Cultivating the Rosebuds: The Education of Women at the Cherokee Female Seminary, 1851-1909University of Illinois Press, 1993 - 212 pages Established by the Cherokee Nation in 1851 in present-day eastern Oklahoma, the nondenominational Cherokee Female Seminary was one of the most important schools in the history of American Indian education. Unusual among Indian schools because it was founded by neither the federal government nor by missionary agencies, the school offered a rigorous curriculum from elementary grades through high school that was patterned after that of Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. It offered no instruction in the Cherokee language or culture, but it was open only to full- and mixed-blood Cherokee girls. Many of the seminarians were acculturated Cherokees who welcomed the opportunity to study in an environment where white ways were held up as the ideal. More traditional Cherokees found the atmosphere oppressive. Devon Mihesuah explores the school's history, examining curriculum, faculty, administration, and educational philosophy and showing how these elements affected the 2,300 women who were educated there. A number of the seminary's graduates went on to study at colleges and universities across the country, becoming teachers, physicians, businesswomen, and social workers. Even those former students who did not seek careers exerted considerable influence within their families and in civic life. Cultivating the Rosebuds is a study of acculturation, assimilation, and tribal identity, sensitively delving into the differences between progressive and traditional Cherokees and the interactions between them. It also offers insights into the school's role in the tribe's cultural transitions, the changing roles of Cherokee women, and the impact of the students' experiences upon their tribe. |
From inside the book
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Page 92
... graduate , Dr. Charles McClelland Ross . This twenty - three - year - old great - grandson of the former principal chief John Ross had graduated from the Male Seminary in 1887. Prior to his tenure as medical superintendent , Ross had ...
... graduate , Dr. Charles McClelland Ross . This twenty - three - year - old great - grandson of the former principal chief John Ross had graduated from the Male Seminary in 1887. Prior to his tenure as medical superintendent , Ross had ...
Page 95
... graduates and nongraduates ( young women who left the Female Seminary to attend other high schools ) went on to attend colleges or universities , and half of those received degrees . But more than 2,770 girls did not graduate from the ...
... graduates and nongraduates ( young women who left the Female Seminary to attend other high schools ) went on to attend colleges or universities , and half of those received degrees . But more than 2,770 girls did not graduate from the ...
Page 160
... graduated from the seminary in 1879 and married William Ross Shackleford . Mattie Bell , Nancy Robertson , and Arabella Nicholson attended the seminary for a few semesters , but did not graduate . The boat Ada Archer was owned by Riley ...
... graduated from the seminary in 1879 and married William Ross Shackleford . Mattie Bell , Nancy Robertson , and Arabella Nicholson attended the seminary for a few semesters , but did not graduate . The boat Ada Archer was owned by Riley ...
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Common terms and phrases
1st sess 2d sess acculturated Adair American Indian ARCIA Arkansas August Bushyhead Butler C. T. Foreman Cher Cherokee Advocate Cherokee blood Cherokee Female Seminary Cherokee Indians Cherokee Nation Cherokee Rose Buds Cherokee Schools Cherokee women Chief John Ross Chronicles of Oklahoma CLAIT Cong Coppock to Benedict Dawes Roll December Education Elias Boudinot Eliza enrolled Exec federal Five Civilized Tribes Florence Wilson fullbloods girls graduated high schools ibid Indian Territory interview John Vaughan Library June L. G. Bowers L. L. Coll LGB Coll Mary Mayes McLoughlin Medical Superintendent Mission missionaries mixed-bloods Mount Holyoke College National Council Norman Northeastern State Normal Northeastern State University November October okee Okla Oklahoma Press Park Hill Principal Chief seminarians seminary alumnae seminary students seminary's September serial Starr Tahlequah teachers traditional Cherokee treaty tribal University of Oklahoma University Press William Potter Ross Worcester Wreath of Cherokee York