Why are so many Cherokee today not able to trace their genealogy to a Dawes Roll signer?
There were a number of Cherokees who did not sign the Dawes Roll. Some Cherokee who lived in the Cherokee Nation and were eligible to sign the roll and receive land refused to do so. After years of broken treaties and bad policies implemented by the US government, many Cherokees were weary of signing the Dawes Roll and “registering” as Cherokee. Other Cherokees of the day were not living within the Cherokee Nation and were therefore ineligible to enroll. Cherokees who had settled in Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, and Missouri were considered US citizens and were ineligible to sign the Dawes Rolls. Anyone descended from these Cherokee will be unable to enroll in the Cherokee Nation, even if they are able to prove their Cherokee heritage.
