Delaware Nation of Oklahoma
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Contact Information
P.O. Box 825
2.5 Miles North of Anadarko on HWY 281
Anadarko
Caddo
Oklahoma
73005
(405) 247-2448
(405) 247-9393
http://www.westerndelaware.nsn.us
HISTORY:
The Delaware, once a confederacy, and at one time, one of the larger tribes of the Eastern Woodland people, was
formerly the most important of the Algonquian stock, occupying the entire basin of the Delaware River in East
Pennsylvania and Southwest New York, together with most of New Jersey and Delaware. They called themselves
Lena’pe or Leni-lena’pe, equivalent to real men. The English knew them as Delaware from the name of their principal
river.
The Lena’pe or Delaware were composed of three (3) principal branches identified by the Morgan Papers as: Munsee,
Unami and Unalachtigo. Each of these had its own territory and dialect with separate identity, the Munsee being so far
differentiated as frequently to be considered and independent people.
The early traditional history of the Delaware is contained in the national legend, the Walum Olum. When they made their
first treaty with William Penn in 1682, the Delaware had their Council Fire at Shackamaxon, about the present
Germantown, a suburb of Philadelphia; and under various names, occupied the whole country along the river. Gradually,
they moved west and were located in at least ten (10) different states during the migration. There are, at the present time,
two groups of Delaware living in Oklahoma. The main part of the tribe known as “Registered Delaware”, came from
their reservation in Kansas in 1867, settled with the Cherokee along the Caney River, and were allotted land with them.
Their descendants live in Washington, Craig, Nowata and Delaware Counties.
The other group, identified as a separate legal entity, was associated with the Caddo and Wichita Tribes in Texas and
came to the Washita River in the Indian Territory in 1859 near Caddo County. This group called themselves “the lost
tribe” or “Absentee Delaware Nation.”
The Delaware reorganized under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936, and began meeting in their own tribal office
after 1971. On April 21, 1973, they passed their Tribal Constitution and changed their name to the Delaware Nation of
Western Oklahoma. By 1985, they had a tribal enrollment of 980 members. In 1984, they moved into their new tribal
offices located approximately two miles north of present Anadarko, Oklahoma. On November 13, 1999, their name was
again changed to the Delaware Nation with a membership of 1,298.
Current Leadership
Wichita, Caddo, & Delaware Reservation
Bruce Gonzales, President
Edgar French, Vice President
Linda Poolaw, Secretary
Judith Dela Rosa, Treasurer
Kelly Line, Member
C.J. Watkins, Member
The
Reservation
borders are defined
by the Canadian
River on the north,
the Washita River on
the south, 98° west
longitude on the east,
and 98° 40’ west
longitude on the west.
Tulsa
Oklahoma City
Lawton/Ft. Sill