Indigenous Peoples of North Carolina

The most powerful Indian nations in North Carolina were the Cherokee and the Tuscarora. After 1713 the Tuscarora migrated to New York. Between 1828 and 1839, many of the Cherokees in the state were forced to go to land that later became Oklahoma.

For an important gateway site with connections to key American Indian Internet sites, see:

Howells, Cyndi. "Native American." In Cyndi’s List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet [database on-line]. Puyallup, Washington: Cyndi Howells, 2 August 1999 [cited 2 August 1999]. Available at: http://www.cyndislist.com/native.htm

This site has over 140 links to American Indian web sites in 11 categories such as history, libraries, e-mailing lists, people, researchers, publications, records, and societies. The "Cherokee Research" section under the "Specific Tribal or Nation Resources" category has links to 15 other web sites.

If you have Cherokee ancestry from North Carolina, search the Cherokee rolls, censuses, and applications that contain such information as percentage of blood (1/2,1/4,1/8), birth date, marriage date, parents’ names, names of spouse and parents, children’s names, birth dates of children, residence, and birth place information. The person’s occupation may also be stated, and there may be affidavits of relatives and friends.

Cherokee Families That Stayed in North Carolina

The names of many Cherokees who did not leave North Carolina are found in:

Blankenship, Bob. Cherokee Roots. 2 vols. Cherokee, North Carolina: B. Blankenship, 1992. (FHL book 970.3 C424bL 1992.) Volume one has rolls of Cherokees east of the Mississippi for the years 1817, 1818–1835, 1848, 1851, 1869, 1883, 1908, 1909, and 1924. Volume 2 lists Cherokees west of the Mississippi from rolls prepared in the years 1851–1852 and 1898–1914. The name of the person and the roll number are given. A transcription of the 1851 list is also contained in:

Siler, David W. The Eastern Cherokees: A Census of the Cherokee Nation in North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia in 1851. Cottonport, Louisiana: Polyanthos, 1972. (FHL book 970.3 C424sd.) Included in this book are the names of the husband, wife, and children (giving their relationships); ages; county and town of residence; and notes. The North Carolina counties of Cherokee, Macon, and Haywood are represented. The book is fully indexed.

The Cherokee rolls for 1851–1910 are found in:

Miller, Guion. Records Relating to Enrollment of Eastern Cherokee, 1908–1910. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M0685. Washington, DC: National Archives, 1967. (FHL films 830434–45.) The records on these films include applications and an index (1908–1910), exceptions with supplemental roll (1909–1910), miscellaneous testimony (1908–1909), Sizemore testimonies (1908), Pointdexter and Creek testimonies (1908), combined index of Eastern Cherokee rolls (1851), Chapman roll (1851), Drennen roll (1851), Eastern Cherokee names added to Siler roll (1854), index to old settler roll (1851), index to Hester roll (1851), miscellaneous notes (1851), and Hester roll (1884). Each census is indexed except the 1884 Hester roll.

United States. Bureau of Indian Affairs. Indian Census Rolls, Cherokee, 1898–1939. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M0595. Washington, DC: National Archives, 1965. (FHL films 573868–720.) These are records of the eastern band of Cherokees located in North Carolina. The films include census rolls for 1898–1899, 1904, 1906, 1909–1912, 1914, 1915–1939; birth records for 1924–1939; marriage records for 1936; and death records for 1926–1939. These census records are in alphabetical order except for the year 1898. The rolls list the person’s number, Indian and English name, age, percentage of blood, relationship to head of household, and, generally, their residence. Often the maiden name of the wife is stated. Persons who had one parent who was not a Cherokee by blood were not listed on these rolls, but they are generally listed in the Dawes Commission records for Oklahoma described below.

Cherokee Families That Moved to Oklahoma
Two important enrollment records were taken in the Indian Territory, now Oklahoma. These list North Carolina Cherokees who moved to the Indian Territory:

Dawes Commission Rolls, 1898–1914. In 1893 the United States government established a commission to exchange the Cherokees’ (and four other tribes’) former lands in North Carolina and other Southern states for land allotments in the Indian Territory. The following book is an excellent index to settlers in the Indian Territory:

Blankenship, Bob. Dawes Roll "Plus" of Cherokee Nation "1898". 2nd ed. North Carolina: Cherokee Roots Publishing, 1994. (FHL Q book 970.1 B611d.) This book contains the names found in the 1898 Dawes Roll plus the Guion Miller Roll. Researchers can compare the two rolls and see such things as a 1906 surname change brought about by marriage, divorce, or adoption.

The book gives the Dawes roll number, family enrollment (census) number, Guion Miller roll number, Guion Miller application number, age, sex, percentage of Indian blood, surname used in 1906 for the Guion Miller roll, and city and state of residence. All 36,714 Cherokee Nation citizens of Cherokee blood are included. Those persons in the family who are not Cherokee by blood are not listed in this book; they are listed on the enrollment (census) applications. The enrollment cards and the applications are on films at the Family History Library in:

United States. Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes. Enrollment Cards For the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898–1914. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M1186. Washington DC: National Archives. 1981. (On 93 FHL films beginning with 1490261.) The commission asked applicants to fill out enrollment cards (sometimes referred to as a census card) that may include name; age; sex; degree of Indian blood; references to earlier tribal rolls; parents’ names and places of residence; relationship to head of family; and related enrollees such as husband, wife, children, and sometimes grandchildren and wards. An index is on FHL film 1490261.

United States. Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes. Cherokee Indian Rolls Dealing with the Dawes Commission. National Archives Microfilm Publications, T0529. Washington DC; Salt Lake City, Utah: National Archives; Genealogical Society of Utah. 1961, 1973, 1981, 1983. (On 300 FHL films beginning with 908371 item 2.) These records are for the time period 1898 to 1914. To find an ancestor’s name in these records, use the Blankenship book Dawes Roll "Plus" of Cherokee Nation "1898" mentioned above.

If you do not have access to Blankenship’s book, first check volume 2 of:

United States. Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes. The Final Rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory. Washington, DC: Govt. Print. Off., 1907?. (FHL book 970.1 Un3c vol. 2; film 962366 item 1; or fiche 6051501.) Look in the section, "Index to Cherokees by Blood," beginning on page 238. If the person was born during the special enrollment period beginning 26 April 1906 until 1914, see the "Index to Minor Cherokees by Blood" beginning on page 428. Find the person’s name and roll number.

The Final Rolls of Citizens. (FHL book 970.1 Un3c vol. 1; film 908371 item 2; or fiche 6051501.) Find the roll number of the person. You will also find the person’s name, age, sex, percentage of Cherokee blood, and census card number.

Third, find the census card number in Cherokee Indian Rolls Dealing With the Dawes Commission described above. The census card gives such information as father’s name, mother’s name, wife’s maiden name, year of marriage, names of children and their ages, sometimes the affidavits by relatives or friends, and names of persons in the family who are not of Cherokee blood.

Fourth, using the roll number given in volume1 of The Final Rolls of Citizens. look at the application in the following films:

United States. Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes. ''Applications for Enrollment of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes. 1898–1914''. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M1301. Washington, DC: National Archives, 1983. (On 468 FHL films beginning with 1439798.) The applications may contain birth and marriage information, place of residence, age, and names of children and their birth information.

Guion Miller Rolls, 1906–1910. Between 1906 and 1910, the federal government created another set of records, commonly called the Guion Miller Report. This report lists the genealogy of people who were alive in 1906 and who claimed to be descendants of the eastern Cherokees. These persons were seeking compensation from the government for lands taken from the eastern Cherokees in the 1830s. Applicants had to state their lineage back to an eastern Cherokee living in the 1830s. Applicants who went west before 1835 were not entitled to a share in the settlement, and their names do not appear in the report.

The Guion Miller applications required each claimant to state fully his or her English and Indian names, residence, age, place of birth, name of husband or wife, name of tribe, names of children, and information about parents and grandparents including their English and Indian names, place of birth, residence in 1851, date of death, and a statement as to whether any of them had ever been enrolled before for annuities or other benefits and, if so, with what tribe. Each claimant was to furnish the names of all brothers, sisters, uncles, and aunts, including their age and residence. The National Archives and the Family History Library have the complete files of the claimants on microfilm:

United States. Court of Claims. Eastern Cherokee Applications, August 29, 1906–May 26, 1909. National Archives Microfilm Publications, M1104. Washington, DC: National Archives, 1981. (On 348 FHL films beginning with 378594). The general index is found on FHL film 378594 item1. Another copy of the index is:

Blankenship, Bob. Guion Miller Roll "Plus" of Eastern Cherokee, East and West of Mississippi "1909". Cherokee, North Carolina: Cherokee Roots, 1994. (FHL Q book 970.1 B611g.) This index contains 62,769 names and has two sections: those Cherokees who were accepted for payment of claims, and those not accepted. The book is arranged alphabetically. The first section gives name, Miller number, Miller application number, Dawes number, Dawes enrollment (census card) number, age in 1906, relationship to head of family, percentage of Indian blood, and city and state of residence. The second section contains last name, first name(s) and initial, Miller application number, and state of residence.

Guidebooks. More information about censuses and other records is contained in:

Hoskins, Shirley. Cherokee Blood Newsletter. Post Office Box 22261, Chattanooga, TN 37422. (FHL book 970.3 C424cbn; film 1597913 item 5 [issues 8–18].)

Byers, Paula K., ed. Native American Genealogical Sourcebook. Detroit, Michigan: Gale Research, 1995. (FHL book 970.1 B99in.)

Mooney, Thomas G. Exploring Your Cherokee Ancestry: A Basic Genealogical Research Guide. Tahlequah, Oklahoma: Cherokee National Historical Society, 1990. (FHL book 970.3 C424mt; film 1697368 item5.)

Records of American Indians of North Carolina are listed in the Family History Library Catalog by using a Place Search under:

NORTH CAROLINA- NATIVE RACES

or a Subject Search under:

INDIANS OF NORTH AMERICA- NORTH CAROLINA

You can also find records in the Subject Search under the name of the tribe or group, such as:

CATAWBA INDIANS

CHEROKEE INDIANS

MELUNGEONS

TUSCARORA INDIANS