United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
A nation today
Background
Western Cherokee, or Old Settlers, is what the Band calls itself, and it gives the reason: many of its people were already moving west to avoid United States encroachment before the Trail of Tears began. It says the Keetoowahs were the first Cherokees to move west, first voluntarily and then after the Indian Removal Act, and that they now reside in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the Cherokee capital, at 18300 W. Keetoowah Circle. Though Tahlequah has been home since the removal, the Band says it was not granted land in trust until the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit did so on September 5, 2019, and that its 76 acres of trust land there now hold community services buildings, a childcare center, a museum, a wellness center, an elder center and stomp grounds. Its written language is the Cherokee Syllabary, invented by Sequoyah Guess in 1809 and completed after several revisions in 1821, while its spoken language is harder to hold and the Band notes it has its own dialect, which varies from community to community. Government sits with a Tribal Council of four officers, the chief, assistant chief, treasurer and secretary, plus nine district representatives, with officers elected every four years and representatives every two.
Visit and learn
John Hair Cultural Center and Museum
The Band's museum, and the anchor of the trust land it took in Tahlequah. Its own page carries the museum's listing, the Band's office hours of Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and a volunteer application form for people who want to help with cultural activities, outreach and special projects.
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians's own site
Tribal lands have their own laws. Check the nation's site before you visit.
Parks on its homelands
Mammoth Cave National ParkThe United Keetoowah Band says the Keetoowahs were the first Cherokees to move west, some of them voluntarily to avoid colonial pressure and then to Indian Territory after the Indian Removal Act. The Band resides in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the Cherokee capital. Source
Programs
John Hair Cultural Center and Museum
Since 2005 the museum has named members Tradition Keeper, chosen from among Keetoowah artists, artisans, linguists and historians who both practice their art and teach it. The roll the museum publishes covers basket making, blowgun making, bow making, wood and antler carving, clothing, beadwork, Cherokee language and painting.
Sources
- https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-30/html/2026-01899.htm
- https://www.ukb-nsn.gov/about-us
- https://www.ukb-nsn.gov/government
Checked September 2026.