Wilma Pearl Mankiller (1945 - 2010)

Born 18 Nov 1945 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, United States

Ancestors

Died 6 Apr 2010 at age 64 in Adair County, Oklahoma, United States [uncertain]

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Biography

Wilma Mankiller is Notable.

Wilma Pearl Mankiller, daughter of Charley Mankiller and Clara Irene Sitton, was born on November 18, 1945, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Her father was a full-blooded Cherokee. Her mother was of Dutch-Irish descent.^[1] Wilma was the middle child of eleven. She spoke of her early life as being very influential in her quest to preserve and build the Cherokee Nation. ^[2] The family was moved from Oklahoma to San Francisco, California in 1955 under an Indian urbanization program.

Wilma Mankiller married twice:

1. Hugo Olaya ​(m. 1963⁠–⁠1974)​, they had two children^[3]
   1. Felicia b. 1964
   2. Gina b. 1966
2. Charlie Soap ​(m. 1986)
   • No Issue

Wilma was the first woman to be Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.^[4] She focused on rebuilding the Nation. During her term, the Cherokee Nation grew from 55,000 to 170,000 tribal citizens. She worked to earn recognition for her people.^[5] Wilma's plan to rebuild her nation included improved health care, education, and government. Having worked her way up from an entry level job at the Cherokee Nation, she was particularly concerned with the rights of tribal women. Wilma Mankiller is remembered as both an activist for Native Americans and as a women's rights activist.^[6]

A quote from Wilma Mankiller:

My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when we lived here in the Southeast, we lived in semi-autonomous villages, and there was someone who watched over the village, who had the title of mankiller. And I'm not sure what you could equate that to, but it was sort of like a soldier or someone who was responsible for the security of the village, and so anyway this one fellow liked the title mankiller so well that he kept it as his name, and that's who we trace our ancestry back to.^[7]

Wilma did not seek reelection due to ill health. She had served despite a difficult personal life in which she suffered a near-fatal car accident and multiple other health problems including myasthenia gravis, a kidney transplant, breast cancer, and lymphoma. In March of 2010, she reported she was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. Wilma Mankiller died on April 6, 2010 in Adair County, Oklahoma, United States.^[1][8]

Awards and Honors

1. Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame - Inducted 1986^[9]
2. Woman of the Year, Ms. Magazine - Inducted 1987^[10]
3. John W. Gardner Leadership Award. Independent Sector. Awarded 1988^[8]
4. Henry G. Bennett Distinguished Service Award. Awarded 1990^[11]
5. Indian Health Service Award - Awarded 1989^[12]
6. Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Yale University 1991. (Plus 14 other honorary Doctorates from other Universities.)^[8]
7. Honoree, National Cowgirl Hall of Fame - 1994^[13]
8. American Women Quarters Program 2022-2025^[14]
9. Presidential Medal of Freedom bestowed by President William J. Clinton. Awarded 1998^[15]

Text of Presidential Medal of Freedom citation:^[16]

Wilma Mankiller prevailed over childhood poverty, relocation, and other personal adversity to become a strong and creative leader of the Cherokee Nation. Compelled by problems endured by her tribe, she returned home to Oklahoma to devote her skills and energy to make life better for her people. The success of her innovative community projects underscored the effectiveness of her message of self-esteem and self-reliance and ultimately led to her election as the first female chief of a Native American tribe. Our nation pays tribute to Wilma Mankiller who has made it her mission to bring opportunity, a higher standard of living, improved health care, and quality education to Native Americans.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} $NY Times Verhovek, Sam Howe. "Wilma Mankiller, Cherokee Chief and First Woman to Lead Major Tribe, Is Dead at 64." New York Times. April 6, 2010
2. ↑ Everyday is a Good Day by Wilma Mankiller
3. ↑ Good Voice, Christina. “Wilma Mankiller Also Left Legacy as Mother.” Cherokeephoenix.org, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, 19 Apr. 2010, https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/news/wilma-mankiller-also-left-legacy-as-mother/article_78c8f8f8-0ce8-578d-8650-f98b28e7273d.html.
4. ↑ Verhovek, Sam Howe. “At Work with: Chief Wilma Mankiller; the Name's the Most and Least of Her.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 4 Nov. 1993, https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/04/garden/at-work-with-chief-wilma-mankiller-the-name-s-the-most-and-least-of-her.html.
5. ↑ Chavez, Will. “25th Anniversary of Mankiller's 2 Terms Remembered.” Cherokeephoenix.org, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, 18 Aug. 2020, https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/news/25th-anniversary-of-mankillers-2-terms-remembered/article_e72f1765-d2e2-5b25-8990-d7a428484a49.html.
6. ↑ “Wilma Mankiller.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 1 Apr. 2014, https://www.biography.com/activist/wilma-mankiller#younger-years. Wilma Mankilller, 1945-2010
7. ↑ Mankiller, Wilma. “Rebuilding the Cherokee Nation.” Gifts of Speech, Sweet Briar College, 1993, http://gos.sbc.edu/m/mankiller.html. Speech given April 12, 1993 at Sweet Briar College, Virginia
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2} “Wilma Mankiller.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 31 May 2004, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilma_Mankiller.
9. ↑ “Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame Inductees 2018 - 1982.” Oklahoma Commission on the Status of Women - Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame, State of Oklahoma, 15 Oct. 2018, https://oklahoma.gov/ocsw/owhof.html.
10. ↑ McCormack, Patricia. “13 Women of Courage: 1987 Women of the Year.” UPI, UPI, 21 Dec. 1987, https://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/12/21/13-women-of-courage-1987-women-of-the-year/7935567061200/.
11. ↑ ^{[citation needed]}
12. ↑ ^{[citation needed]}
13. ↑ 1994 Cowgirl Honoree - Oklahoma, National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame Fort Worth, Texas, https://www.cowgirl.net/portfolios/wilma-mankiller/
14. ↑ “American Women Quarters Program.” United States Mint, United States Government, 8 Nov. 2021, https://www.usmint.gov/learn/coin-and-medal-programs/american-women-quarters.
15. ↑ Jones, Charles T. “Mankiller to Receive Presidential Medal.” Oklahoman.com, Oklahoman, 9 Jan. 1998, https://www.oklahoman.com/article/2598894/mankiller-to-receive-presidential-medal.
16. ↑ Office of Speechwriting and Lowell Weiss, “Medal of Freedom Copy 1/15/98 - Mankiller,” Clinton Digital Library, accessed November 26, 2021, https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/47634.

See Also:

• Wikipedia: Wilma Mankiller
• Wikidata: Item Q2327358, en:Wikipedia
• Space:Native Americans: Cherokee