Katie Mayree (Evans) Blair (1904 - 1984)

Born 14 Jul 1904 in Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory, United States

Ancestors

Died 4 Apr 1984 at age 79 in Sequoyah, Oklahoma, United States

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Biography

Katie was Cherokee.

Dawes Enrollee

Cherokee by Blood

Cherokee Minor Card #3287

Katie Mayree Evans was born in the Cherokee Nation in 1904. She was the daughter of Robert Evans and Elizabeth "Bettie" Christie, both Cherokee. ^[1] Robert died in 1908 and by 1910 Elizabeth was married to Jesse Blair. Katie is shown as living with them on the 1910 ^[2] and 1920 censuses. ^[3]

Katie appears on the 1930 census living in Cookson, Oklahoma with three children, Jesse, Lucy, and Robert Evans. In 1940 she is living next to Jesse and Elizabeth with three additional children, Cherokee, Billy, and Christine Evans.^[4]

By 1950 Jesse and Elizabeth had apparently separated and Katie appears as the wife of her step-father with two additional children, Esther and Margaret. Her children are now using "Blair" as a surname. ^[5]

Katie was enrolled by the Dawes Commission as a Cherokee by blood and was approved for a share of the Eastern Cherokee (Guion Miller) payment. ^[6] She died in 1984 and is buried at the Blair Cemetery, Sequoyah, OK. ^[7]

Research Notes

On the television show "Finding Your Roots" Katie is identified as the biological grandmother of actor Wes Studi. According to Gates one of Katie's sons - either Jesse or Robert - was Wes' biological father.

Sources

1. ↑ Enrollment Cards for the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1186, 93 rolls); Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Record Group 75; National Archives, Washington, D.C. Cherokee Minor card #3287
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1910", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MLQY-2LG : Thu Oct 05 07:00:43 UTC 2023), Entry for Jessie P Blair and Elizabeth Blair, 1910.
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1920", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MJMD-F7V : Fri Jan 05 17:56:45 UTC 2024), Entry for Jess T Blair and Elizabeth Blair, 1920.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1940", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VBJV-31M : Tue Nov 28 16:00:50 UTC 2023), Entry for Jess T Blair and Elizabeth Blair, 1940.
5. ↑ "United States 1950 Census", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6FSJ-LYVH : Wed Oct 04 13:35:43 UTC 2023), Entry for J T Blair and Katie Blair, April 10, 1950.
6. ↑ National Archives and Records Administration, Eastern Cherokee payments of the Court of Claims, Application #12404, Elizabeth Evans
7. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/35480285/katie-mayree-blair: accessed 17 January 2024), memorial page for Katie Mayree Evans Blair (14 Jul 1904–4 Apr 1984), Find a Grave Memorial ID 35480285, citing Blair Cemetery, Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, USA; Maintained by Yonda Bailey (contributor 46969267).