Otoe-Missouria Tribe
The Otoe-Missouria are a Native American tribe whose tribal headquarters is located at Red Rock, Oklahoma in Noble County. The examples utilized in this section are not intended to tell
the whole story of the Otoe-Missouria people, but to provide an illustration of their culture, society,
leisure activities, economics and life styles.
This study was funded by
the National Endowment for the Humanities, Oklahoma Humanities Council, and the Cherokee Strip Historical Society. In-kind donations to the project were made by the Oklahoma Historical Society, The Cherokee Strip Museum, Perry Public Schools, Charles Machine Works, the Exchange Bank and Trust and various local individuals.
Note: Not all of the historical information and photographs contained in this exhibit are available at the Cherokee Strip Museum. Photographs may have been edited for presentation on the web site.
Who are They?
"The Otoe and Missouria, along with the Iowa (q.v.), are part of the Chiwere group of the Siouan linguistic family." (Wright, p. 199) By the 18th century the Otoe resided near the Platte River in present day Nebraska and the Missouria lived on the Grand River in what is now Missouri. By 1817, the Missouria numbered little more than one hundred people and united with the Otoe in the interest of peace and survival. Since that union, the Otoe-Missouria has been recognized as one people by other tribes and the federal government. The Tribe's own social organization acknowledges a more distinct separation. (Otoe-Missouria Tribe, pp. 11-12)