Originally Published November 06, 2019
STANLEY, Hannah
Choctaw Freedwoman Dawes Card #1366
Petition to Transfer F-06
With many of the people who sought to be transferred from
the freedman roll to the by blood roll it was a complex story behind their
ancestry and with the introduction of an ancestor of African ancestry it was
complicated further. Most of them claimed they made an affirmative statement at
the time of their enrollment to be placed upon the blood roll only to be denied
by the Dawes Commission at that time.
When we look at their interview packet the “summary” rarely
includes any clue they made an effort to demonstrate they had Chickasaw or
Choctaw ancestry and there wasn’t any statement in the file that would have you
believe they made an effort to claim they had Native ancestry; unless you look
at the documents that provide some evidence the person had a Chickasaw or
Choctaw by blood ancestor.
In the case of Hannah Stanley as with the majority of the
people seeking a transfer the rear of their card clearly indicated they told
the clerks during their enrollment process that there was an ancestor who was a
Chickasaw or Choctaw Indian. However, other than the notation on the rear of
the card, very little is documented in their initial application for a land
allotment.
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| M-1186 Dawes Choctaw Freedman Card #1366 Rear |
It is clear that Hannah Stanley informed someone that her
father was a Choctaw Indian and it was duly noted on the rear of Dawes Card
#1366. Like so many other people who petitioned to transfer, her parent was
deceased which I believe was critical to her attempts at establishing her
identity as a Choctaw by Blood.
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| M-1186 Dawes Choctaw Freedman Card #1366 Front |
If you look at the front of Hannah’s card again, there is
not much that would indicate Hannah sought to be transferred to the Choctaw by
Blood roll along with her children. Fortunately Hannah did not go quietly into
the night and when she had an opportunity to correct this error she sought
legal counsel to help her and her children petition for a transfer to the
Choctaw by Blood roll.
Sam Stanley the husband of Hannah was indicated as the
person who gave testimony at Frogville, Indian Territory that his wife and
children should be enrolled as Choctaw Indians by Blood when he informed the
commissioner that;
“Hannah Stanley is the
daughter of Willie Everidge, a recognized three-quarter blood Choctaw citizen by
his common-law wife, Limmit (sic) Brown who was an one-half Choctaw by blood…”
That is a very clear statement that was repeated in an
affidavit on January 15, 1906 and it was filed with the Commissioner to the
Five Civilized Tribes by their attorney Albert J. Lee. It’s one thing the
commissioners didn’t acknowledge an attempt was made prior to 1906. What was
curious about this petition and affidavit was the attorneys for the Choctaw
nation had fifteen days to respond to the petition to transfer but failed to
file a response in the allotted time.
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| Joe & Dillard Perry Petition to Transfer F-06 p1 Hannah Stanley |
The attorneys for the Choctaws and Chickasaws probably never
felt compelled to respond to this petition or others because the process to
determine if an individual was entitled to be enrolled as a citizen by blood
had trap doors for anyone who possessed African ancestry and this was not lost
on Hannah Stanley.
In a letter she submitted to the Dawes Commission at
Muskogee, Indian Territory on March 30, 1906 the letter implies Hannah asked to
be enrolled as a citizen by blood at Goodland, Indian Territory on May 11, 1899
however the only oral testimony documented was the testimony of Hannah’s
husband, Sam Stanley?
There isn’t a document that captures Hannah’s testimony and
the information provided by her husband does not provide the name of Hannah’s
father which was documented on the rear of her card. Someone provided the names
of Willie Everidge a “Choctaw” and Lena Brown the deceased slave of Eli Perry.
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| M-1301 Oral Interview Hannah Stanley (Sam Stanley) Choctaw Freedmen #1366 |
I certainly hope the descendants of Hannah, Tandy and Eva
come forward and contribute to telling the story of their Native American
Heritage. I hope the descendants of Hannah, Tandy, and Eva Stanley get their
DNA test and document their ties to Willie Everidge and Lena Brown and the
Choctaw Nation.
Perhaps it’s time we develop a specific DNA group that is an
extension of the research we conduct on the people who sought to be transferred
from the Chickasaw or Choctaw Freedmen Roll to the Chickasaw or Choctaw citizen
by blood roll?
I suspect the numbers are quite large and the evidence
overwhelming; many of our ancestors were denied only because they had a female ancestor
of African Descent.
