CN authorizes new public park to honor late Chief Mankiller

Jul. 13—The Cherokee Nation Tribal Council authorized the funding and construction of a new $5 million public park in Tahlequah named after a former chief known for her nationwide activism.

During a meeting July 11, the council approved the The Principal Chief Wilma P. Mankiller Cherokee Capitol Park Act.

Before the vote, Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. addressed the council on the matter in his State of the Nation speech.

"The legislation you will consider tonight will dedicate a magnificent park just down the road in the name of Chief Mankiller," said Hoskin.

The Tribal Council passed the act without discussion.

The approximately 6.25-acre park will be at 18050 S. Muskogee Ave. It will include a building for community gatherings and elements of Cherokee language, culture and traditions in its design, landscaping, public art, playground and facilities, per the act's text.

In the future, a statue of Mankiller — the park's namesake —will be placed in the park.

The act states funding for the park comes from several sources, primarily from federal American Rescue Plan Act funds under the Cherokee Nation COVID-19 Respond, Recover and Rebuild Plan. Other sources include the CN Public Health and Welfare Fund Improvement Act, the Housing, Jobs and Sustainable Communities Act of 2022 and more.

The Monday meeting also saw many modifications to the Nation's budget, including increased funds for scholarships and the upcoming Cherokee National Holiday. In a press release from July 12, District 6 Council Member Daryl Legg commented on the meeting.

"The Cherokee Nation continues to prioritize funds that help our citizens succeed and are of the utmost value for our tribe as a whole," Legg said. "I'm proud of our investments and sound fiscal management, as well as dedicating the Principal Chief Wilma P. Mankiller Capitol Park."

Mankiller, the tribe's first — and thus far, only — female chief was also the first woman to lead a major American Native tribe. Before that, she was an activist, social worker, and community developer. Her family's original allotment is in Adair County. After being hired in 1976 as the tribe's economic stimulus coordinator, she spearheaded several projects, among them the development of a water project in Bell, Oklahoma, which was featured in a movie, "The Cherokee Word for Water." That film was directed by her husband, Charlie Soap.

Mankiller's work caught the eye of then-Principal Chief Ross Swimmer, who coaxed her into running as his deputy in the 1983 tribal election. In 1985, when Swimmer took a post with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, Mankiller stepped up to the chief's position, to which she was elected four years later. Under her guidance, the Cherokees added health clinics and established early childhood education units, plus adult education and training programs. Factories, retail outlets, bingo operations and other enterprises helped boost the Cherokee Nation's self-governance on her watch.

Mankiller died in 2010 from pancreatic cancer, after suffering from other health problems, including myasthenia gravis, kidney disease, lymphoma and breast cancer. She received the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medical of Freedom, among other awards. Recently, her likeness appeared on a U.S. quarter.