Background
From 1890 onward, the land that now forms the State of Oklahoma was made up of the Oklahoma Territory (to the west), and the Indian Territory (to the east). The Indian Territory, as its name suggests, had a large Native American population, but European-American settlers had also continued to arrive. The territory had been reduced by required land cessions after the Civil War and through other treaties with the United States. In the 1900 US Census, Native Americans composed 13.4 percent of the population in the future state. In 1905, the Five Civilized Tribes had a total of about 60,000 persons in the Indian Territory; the total population was 600,000.
The Native American movement to secure statehood for the Indian Territory began in 1902 with a convention in Eufaula. It consisted of representatives of the Five Civilized Tribes. The representatives met again in 1903 to organize a constitutional convention to be held in 1905.
Read more about this topic: State Of Sequoyah
Famous quotes containing the word background:
“... every experience in life enriches one’s background and should teach valuable lessons.”
—Mary Barnett Gilson (1877–?)
“In the true sense one’s native land, with its background of tradition, early impressions, reminiscences and other things dear to one, is not enough to make sensitive human beings feel at home.”
—Emma Goldman (1869–1940)
“I had many problems in my conduct of the office being contrasted with President Kennedy’s conduct in the office, with my manner of dealing with things and his manner, with my accent and his accent, with my background and his background. He was a great public hero, and anything I did that someone didn’t approve of, they would always feel that President Kennedy wouldn’t have done that.”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)