is worth anything. Careless work engenders careless habits and the pupil who contracts such habits has no right to expect success in any calling. Teachers should remember that nothing will induce thoroughness in the part of the pupils than thoroughness by the teacher. 

[…]

The pupil occupies a position between the parent and the teacher. If the work of the teacher is strengthened by home influences and instruction, she can be of much more benefit to her pupils. If on the other hand the home influences are bad, the teacher has a very unpleasant way.

The parent who would have his child do well must give the teacher his hearty sympathy and cooperation as an unwavering support will never do. Look for the good parts in the teachers’ work and you will find them. I believe the one true duty of the parent should be continual visits to the school room. Go with the object in view to make the teacher stronger and better, not by advice and dissatisfaction, but sympathy and good-will. Go to find good and no evil.

Such a course must strengthen the teacher’s work and benefit the child beyond estimate.

[…]

Concerning your own work Mr Superintendent, I wish to say that so far as it has affected this school it has seemed to me to be guided by a profound knowledge of successful school work. It has been kind, considerate, intelligent and helpful. I cannot recall one instance in which your timely sung questions have failed to prove practical and beneficial. 

I feel that the five months work has been successful and that its success is in a large measure the result of your own labors. For your many acts of kindness and for all your valuable assistance I trust ever to be thankful. [Here she is referring to Henry Nail]

To the assistant with whom I have been associated here I desire to return my thanks for her courtesy and cooperation. She has been kind to me, having spared no paint to oblige me in everything and I wish to say for her that she has done her work well. [Here she is referring to Julia Coleman]”

L. A. Benton

Other known names: Louis A. Benton
Known Years Employed: 1896, 1897
Hired Position: Principal, Superintendent (Temporary)
Gender: Male
Birth Date: Approximately 1867 – 1870
Birth Place: New York
Known Locations: Talihina, Mount Zion, Hanna, New Salem, White Hall, Coalgate, Lehigh, Spiro, Atoka, Braden, Weogufkey
Spouse(s): Pearl Williamson
Future Profession(s): Educator (1890s – 1910)
Death Date: February 1920 (Sprio, Oklahoma; cause of death influenza-pneumonia)
Notes: Examining newspaper records, it can be found that he claimed to be “Oneida Indian”. This would point to him originating from New York and moving to Indian Territory at a later date. 

L. A. Benton is a well-documented educator in Choctaw Nation. The earliest mentions of him are generally associated with him teaching in Choctaw Nation until his tenure as Principal of Tushklausa from approximately 1896 to 1897. Newspapers throughout the Choctaw Nation report that Benton was a well known educator who was teaching at several schools after his tenure at Tushkalusa, including: Mount Zion, 1900; Weogufkey (Creek) Day School, 1902; New Salem, 1907; White Hall, 1907; Coalgate, 1914; and Lehigh, 1915.

During the 1896 school year, Mr Benton was able to serve as the Interim Superintendent until a replacement was found for Henry Nail. Benton placed his name before the Board of Education for selection and was passed as they chose Henry Willis. It appears that L. A. Benton finished out the school year and resigned from his position as he was replaced by Charles Conley and appeared to be teaching elsewhere. 

Newspaper records state that Benton was certified as a Class One or First Grade teacher. In 1906, he served as an instructor as a “Choctaw normal.” These “normals” were several weeks-long events where new teachers were educated on the curriculum, standards, and other skills. The next year, Benton was the key organizer of the “Choctaw Normal for Colored Teachers”—reportedly this event brought in teachers from as far away as Mississippi and North Carolina. He was included in normals in 1908, 1908 and 1910. During his last normal, he was dismissed by the superintendent for indecent language and public disorder. The paper at the time alleged that this was normal behavior and that Benton often caused discourse wherever he went.

Chas. Conley

Other known names: Charley Conley, Charles Conley
Known Years Employed: 1898, 1899, 1900
Hired Position: Principal
Gender: Male
Birth Date: Approximately 1871
Known Locations: Talihina, Caddo, Tushkahoma 
Spouse(s): Sadie J. Martin
Future Profession(s): Cook at Tushkahoma Seminary (1903)
Related to Known Student/Faulty: His wife, Sadie, was listed as a matron.
Notes: Not much is known about the man identified through newspaper records as Chas Conley. It is evident that after the departure of L. A. Benton, he was selected as the new principal. Records indicate that it was likely a smooth transition and there are no documents that suggest the existence of an interim principal between Benton and Conley. His wife, Sadie, was employed at the school for a short time in 1898 as a matron.

There exists one full newspaper public address from him which is dated in 1898 and refers to the upcoming 1900 elections of the Choctaw Nation. He is responding to a piece from H. C. Kemp which, for context, will be transcribed in full, followed by Conleys. 

“The Freedmen View 

Stringtown, I. T., May 14 ‘98.

Ed. Indian Citizen: Please allow me space in your valuable paper for a few dates. I see that many communications are finding space in your paper and the next Governor seems to be the object of all the conventions that are being held in the different counties over the nation. I will write for the benefit of the freedmen and the intermarried citizens.  If those classes should go back on McCurtain, they will do so against their own interests. I am particularly interested as I am one of Aunt Hagers eldest sons. 

The colored people should not let talk and blarney cause them to go back on our best friend. Brethren you all know that Gov. McCurtain is the only Indian Governor who has ever spoken for you and your children. 

In 1896 the Chickasaw council denied our children as citizens and said that our children had no rights as citizens and refused to register them. Not one on this side (of) 1866 was recognized, but Gov. McCurtain said you and your children and grandchildren are citizens. 

It is your duty as well as your privilege, to cast a vote for Governor McCurtain. I feel at heart that every colored citizen who reads this letter will know that I am speaking for what is best for Aunt Hagers sons.

Yours etc,

H. C. Kemp

Kemp, while he is embellishing an incumbent politician, is also taking the time to focus his argument around a specific legal claim that the Chickasaw Nation took in 1896. This claim is not often talked about, but it is an incredibly important landmark decision that would change the fate of all Choctaw and Chickasaw Freedmen and is still impacting them in modern times. The nations decided with the help of the Department of the Interior that the treaty of 1866 extended citizenship to those who were emancipated from slavery and did not confer that citizenship to their descendants. 

This attitude would be continued throughout the Dawes Commission era and resulted in the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations banning freedmen who were born post 1866 from the benefits of citizenship including the right to vote, access to national education funds and other federal monies. 

Charles Conely replied to Kemps letter with this to say:

“Your issue of May 19th contained an article from a Mr. H.C. Kemp endorsing the administration of Gov. McCurtain, and stating several reasons why the negros of the Choctaw Nation should support him in the coming campaign.

Please allow me to say that while I re-echo every word he has said in behalf of the Gov:

I think that we have a greater reason for supporting, not only the Governor, but every man whose name might appear on the Tushkahoma Ticket, not because we are “Aunt Hagers” children, but because it is our duty to stick to those who are our friends. Every negro in the Territory should support the ticket of the Tushkahoma Party, from Gov. down to Ranger. Negroes should cease to consider themselves and their interests separate from other races, and while I feel that we have many good reasons for supporting the present administration. I deplore the idea of supporting them simply because we are “Aunt Hagers” children.

The duty of the negroes of the Choctaw Nation is plain in this campaign.

It is the duty of all men to vote for the best interest of the whole people and the negro is no exception to the Rule.

I would say to all the negroes of this nation, that to have any prestige, we must work in union.

It is our duty to identify ourselves with the best party and stick to it through adversity as well as success, and by being loyal to the party that expresses our political sentiments, we can help to form a better government and will certainly be in a better position to demand recognition at the hands of those we have supported. Let us then stick to the Tushkahoma Party. Let not one of us be idle during the campaign but let us raise our voices in defense of the platform of the Tushkahoma party.

I believe every intelligent negro in the Choctaw nation feels that his interest is closely allied with that of the Tushkahoma party and will so vote when it comes time.

For myself, I stand ready and hereby offer my services to the campaign committee of the party and I do not mean to cease working until the last vote has been cast on election day.

We can not afford to stand idly by while a political war is in progress. We must shoulder arms and fight side by side with our brother in red and let them realize that we are not insensible to the best interests of the Choctaw nation and by fidelity to the Principles of the Tuskahoma Party, prove beyond a doubt that the negro can be a man as well as any other race.”

This brief response from Conley is interesting because the Choctaws had already publicly floated the idea that those born after 1866 were not entitled to educational funds. This was printed in September of 1896 during Victor Locke’s tenure on the Board of Education in his editorial titled No Money for Negro Schools. 

“No Money for Negro Schools.

Supt V. M. Locke has written the following letter to Henry Nail, Supt Tushkalusa Academy, under the date of Sept. 2nd:

Dear Sir: – As it is held by the United States authorities that all children born since the treaty of 1866 are citizens of the United States. Therefore it has been decided by this office to with-hold the appropriation of Tushkalusa Academy until the matter is decided by higher authority whether they are or are not citizens of the Choctaw Nation.

He also notified all the local trusses of his action and authorizing them to with-hold the appropriation for the negro neighborhood schools.”

Conley’s response is a bout of hope in a short period of time where the threat of the complete removal of tribal rights and resources was in the air but not material. Ironically, Conleys words would come only months before the signing of the Curtis Act which would legally defend the premise that all Freedmen born after 1866 could be disenfranchised from the tribe and its resources. The legal dilemma that these men are speaking about, would be the justification for closing the school permanently just over a year later. 

By 1904, Conley was no longer a principal, but rather a cook at the Tuskahoma Female Seminary; it can be observed that Sadie also worked there with him. 

There are little to no records about the Conley family that can be tied to the world before or after Tushkalusa Academy. Sadie and Charley were married immediately before their employment at the academy and after relocating to Tuskahoma, they do not exist on later census records. It is possible that Charley relocated to Texas and remarried, there exists records of a Charley Conley who married a woman named Lula and had a child named Woodrow. The age and information about Charley is mostly accurate including the birth location of his father. A career change and incorrect birth location of his mother cast aspersions on if this can be conclusively called the same man.

He is likely one of the two men portrayed in the 1899 photo which is the only known photo of Tushkalusa.

Nelson Coleman

Hired Position: Trustee Wade County, Head of the Tushkalusa Academy Fund (1900-1903)
Gender: Male
Card Number: CHF – 1488
Birth Date: April 15, 1850
Known Locations: Talihina, Poteau Bottoms, Double Springs, Muskogee
Parents: Cloria Coleman and Jesse Moncrief
Maternal Grandparents: Nancy Hall and Tom Harper
Associated Enslaving Families: Julia Coleman, James Coleman
Spouse(s): Henrietta Coleman
Known Children: Julia Coleman, Sam Moncrief, Susan Hall, Brashears
Future Profession(s): Barber (1900)
Death Date: January 19, 1904
Grave Location: Talihina Old Cemetery
Related to Known Student/Faulty: Father of Julia Coleman.
Notes: Nelson’s life around emancipation is fairly documented. His Dawes interview states that he was freed from the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 which was both unusual and likely not wholly true. James Coleman insists that Nelson fled that same year—making him 13-14 when he escaped. Nelson states that he joined up with the Union Army unofficially and operated as a waiting boy. Nelson also states that he spent most of the War of Rebellion in Mississippi. At this time a probable regiment has not been identified for Mr Coleman.

Although Nelson insisted several times that he was not back in the Nation in 1866, at the time of the signing of the treaty, his lawyer W. A. Welch was able to bring forward enough representation at a later time to support him being in the Nation prior to 1866. This was a requirement to be granted a Dawes Enrollment as a Freedman of the Choctaw Nation. After returning to the Nation in 1866, Nelson states that his family was still living with and working for James Coleman, this is likely in relation to the wage contracts that were introduced in the post-emancipation Choctaw Nation which required former slaves to prove employment or face legal action.

We do not see mention of Nelson Coleman again until approximately 1880 where he is writing to the Sisson Mission leadership asking them to represent the conditions of his people in the Choctaw Nation. Nelson writes that he and others feel betrayed by the Nation who has refused to uphold the Freedmen’s protections from the 1865 and 1866 treaties as well as abandoned by the United States Government who has not compelled the Nation to keep their word.

Part of Coleman’s letter reads:

“I thought that I would write you after [unknown] to inform you something about how the Choctaw Indians are trying to do the Colored people there, that happened to be out of the Nation at the time of the Treaty of 1865 and 1866 and now you know that the Government give the Choctaws 2 years 90 days to make us Citizens and they have failed to comply with the treaty of 1865 and 1866.

[…]

We want you to tell the government all about what they are trying to do with the Colored people. Some of them they sold out of the nation in time of war and they couldn’t get back to home in that time. We do not belong to the states, we belong in the Nation and here is where we want to die. Please write to Washington for us and, and state the thing like it is. And then let me hear from you just as soon as I get a letter from Washington and keep it to yourself.

I don’t think the Government will give them any right to drive us that was born and raised with them out of this Nation because we have nowhere to go. For God Sake, do all you can for us.”

Nelson’s handwritten letters survive in official Interior Department collections housed at Washington D.C. He continued this line of political activism and was associated with several Freedmen Conventions including those at Brazil, Double Springs and Talihina. In the 1890s he became a Trustee of Wade County and under that function was able to represent the academy. After its closing, Nelson represented the Tushkalusa Academy Fund which was a collective fund aimed at purchasing and reopening the school.

Nelson during this time was working as a barber in Talihina and also had some degree of affiliation with W B Miller, the local pharmacist and physician as they were arrested together for distributing alcohol at least twice. He continued to be involved in tribal affairs and frequently campaigned on behalf of the Tuskahoma Party and was also involved in the early phases of the Constitutional Conventions as a Republican.

The final surviving letter of Nelson Coleman speaks about his frustrations and formal separation with the Tuskahoma Party, a political party he was once member to and endorses upcoming Governor hopeful Thomas Hunter for the 1902 election. Nelson uses this letter to speak about the Atoka Agreement and Curtis Bill as well as the political distrust that he and many freedmen had with the McCurtain administration who had single-handedly stripped their tribal rights to nearly nothing. 

It is important to remind the reader that in the mid-late 1890s, the United States passed a decision that all persons born after 1866 in the Indian Territory were US citizens. The leadership of the Nation determined that the requirements concerning the Freedmen being included in the tribe with the rights of tribal members only extended to those alive when the treaty was signed, and not to their descendants. This is relevant to the newspaper exchange between Chas Conely and H. C. Kemp referenced earlier in 1897.

In the fall of 1902, Nelson Coleman writes in his circulated flier “To the Choctaw Freedmen”

“During the regular session council in the year 1900, Mr Hunter was Speaker of the House, and when successful in passing a bill through that body carrying with it an appropriation of $6000 the same to be applied to the education of the Freedman’s children – when that bill reached the Senate Green McCurtain jumped on it and killed it.

[…]

When the Atoka Agreement was before the people for ratification I asked Governor McCurtain the difference between that and the Curtis Bill and he told me the only difference was that the Freedmen’s schools would be continued under the agreement. I, with many other Freedman voted for it and just as soon as Governor McCurtain was elected our schools were taken from us. Gentlemen, every privilege accorded us except the franchise vanished under McCurtain and even that was taken from the Chickasaw Freedman. And yet D Barrows would have you believe Mr McCurtain was the only man for us. What does he offer us? Nothing. What would he give us? Nothing.

The little we now have I fear would vanish as did our schools. This matter must be met squarely by you. Mr Hunter’s policy is open and above board and you can see and study for yourself. D Barrows lays great stress upon the act that passed at the last session of the General Counsel authorizing the sale of the Tushkalusa Academy building and attempts to make you believe that the act was irrevocable. I am surprised that a man of his intelligence (?) should make you believe such “rot”.

You know and everybody else knows that a legislature that has power to enact a resolution or law also has the power to repeal the same. Gentlemen, such stuff is an insult to your intelligence as voters of this nation. The Secretary of the Interior has signified his willingness that the Choctaws should do something for their Freedmen and let us stand by the man who will do something for us: Let’s accept the Tushkalusa building. Let’s receive donations for we will need the money to carry on the school.”

Nelson Coleman would be one of the main driving forces that was attempting to fund a buy-back of the academy. Evidence suggests that he raised funds and fought for the return of the school until approximately 1903 when it was officially sold off. 

Further evidence suggests that the Chief at the time, Gilbert Dukes (1900-1902) was entertaining offers from many sources, including some as far away as the Rockford Illinois Freedmen’s Department who intended on buying the property to create a christian academy. 

Other offers were from Dennis Barrows, a religious leader and G. L. A. Dykes, another religious leader who was affiliated with the AME Church. While there were many offers and groups entertained, Coleman was the sole voice aimed at keeping the building for the Choctaw Freedmen whereas the other organizations were not interested in preserving the community for which it was created. 

Nelson’s words were about preserving and representing his community. His body of work was invested in building the resources and rights of his fellow tribal members. Ultimately, Coleman and the other enterprising organizations were unsuccessful as the structure was sold into the hands of a wealthy Choctaw family from the area to be used as a private mansion.  

Nelson would pass away suddenly within a day of R. D. Roberts of Talihina after they consumed Wood Alcohol on a trip to Fort Gibson. Nelson’s passing transpired on January 19, 1904 and his citizenship was awarded posthumously on April 22, 1905.

(A snip from Dick Young’s interview.)

In Conclusion

The significance of Tushkalusa Academy goes beyond the moniker of Choctaw Nations Freedmen Boarding School. When examining the incredible and diverse stories of those associated, an entire community can be seen. Choctaw and Chickasaw Freedmen from all walks of life are identified and the lives they led illuminate some deeply significant historic perspectives.

Coleman writes in-depth about the failures of the Treaty of 1866 and his Dawes interview directly provides perspective on the wage contracts of the Choctaw Nation. Nail, Conley and Coleman all have incredible writings and history with the short-lived Choctaw Freedmen political sphere and should be considered early civil rights leaders for their relentless activism and community impact. Johnson and Benton show very direct perspectives on early education in the Choctaw Nation and shed light on how Freedmen were able to navigate the system and inspire direct change. Some of the students are directly involved in the Joe & Dillard Perry Files and Equity Cases which remain incredible and significant civil rights cases that concerned the legitimacy of the one-drop rule and those with credible blood claims being denied enrollment in the proper Dawes Rolls. 

Examining the starting point and ending point for most of these individuals highlights that they were all born into a Nation that would not exist into their later lives.

Many of the students, while they were literate and had the opportunity to have an education, their children were not entitled to such. When the doors were closed on the Choctaw Nation’s educational funds, it would not be until approximately seven years later that statehood would allow for a government that could assist Freedmen communities to build and run their own schools. Examining the children of the students show in many cases that they were uneducated until at least after this time, if ever. The Great Migration is also apparent with many students leaving their traditional Choctaw Communities after statehood and moving to places like Arizona, California and some of Oklahoma’s “All Black Towns”.  

Tushkalusa exists as a lost historic building but to understand the significance, one must understand those that it served.

Our primary hope with this article is to inspire communication about not just the structure of Tushkalusa Academy but also about the many significant historic perspectives and topics that are involved with it. We also hope that any possible descendants are able to find this document and understand the role that their ancestors played in this chapter of Choctaw history.  

If you know someone in this list and can assist us in correcting or expanding the information about them we would love to hear more about their stories and what became of them.