Examining Family Lore: Was Eliza Ann Isenhour (1850-1898) Full-Blooded Cherokee?

Do you have a family story that has been passed down? Family lore can be accurate, completely wrong, or have a kernel of truth. In the case of my second great-grandmother, Eliza Ann Isenhour, her purported Cherokee heritage turned out to have a kernel of truth.

Family Lore

Family stories told of the tragic accident in 1884 that made Eliza Ann a widow with four young children and another on the way. Her husband, William Henderson Shults, had been riding his horse, and his younger brother, Dick Shults, whipped the horse in fun. The horse started bucking, and William held on until blood ran from his ears. This caused internal injuries that resulted in his death.¹ Eliza remarried and had another son named Calvin by her second husband, Jacob Meek. ² They moved north from Brown County, Texas, to Indian Territory by 1898, where Eliza died.³ Her descendants reported she was a full-blooded Cherokee.⁴

Eliza Ann Isenhour

William Henderson Shults

Eliza Ann Life Events

Eliza was born in Arkansas, according to census records of her life. In 1850, she lived in the household of her parents, Barnet and Mary Ann Isenhour. ⁵ Although no relationships were listed, there is no reason to suspect this family grouping. The family was enumerated in Polk Township of Montgomery County, Arkansas, on 19 September 1850. Eliza’s age of six months gives her an approximate birth date of March 1850. Her parents, both Missouri-born, had moved to Arkansas at least by 1848 with the birth of Sarah.

Barnet Isenhour 29 Mo
Mary Ann Isenhour 21 Mo
Sarah Isenhour 2 Ark
Eliza Ann Isenhour 6/12 Ark

By 1860, life had significantly changed for the Isenhour family with the death of husband and father, Barnett, in the mid-1850s. The 1860 census revealed Eliza Ann in the household of her stepfather, Esquire Blevins.⁶ This blended family included Blevins and Isenhour children as well as two young girls, Emily and California Blevins, half-sisters to Eliza. The younger Isenhour children, Texana and John, were both reported as born in Texas, so the move was probably soon after Eliza’s Arkansas birth in 1850. Their father, Barnett Isenhour, likely died about 1854, and Mary Ann remarried in 1855.

Esquire Blevins 34 Tenn
Mary A Blevins 33 Mo
Margarette A Blevins 14 Tx
Luke Blevins 12 Tx
Ricd Blevins 10 Tx
Mary A Blevins 8 Tx
Sarah E Icenhower 13 Ark
Eliza A Icenhower 10 Ark
Texana Icenhower 8 Tx
John Icenhower 6 Tx
Emily P Blevins 3 Tx
California Blevins 1 Tx

By 1870, the Blevins / Isenhour family had moved to Coryell County, Texas. The Isenhour children were listed as Blevins. The unusual names “Texana” and “California” identify this as the same household as that of 1860, Johnson County, Texas. Eliza Ann Isenhour’s birth year of 1850 remained constant.⁷

Squire Blevins 45 Tenn
Polly Ann Blevins 44 Mo
Richard Blevins 21 Tx
Eliza Ann Blevins 20 Ark
Texana Blevins 18 Tx
Polly Ann Blevins 18 Tx blind
John B Blevins 17 Tx
Tennessee Blevins 14 Tx
California Blevins 12 Tx
Huel Blevins 10 Tx
Jane Blevins 7 Tx
Martha Blevins 5 Tx
Jacob Blevins 4 Tx

Soon after the 1870 census enumeration, Eliza married William Henderson Shults on 4 July 1871 in Bell County, Texas.⁸ When new land opened further west in Brown County, William applied for a grant from the state of Texas. In 1878, he stated that “he is now a Bona Fide settler upon 160 acres of Land, that he believes to be of the public vacant lands of the State of Texas; that he is improving said Land as a Homestead, and has no other; and further that he is a married man. and makes this Affidavit for the purpose of obtaining a Home. Said Land is situated in Brown County.”⁹ The survey and map reveal the location of the land and the neighbors.¹⁰

Survey Map of W.H. Shults Land from the Field Notes

The young family is listed only once on the census with William, in 1880. ¹¹ Four children had been born to William and Eliza since their marriage in 1871. This was the first census to name relationships and the birthplaces of parents. It is also the first census with a conflicting birth year for Eliza—that of 1848. Perhaps William was the unknown informant and estimated his wife to be younger than her true age of 30.

William H. Shults, head 30 Tx Miss Miss
Eliza A. Shults, wife 28 Ark Penn Ark
Mary R. Shults, daughter 7 Tx Tx Ark
Sarah C. Shults, daughter 5 Tx Tx Ark
William H. C. Shults, son 3Tx Tx Ark
Rosa A. Shults, daughter 2/12 Tx Tx Ark

In 1884, William died of injuries from the horse accident discussed previously, and Eliza was left a widow expecting another child. Henderson Elizabeth Shults was born on 17 February 1885 and named for her deceased father.¹² With several young children, Eliza needed to remarry to survive economically on the frontier. Her sister, Sarah, had also died recently, possibly in childbirth, leaving behind her husband, Jacob Meek, and 9-year-old son, James H. Meek.¹³ With their spouses deceased, Eliza Ann (Isenhour) Shults and Jacob Meek (widower of Sarah Isenhour) married on 25 July 1885.¹⁴ Their son, Calvin Wesley Meek, was born in 1887.¹⁵

Move to Indian Territory

Beginning in 1887, a series of legislative acts of the United States government resulted in the creation of three federal court divisions within Indian Territory: the Northern District, Southern District, and Central District. By the late 1890s, all the real authority in Indian Territory was held by these federal courts. Prior to 1889, non-citizens could not own land in Indian Territory because the land was communal property of the respective Indian Tribe. As a result, a lease system was incorporated allowing a settler to lease land from the Native Americans.¹⁶

United States Bureau Of The Census, “Map of Indian Territory and Oklahoma.” (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1890); digital image, (https://www.loc.gov/item/2012586269/ : accessed 17 March 2024).

Under the 1887 General Allotment Act, also known as the Dawes Act, the communal lands of the Five Civilized Tribes began to be parceled out to individual members of the tribe. Indian reservations were surveyed and established. To qualify for a parcel of land, an individual was required to give their name, tribe, membership designation, age group, and percentage of tribal blood by inheritance.¹⁷

When did Jacob Meek and Eliza Ann move north to Indian Territory? Were they part of the land grab of 1889, or did they qualify for tribal membership? Was Eliza a full-blooded Cherokee? Was Jacob part of the Five Civilized Tribes?

The process of enrolling as a member of the Five Civilized Tribes involved filling out an application and proving residence in Indian Territory as of 28 June 1898. Because land disputes were common in this era, many records were often generated and became part of an individual’s enrollment packet. Searching for Jacob and Eliza Meek resulted in the discovery that Jacob Meek was ¼ Choctaw, their son Calvin Meek was ⅛ Choctaw, and Eliza had no Native American bloodlines and was a non-citizen.¹⁸

Index Card for Jacob, James H., Calvin, and Ada Meek

Early Garvin County

The records showed that Eliza and Jacob Meek and family came to the Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory, by about 1892. They settled in the area that would become Garvin County, Oklahoma, in 1907 upon statehood.¹⁹ An early history of the area explained that the area known as Washita Valley was composed almost entirely of sod. An early settler named Smith Paul built the first home in the 1850s and began clearing and cultivating the land. He discovered once the sod was broken, the soil produced well. The area began to be known as “Smith Paul’s Valley,” and by the time the Shults/Meek family arrived, the name had been shortened to just Paul’s Valley.²⁰

Before the early 1900s, the land belonged to the Chickasaw Nation and could not be personally owned. “A man could farm all he could enclose with a fence or break with a plow.” The history of Garvin County discussed the impact of the coming of the Santa Fe Railroad in 1887. A “lively settlement” grew up in the “valley at the old townsite” that included a store, stage stops, a wagon yard, and a number of log houses. The railroad was granted a 50-foot easement on either side of the track that went completely through the Chickasaw Nation. ²¹As in other areas, the coming of the railroad also meant the coming of settlers. The fertile valley soil drew settlers from all over.

Jacob and Eliza Meek settled in the small community of Elmore City.²² The Church of Christ held gospel meetings in a tent or under a brush arbor, then began holding weekly services in the log schoolhouse. Some of Eliza’s descendants belonged to the Church of Christ so possibly this was a family affiliation.

In 1898, Eliza Ann (Isenhour) Shults Meek died and was buried in Elmore, about six years after her arrival in Indian Territory with her second husband and children.²³ With the death of their father in 1884 in Texas, the Shults children were left parentless. All had followed their mother and stepfather to Indian Territory and were listed on the 1900 census in Chickasaw Nation. All but the oldest daughter also married in Indian Territory.

With Eliza dying relatively young and her children growing up in Indian Territory, perhaps their step-father’s Choctaw heritage gave rise to the family story that Eliza was a full-blooded Cherokee. The records, however, tell another story. In 1896, Jacob Meek and his two sons, James and Calvin Meek, applied for and were granted citizenship in the Choctaw Nation by blood. Jacob stated he was ¼ Choctaw, and his sons were 1/8 Choctaw. Eliza was listed as a non-citizen with no tribal bloodline, dispelling the myth of her Cherokee heritage.

What family lore plays a part in your family history? Do the research can prove or disprove a family story. As in the case of Eliza Ann Isenhour, it can also provide the probable basis for a story growing out of a fact. Having an open mind and researching thoroughly is an important step to discovering the truth.

Best of luck in all your genealogical endeavors!

1. Charles Leslie Shults, Eliza’s grandson, told the story to his son, Bobby Gene Shults, who told it to Diana Elder. Charles was well acquainted with his great-uncle, Dick Shults, of Coconino County, Arizona, and likely heard the story from him.
2. Charles Leslie Shults (Parker, Arizona) to [Bobby Gene Shults], letter, 27 October 1971; privately held by Diana Elder [Highland, Utah], 2020. [Bob Shults gave letter to Diana Elder]. “Grandma Shults was married to a man named Jake Meeks, Uncle Calvins dad. Uncle Calvin had 5 children. Otis is the oldest but I think Buster still lives on the old homeplace. which is near Ringling Okla. and it is on the Hi. way 70 between Ardmore and Waurika where Grandma Meek was buried & don’t no. but I am pretty sure it was in that area.”
3. Mrs. G.A. Wells (Monmouth, Oregon) to Bob [Bobby Gene Shults], letter, 6 December [1973]; privately held by Diana Elder, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE.], Highland, Utah, 2016. [Bob Shults gave letter to Diana Elder]. “My father dyed when I was 2 years old and my mother dyed when I was 16. . . at Elmore in the Chickasaw Nation and was buried there.”
4. Don Stagner, Denison, Texas, [E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE] to Diana Elder, e-mail, 19 April 2003, SHULTS E-mail Correspondence File, Elder Research Files, privately held by Elder, (Highland, Utah). “My father often talked about the ‘Shults’ and he said that his grandmother, Eliza Ann Isenhour (Shults) was a full-blooded Cherokee and she was born in Arkansas, so this is a Family story that has been passed down.”
5. 1850 U.S. Census, Montgomery County, Arkansas, population schedule, Polk Township, p. 405A (stamped), dwelling 6, family 6, Barnet Isenhour household; digital image, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 February 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 28.
6. 1860 U.S. Census, Johnson County, Texas, population schedule, Comanche Peak P.O., page 209 (penned), dwelling 167, family 168, Eliza A. Icenhower in Esquire Blevins household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com: accessed 12 February 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M653 roll 1298.
7. 1870 U.S. Census, Coryell County, Texas, population schedule, Precinct 2, p. 10 (penned), p.274 (stamped),dwelling 60, family 60, Elizabeth Blevins in Squire Blevins household; digital image, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 February 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M593, roll 1581.
8. “Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965,” W H Shults and Eliza A Isenhower, 04 Jul 1871, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV14-HR8R : accessed 12 February 2020); citing Marriage, citing Bell, Texas, United States, Texas State Library, Archives Division, and various Texas county clerks; FHL microfilm 981,034, image 351.
9. Texas General Land Office, Brown County, W.H. Shultz, file no. 1076, Travis Preemption, abstract 1100, 1871, Texas GLO (https://s3.glo.texas.gov/glo/history/archives/land-grants/LandGrantsWorklist.cfm? : accessed 15 February 2020).
10. Texas General Land Office, Brown County, W.H. Shultz, file no. 1076, Travis Preemption, abstract 1100, image 9, “Corrected Field Notes.”
11. 1880 U.S. Census, Brown County,  Texas, population schedule, enumeration district (ED) 26, sheet 432D (stamped), p.12 (penned), dwelling 93, family 96, Eliza A. in William H. Shults household; digital image, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 February 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 1292.
12. U.S. Social Security Administration, “Social Security Death Index,” database, Ancestry (http://ancestry.com : accessed 9 Aug 2016), entry for Henderson E. Coffman, SS no. 569-70-0068.
13. Ancestry Member Trees, “Shults_Kelsey,” facts for Sarah E. Isenhour, 1848-1885, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : access 19 Apr 2020). Additional Ancestry trees identify George Meek, born in 1884 and died in 1885, as another son.
14. Brown County, Texas, Marriage Records Vol. A, page 206, Meek-Shults, 25 July 1885, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GP3Y-9CFV? : accessed 13 February 2020; citing FHL Microfilm 001,533,474., image 120.
15. Oklahoma and Indian Territory, Dawes Census Cards for Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914, Calvin W. Meek, #15739, Choctaw > By Blood > Field no. 5850, Maxwell, I.T. 15 Sept. 1898; images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 February 2020); citing NARA at Ft. Worth, Texas, NAI Number 241747, Record Group 75.
16. “United States Court for the Indian Territory,” Oklahoma Historical Society https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php? entry=UN017 : accessed 13 May 2020.)
17. “Allotment,” Oklahoma Historical Society, (https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php? : accessed 13 May 2020).
18. “U.S., Native American Enrollment Cards for the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914,” Index and Final rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribes, Meek, p. 332, column 2, no. 15737-9, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 April 2020.)
19. Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Garvin County, Oklahoma, pp. 557-563.
20. Pauls Valley Chamber of Commerce, From Bluestem to Golden Trend: A Pictorial History of Garvin County, Covering Both the Old and New (Fort Worth: University Supply and Equipment Co., 1957); FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org/library/books/idurl/1/614794 : accessed 10 April 2020), image 6 of 200.
21. Pauls Valley Chamber of Commerce, From Bluestem to Golden Trend: A Pictorial History of Garvin County, Covering Both the Old and New (Fort Worth : University Supply and Equipment Co., 1957); FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org/library/books/idurl/1/614794 : accessed 10 April 2020), image 6 of 200.
22. “U.S., Native American Applications for Enrollment in Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914,” Choctaw > Choctaw by Blood > 05824-05891, entry for Jacob Meek, et al., # 5320, image 787 of 2274.
23. Mrs. G.A. Wells (Monmouth, Oregon) to Bob [Bobby Gene Shults], letter, 6 December [1973]; privately held by Diana Elder, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE.], Highland, Utah, 2016. [Bob Shults gave letter to Diana Elder]. “My father dyed when I was 2 years old and my mother dyed when I was 16. . . at Elmore in the Chickasaw Nation and was buried there.”