“We deem it entirely fitting": Civil War memory in Oklahoma
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Abstract
Scholars have published few pieces about Civil War memory in Oklahoma, and the existing studies focus primarily on Native Americans living in Indian Territory during Reconstruction. This study expands on the previous scholarship by looking at Civil War memory in Oklahoma from 1907 to 1922 and incorporating the narratives of white, Black, and Indigenous people living in the state. A study of primary sources such as newspapers and meeting minutes, along with contextual investigation of secondary literature, reveals the formulation of distinct stories of Civil War memory. The presence of various Civil War narratives exemplified Oklahoma’s status as a borderlands space during this era. This unique environment was created when people of different backgrounds and values came together and vied for power in a myriad of ways, including controlling cultural memory. Analysis shows that during the early twentieth century, pro-Confederate white people living in Oklahoma established the Lost Cause as the dominant form of Civil War memory in the state, which was realized through Confederate commemoration traditions such as building monuments, holding reunions, and working within the education system. Although similar activities occurred throughout the country during this period, these instances of memory formation were unique in Oklahoma because they used the histories of Native Americans who had fought for the Confederacy and now practiced reticence around the war. Northern-sympathizing white people also worked to establish Unionism as the main form of Oklahoma Civil War memory, but they were overwhelmed by Confederate efforts and eventually embraced reconciliation with their white, Southern-leaning neighbors. Emancipationist narratives also existed in Oklahoma’s Black communities, but these memories were pushed aside and isolated to enclaves such as All-Black towns in the late 1910s by Lost Cause sentiments that upheld Confederate values and white supremacy. This study adds a wrinkle to the Civil War memory formula that has dominated the field over the last two decades. It offers new perspectives on the Civil War remembrances of Native American, Black, and white residents of Oklahoma and expands the historiography of Civil War memory by investigating an understudied state.
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Introduction -- Confederate foundations -- Native American incorporation -- Emancipationist Oklahomians -- Pushing for patriotism -- Lost cause culmination -- Conclusion
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M.A. (Master of Arts)