Oklahoma Genealogy and History - presented by Genealogy Trails

Oklahoma Native American Data

The county was named for the Kiowa that lived here. These fierce warriors are credited with stopping the progress of the Pacific railroads westward for forty years. The Kiowa were first located along the Columbia river in Canada, in 1700, when the British Columbia traders wrote of them. They migrated south to the Upper Yellowstone, into the Black Hills where Lewis and Clark came upon large encampments of Kiowa, then continued downward, through Nebraska, Kansas and Colorado to Oklahoma and Texas. They settled along Elk Creek, near the present site of Hobart.

This land of the Kiowa was shared by the Kiowa-Apache, sometimes called the Plains Apache, and the Comanche. Later in the 19th century, a small band of Chirachahua Apaches, Geronimo's people, were moved from Florida to near Fort Sill. They remained P.O.W.'s for 27 years, until after Geronimo died, before they were allowed to go home. There are still descendents of Geronimo's band living in Oklahoma.

There are Indian names in Kiowa County that are familiar to all school children. The names of the great warriors of these tribes still echo across the plains from a by-gone time. From the Kiowa, we hear the names of Gul-Pah-Go, the first Chief Lone Wolf, Santanta (White Bear) Satank (Sitting Bear), Adveta (Big Tree), Zip-ko-ete (Big Bow), the Kiowa chiefs who led their people during the time the whites were closing in the People. Some of the Kiowa have towns and communities named after them, such as Gotebo, Komalty, Lone Wolf, and the Kiowa-Apache Chief, Koon-Ka-Zachey.

Every school child is aware of Quanah Parker, Chief of the Comanche. This Warrior was as fierce in War as he became in peace. It is astounding, the fans that Quanah Parker has, around the world.

Prior to the lands being opened for settlement to Whites, in the 1880's, Texas ranchers began to rent pastures for their herds. This short grass prairie was ideal ranch land. President William McKinley, proclaimed the lands of southwestern Oklahoma be opened to white settlement. It was decided to have a land lottery, as when other portions of Oklahoma Territory had been "opened" by "runs". These proved to be violent, uncontrollable, and lawless.

Several days before the ticket booths were to be set up, Chief Lone Wolf of the Kiowa attempted to obtain an injunction restraining the Department of Interior from opening the lands to settlement. Although the speech of Lone Wolf was eloquent, it was to no avail. About 3,500 Indians received their allotments and two million acres, about 3,000 square miles were ready to be opened. The land was divided into 3 counties, Kiowa, Caddo and Comanche. 165,000 envelopes equaling 160 acres each were given out.