The State of Sequoyah - by Donald L Fixico (Hardcover)

About the Book

Few people today know that the forty-sixth state could have been Sequoyah, not Oklahoma. The Five Tribes of Indian Territory gathered in 1905 to form their own, Indian-led state. Researched and interpreted by distinguished Native historian Donald L. Fixico, this book tells the remarkable story of how the state of Sequoyah movement unfolded and the extent to which it remains alive today.

Book Synopsis

Few people today know that the forty-sixth state could have been Sequoyah, not Oklahoma. The Five Tribes of Indian Territory gathered in 1905 to form their own, Indian-led state. Leaders of the Cherokees, Chickasaws, Choctaws, Muscogees, and Seminoles drafted a constitution, which eligible voters then ratified. In the end, Congress denied their request, but the movement that fueled their efforts transcends that single defeat. Researched and interpreted by distinguished Native historian Donald L. Fixico, this book tells the remarkable story of how the state of Sequoyah movement unfolded and the extent to which it remains alive today.

Fixico tells how the Five Nations, after removal to the west, negotiated treaties with the U.S. government and lobbied Congress to allow them to retain communal control of their lands as sovereign nations. In the wake of the Civil War, while a dozen bills in Congress proposed changing the status of Indian Territory, the Five Tribes sought strength in unity. The Boomer movement and seven land dispensations--beginning with the famous run of 1889--nevertheless eroded their borders and threatened their cultural and political autonomy. President Theodore Roosevelt ultimately declared his support for the merging of Indian Territory with Oklahoma Territory, paving the way for Oklahoma statehood in 1907--and shattering the state of Sequoyah dream.

Yet the Five Tribes persevered. Fixico concludes his narrative by highlighting recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, most notably McGirt v. Oklahoma (2020), that have reaffirmed the sovereignty of Indian nations over their lands and people--a principal inherent in the Sequoyah movement.

Did the story end in 1907? Could the Five Tribes revive their plan for separate statehood? Fixico leaves the reader to ponder this intriguing possibility.

Review Quotes

"Examines one of the most compelling what-ifs in American history: a Native American state called Sequoyah. Had it played out slightly differently, it would have resulted in a US state dominated by Native American leaders. Fixico writes in a breezy style that combines deeply personal knowledge of the subject with scholarly erudition."--Russell Cobb, author of Ghosts of Crook County: An Oil Fortune, a Phantom Child, and the Fight for Indigenous Land


"Imagine the map of our country with a state controlled and run by Indigenous tribes. Donald L. Fixico takes readers inside a fascinating historical effort to do just that, offering insight and inspiration to those who advocate for sovereignty today."--Rebecca Nagle (Cherokee Nation)


"In this landmark achievement, esteemed historian Donald L. Fixico lays out a more inclusive history of what is now the state of Oklahoma, embracing the Indian Nations and Peoples who are located there today and the separate state, an 'Indian state, ' to be called Sequoyah, that almost joined the Union. This book is a must-read!"--Robert J. Miller (Eastern Shawnee), coauthor of A Promise Kept: The Muscogee (Creek) Nation and McGirt v. Oklahoma