Ned Christie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ned Christie
Ned Christie
Born	NeDe WaDe (1852-12-14)December 14, 1852 Wauhillau, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	November 3, 1892(1892-11-03) (aged 39) Wauhillau, Oklahoma, U.S.
Cause of death	Gunshot wound
Nationality	Cherokee Nation
Occupation	Blacksmith gunsmith
Spouse(s)	Multiple
Parent(s)	Watt Christie and Lydia "Thrower" Christie

Ned Christie (born December 14, 1852 – died November 3, 1892), also known as NeDe WaDe, was an important leader of the Cherokee Nation. He was a member of the Cherokee Nation's government, serving in their senate. He was also one of three advisors to the Principal Chief, Dennis Bushyhead.

Christie was part of the Keetoowah Society, a group that followed traditional Cherokee ways. He strongly believed in the Cherokee Nation's right to govern itself. He worked hard to protect their lands and culture from outsiders.

In 1887, Ned Christie was accused of shooting a United States Marshal. He wanted to prove his innocence and asked for bail, but his request was denied. For five years, U.S. lawmen tried to capture him. This long chase became known as "Ned Christie's War." He was declared an outlaw, and there was a reward offered for his capture. Sadly, he was eventually killed by lawmen. Years later, an eyewitness said that Ned Christie had been wrongly accused. Today, he is remembered as a folk hero among the Cherokee people.

Early Life and Family

Ned Christie was born in 1852 in a place called Wauhillau, which was part of the Cherokee Nation. Today, this area is in Oklahoma. His parents, Watt and Lydia Christie, were survivors of the Trail of Tears. This was a difficult journey when many Native American people were forced to move from their homes in the American Southeast to Indian Territory.

Ned's family belonged to the Keetoowah band of Cherokee. This group was known for keeping their traditional customs and beliefs strong.

As a child, Ned was very active. He was a champion at playing marbles and was also a skilled stickball player. He was a popular fiddle player too. Ned learned to read and write in both the Cherokee language and English.

Ned Christie married Peggy Tucker in 1875. Later, he married Jennie Scraper around 1877, and then Nancy Greece around 1888.

Work and Political Role

Ned Christie was a tall man, standing 6 feet 4 inches. He worked as a blacksmith, making and repairing metal items. He was also a gunsmith, skilled in making and fixing guns.

In 1885, the Cherokee people elected Ned to their tribal Senate. He became an important advisor to the Principal Chief. Ned was very concerned about protecting the Cherokee Nation's right to govern itself. He strongly disagreed with the U.S. government's plans to build railroads through Cherokee land.

The U.S. government also wanted to change how Native American tribes owned land. They proposed ending the tradition of tribes owning land together. Instead, they wanted to divide the land into smaller pieces for individual families. This idea was part of the Dawes Act, which passed in 1887. This act aimed to make Native Americans adopt European-American ways of life.

At this time, many white settlers were moving onto Cherokee lands without permission. They also pushed the U.S. government to create a new state in this area. To do this, the government would first need to take away the land rights of the Cherokee and other Native American tribes.

Ned Christie's strong opposition to these plans made him powerful enemies. He was seen as a leader who stood up for his people's rights.

Ned was a member of the Keetoowah Society, which followed traditional Cherokee religion. His father and grandfather were leaders of their ceremonial ground, a special place for sacred rituals near their home.

The Accusation

On May 3, 1887, a U.S. Deputy Marshal named Daniel Maples was in Indian Territory. He was looking for people selling illegal goods. Maples was shot from hiding and died the next day. The person who shot him escaped.

Other marshals suspected someone else at first. However, a man who had been arrested told authorities that Ned Christie had fired the shot that killed Maples. But Ned Christie was said to have been with friends when the shooting happened.

Ned's friends advised him to hide. He was worried about facing a trial in a U.S. court, so he decided to make his home stronger to resist arrest. Ned lived in the Rabbit Trap community of the Cherokee Nation with his wife, Nancy Greece, and her son.

He learned that a grand jury in Fort Smith, Arkansas, had officially accused him of Maples' murder. Judge Isaac Parker had sent more marshals to arrest him. Ned reportedly wrote a letter to Judge Parker, saying he would surrender if he could be released on bail to find proof of his innocence. Judge Parker never replied, so Ned never surrendered.

Judge Parker was known for handling many important cases. He was sometimes called "the hanging judge" because he sentenced many criminals. But he also worked to help offenders and improve the justice system.

Ned Christie's War

In 1889, Jacob Yoes became the U.S. Marshal in Fort Smith. He sent his best deputy, Heck Thomas, to capture Ned Christie. In one attack in 1889, lawmen burned Ned's house. Ned escaped with friends, though he was injured.

Deputy Thomas decided to burn Ned out of his home. Marshals set fire to Ned's blacksmith shop, and the flames spread to his cabin. Ned's wife and his nephew escaped, but his nephew was shot and wounded. The marshals thought Ned had been killed and left.

Ned's wife returned to the burned cabin and found him alive but wounded. She took him and his nephew to a doctor. A Cherokee medicine man also helped them. Ned survived. After this, Ned Christie vowed he would never give up.

Ned and his friends built a strong fort for protection. It had double walls made of logs with sand packed between them. It also had openings for rifles and was filled with food, water, and ammunition. The U.S. government increased the reward for Ned's capture from $500 to $1000. Stories about Ned Christie continued to be told.

In October 1892, Marshal Yoes sent a group of six deputies to Ned's location. This group left after two of their men were wounded in a fight. Yoes then planned a larger attack. It was led by Deputy Gideon S. “Cap” White, a former U.S. Cavalry captain. He had 14 other men and even borrowed a cannon from an army post in Kansas.

White's force surrounded Ned Christie's fort on the morning of November 3, 1892. Inside the fort were Ned, his wife Nancy, her son Albert, Ned's daughter Mary, his granddaughter Charlotte, his nephew Little Arch Wolf, and a 12-year-old boy named Charles Hair. After the first shots were fired, the marshals allowed the women to leave and kept them safe nearby.

The lawmen killed Ned Christie during their attack. They used a lot of gunpowder in the cannon, and the next shot caused the cannon barrel to explode. They then pushed a wagon filled with dynamite against one wall of the fort and blew it up. The explosion destroyed part of the fort and set the rest on fire. Ned Christie was shot and killed as he tried to escape the burning ruins.

The lawmen tied Ned's body to a door and took it by train to Fayetteville, Arkansas. There, they took pictures with his body, which was a common practice at the time. They then took the body to Fort Smith, Arkansas, to claim their reward. More people took pictures with Ned Christie's body. A photography studio even made postcards to sell.

Finally, Ned Christie's body was given to his family. They took him back to Wauhillau for burial. He was buried in his father's cemetery, and his grave is marked with a tombstone.

After the raid, Ned's nephew Arch Wolfe and the young boy Charles Hair were charged with attacking lawmen. Because he was so young, Charles Hair was sent to a reformatory in Illinois for three years. Arch Wolfe was held in different institutions for many years. He died in 1912 at an asylum that housed Native Americans.

In 1918, a man named Dick Humphreys said in an interview that he had seen the shooting of Marshal Maples. He stated that another person, not Ned Christie, had shot the marshal. Humphreys had not spoken up earlier because he was afraid.

Ned Christie's name was finally cleared many years after his death. Ned had been against railroad building, dividing tribal lands, and making the area a state. Some people believe that his strong opposition to powerful men may have led to him being falsely accused and hunted as an outlaw.

Legacy and Recognition

Today, Ned Christie is honored with a special plaque at the Cherokee Court House in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. This building is the oldest public building in the state. The plaque states that he was "assassinated by U. S. Marshals in 1892." The Fort Smith National Historic Site, which is managed by the National Park Service, also recognizes Ned Christie's death as an assassination.

Many stories about Ned Christie were published in newspapers and magazines, and even in adventure novels. Most of these stories made his life seem more exciting than it was.

Ned Christie has also been the subject of books written more recently. These include Zeke and Ned (1997) by Larry McMurtry and Diane Ossana, and Ned Christie's War (1991) by Robert J. Conley. Robert J. Conley was a Cherokee author who wanted to show Ned Christie's struggles in a fair way.

In the 21st century, new books have been written about Ned Christie based on careful research. Devon A. Mihesuah's book, Ned Christie: The Creation of an Outlaw and Cherokee Hero (2018), gives more details about his life and his political beliefs. Another book, He Was a Brave Man: The Story of an Indian Patriot (2010), was written by Lisa LaRue, a Cherokee Keetoowah historian. Ned Christie's great-great-nephew, Roy J. Hamilton, also wrote a book called Ned Christie: Cherokee Warrior.

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  Ned Christie