Category Archives: Oklahoma Pryors

OK Painting of Nathaniel Pryor

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Sam Huston and Nathaniel Pryor

Have you seen the painting of Nathaniel Pryor and Sam Houston? It’s in OK. It’s on the Oklahoma Arts Council’s website: *. I know it’s not avant-garde — no elephant dung or inappropriate nudity. However, the historical context of the painting disturbs my equilibrium. I just have to ask questions about it. Is this based in fact or pure imagination?

Perhaps because I’m female, the first thing that disturbs me is the clothing. The Sam Houston Memorial Museum posts on their website that Houston traveled from Tennessee in 1818 to meet with President James Monroe in Washington, DC. Noted politician, and at that time Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun reprimanded Houston for dressing like an indian. In 1829 Houston was governor of Tennessee, but left his position, heading West to live with the Cherokees.  I have to assume that if he was dressing like an indian in 1818, then,  you’d expect that ten years later when he was living amongst the Native Americans that he dressed to fit in. So, is Houston the man on the left in the buck skin outfit?

If so, then Nathaniel Pryor must be the man on the right wearing the red plaid Pendleton-style jacket and the hat that looks to be straight out of an Orvis catalog! Nathaniel Pryor probably had been in contact with Indian tribes from his youth in the pioneer regions of eastern Kentucky. He was a longtime military man. He was used to walking and riding long distances with probably no more than a pack of survival supplies; he lived as a trapper, explorer, and trader. I can’t imagine he would dress like grandpa on a fishing trip to the family lake house!

I have a photo of my great-grandfather who was a cowboy. He drove cattle in Texas in the 1870’s and 1880’s. In the photo he’s a wrinkled mess (clothes right out of  his saddle bag). He also looked like he could use a shower. When you look at most men in old photos, especially during the Civil War, they look a bit unkept. Pryor and Houston look fresh and clean to the point of looking as unreal as a museum diorama.

I’m trying to understand where fantasy and reality of the event come together in this painting. The Arts website has an explanation of the lives of both men and their connection to Oklahoma, but it doesn’t say if they ever met. Sam Houston left office in Tennessee in 1829 and headed West. Nathaniel Pryor died in 1831. The window of opportunity for these men to meet was just a few years. There are accounts online of Nathaniel “Miguel” Pryor who left Louisville to find his father and namesake, but couldn’t find him in St. Louis so he headed into the Southwest. Without roads and modern communication, how would Nathaniel Pryor and Sam Houston find each other? On the river?

Unlike the idyllic flatboat scene depicted in the painting there is an account that Nathaniel Pryor and Sam Houston met over U.S. relations with the Indian tribes.  In Sam Houston with The Cherokees, 1829-1833 by Jack Gregory and Rennard Strickland it states in 1829 and 1830 “when war between the Osages and Delawares became almost inevitable John Eaton, secretary of war, appointed a commission,” with the purpose of working out the differences between the tribes. “Commandant Matthew Arbuckle, A. P. Chouteau, and Sam Houston met with Nathaniel Pryor, Osage subagent, and Clermont, the Osage principal chief, in a conference held at the mouth of the Veridgris River.”

The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston by Marquis James gives us some insight in what Houston thought of Pryor. Houston wrote to President Andrew Jackson about Pryor’s qualifications in Indian affairs, urging that Pryor be appointed to the Indian Service. Nathaniel Pryor was appointed an Indian agent shortly before he died. Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 22 mentions that in his letter Houston referred to Nathaniel Pryor as a veteran of the Battle of New Orleans.

Ok, I’m not completely adverse to the imagination of this painting. It would be amazing to eavesdrop on the conversation between the Pryor who had traveled with Lewis and Clark, and Houston who had already been governor of Tennessee and who later (in 1836) would be the President of the Republic of Texas.

Of course the genealogist in me would love to know if Pryor and Houston were related or if their relations had known each other when they were pioneer families in the west of  Old Virginia and later on the frontier.

* After publishing this post I learned that the painting is  not available today on this link.
(Wayback Machine link)
An image of the painting is located at
http://franceshunter.wordpress.com/page/16/

Category: Oklahoma Pryors, Texas Pryors | Tags: , ,

Part IV: OK Pryors – Missing Sooner Settlers

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October is Oklahoma Pryor month
here on the TnPryor website!

Some Pryors were neither counted on an Indian Territory Census nor on an Oklahoma state census, yet they and there families once lived in Oklahoma. These Pryors were identified by their children’s place of birth, Indian Territory.

Brown Co., TX
Mack R. Pryor born 1869, son of William Harrison Pryor of Douglas Co., MO
Children born in Indian Territory> Mack R. Jr. 1882, Josephine 1886, Fannie 1892, Peter 1895, Bertha 1896

Graves Co., KY
Thompson Pryor
Children born in Indian Territory>  John J. b. 1890

Parker Co., TX
Henry B. Pryor born 1861, son of William Lafayette Pryor of Stone Co., AR.
Children born in Indian Territory> Edith 1899

Caroll Co., AR
Samuel Pryor born 1865 in MO.
Children born in Indian Territory> Thomas 1895, Joseph 1898

Christian Co., MO
Charles E. Pryor born 1875 in KS, son of John Pryor born in PA. 
Children born in Indian Territory> Ada b. 1896

End of Part IV

Watch for…
Part IV: OK Pryors – Marion County Lines

Category: Arkansas Pryors, Genealogy, Missouri Pryors, Oklahoma Pryors, Texas Pryors

Part III: OK Pryors – William J. Pryor, Osage Interpreter

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October is Oklahoma Pryor month
here on the TnPryor website!

I’ve been Googling again.

I found a William J. Pryor who was an Osage Tribe councilman for the 11th and 12th Osage Tribal Council in 1926-1930.

When I started looking for him I found William Julius Pryor  in Ancestry Family Trees and on the 1930 Census living in Seminole County, OK. He’s recorded as an “Indian” born about 1870 in Missouri to a “mixed blood” father and Cherokee mother. In 1910 William J. was in North Fork, Beckham Co., OK. In 1900 he and his wife were living on the Osage Indian Reservation in Indian Territory.

In 1910 Philip J. Pryor was counted on the same census page, just a few houses from William J. and family in Beckham County.  Philip was on the 1880 census record in Smith County, Texas. He is a son of Lemuel Pryor and Elizabeth C. Hardigree.  Lemuel is believed to be from the line the Marion County Pryors.

William J. Pryor also lived in Texas– census entry reflects he had 3 children between 1894 and 1897 in Texas.   Researchers’ online family trees indicate William J. Pryor is the same William J. Pryor who was on the 1880 census in Cooke Co., TX… the son of Gilbert Carter Pryor and wife Sarah Roberts.  Gilbert was a son of Neely Pryor in Texas County, MO.  There’s a William J. Pryor in Gilbert Pryor’s household in both Cooke Co., TX and in 1870 in Texas Co., MO. Neely Pryor’s line goes back to the Marion County, TN Pryors.

William J. Pryor not only served on the tribal council, but was also versed enough in the Osage language– enough to be an interpreter: Leases for Oil and Gas Purposes, Osage National Council,  By United States. Congress. House. Committee on Indian Affairs, published 1919.

“I, William Pryor, do hereby certify that I am the official interpreter of the Osage Indian Agency, and at the time the Osage Tribal Council had the contract under consideration I acted as the official interpreter of the said Osage Tribal Council; that I fully and truthfully interpreted and explained the foregoing contract to the Osage Tribal Council…”

It appears that William J. Pryor was an Osage allotee: Indians of the United States: Investigation of the Field Service  By United States Congress. House. Committee on Indian Affairs. Except of letter from the Liberty Bank of Pawhuska, May 7, 1920 refers to “William J. Pryor, Osage allotee.”

End of Part III

Watch for…
Part IV: OK Pryors – Missing Sooner Settlers

Category: Missouri Pryors, Native Americans, Oklahoma Pryors

Part II: OK Pryors- The Osage Pryors

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October is Oklahoma Pryor month
here on the TnPryor website!

Today we have published and online sources that Middlebrooks and Harper didn’t have in 1970 (Chronicles of Oklahoma).  I’ve used the Indian Census Rolls from the late 1890’s, the 1900 US Census of Oklahoma, the Osage Allotment Cards (Index), and later US Census schedules to try to discern which Pryors were from the Osage Tribe.

I first looked at Pryors who claimed Native American Ancestry and separated out the Pryors who were aligned with the Osage tribe.

In 1900 Samuel V. Pryor and wife Olivia were living in Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory. Samuel born 1866 in Mississippi. Samuel was the son of John Henry Pryor of Jefferson Co., AL (per Ancestry.com Family Trees) and Sarah Wade. Samuel is recorded as “white” and his wife Olivia Cowert/Coward was recorded as “Indian”. Olivia’s two brothers were also in the household and recorded as “Indian.” Olivia and her children were recorded on the 1896 Dawes Commission schedule. I have ruled out this family. Samuel V. Pryor was not from Osage land, he was recorded as “white”, and he was never included on rolls of the Osage reservation, or allotments.

William M. Keyes and wife Martha, nee Pryor were recorded living in Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory. Martha was recorded as “white”, Keyes was recorded as “Indian”.  Tribal affiliation was noted at the bottom of the page. Keyes was born of Cherokee and Creek parents. My own search, and an Ancestry Family Tree, points to Martha as the daughter of Gilbert Carter Pryor of Cooke Co., TX – a descendant of the Marion Co., TN Pryors who have no known connection to the Osages.

There are two Pryor men in the Osage records: John b. 1834 and Thomas b. 1847.

John Pryor b. 1834 and wife Mary, parents of Antwine Pryor – Antwine, his wife, and his children all had Osage Allotments and counted as Indians on Census records. Antwine counted with “full blood Indians” on 1900 Census and that both of his parents Osage Indians born in Kansas.

Thomas Pryor b. 1847 and wife Mary, parents of Louis Pryor b. 1879.  Louis states on census record that both his parents were born in MO. There is only one Pryor by that name and year of birth: Thomas son of Rufus Pryor in Osage Co., MO- born in Tennessee it’s unlikely that neither Rufus Pryor nor his wife Martha Bryant were Osage.  Thomas’ wife Mary is recorded as a “full blood”. His son Louis is counted on the Osage Reservation with an allotment and an annuity. His mother, Mary, was counted as an Osage and lived on the reservation until her death in 1926.  There is record of Mary’s native name, but I am unable to locate her allotment.

My final answer? I don’t believe any of the OK Pryors who claim Native American ancestry were related to Nathanial Pryor.

Photo of Josephine Pryor Hamilton (Osage Artist) :
(Wayback Machine link)

2007 Pow Wow, great grandson of Josephine Pryor Hamilton: http://www.okindiansummer.org/pdf/2007%20Powwow%20staff.pdf

End of Part II

 Watch for…

Part III: OK Pryors – William J. Pryor, Osage Interpreter

Category: Missouri Pryors, Native Americans, Oklahoma Pryors

Part I: OK Pryors – Who Were All Those Pryors in Oklahoma?

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October is Oklahoma Pryor month
here on the TnPryor website!

I’m by no means an expert on the Pryor families in OK. Hopefullly the articles spur us to do more research into the Pryors in Oklahoma and answer some long-standing mysteries. Let’s get started… it’s going to be a fun month!

After “debunking” (Debunking a Daughter of Explorer Nathaniel Pryor) the daughter of Nathaniel Pryor sited in Chronicles of Oklahoma  I looked at the rest of the article to see if there were more clues to the Osage Pryors. I was hoping that by looking at the Pryors in Oklahoma I could tease out those with Native American ancestry who were the likeliest descendants of Nathaniel Pryor.

Volume 48 of The Chronicles of Oklahoma was published in 1970. On page 295 begins the article titled Ancestry of Captain Nathaniel Pryor by Glenna Parker Middlebrooks and Elizabeth Pryor Harper.  To be fair to the authors, in 1970 information was not only less accessible (no Internet), but neither a census of the Indian Territory nor of the State of Oklahoma was released. The last census available was the 1880 Census and it did not include either the state nor the territory.

Why look at the Pryors in Oklahoma? Like Ms. Middlebrooks and Ms. Harper researchers are still interested in Nathaniel Pryor of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Did he have children with his wife in the East? Did he marry a Native American bride and have children in the West? Which, if any, of the Pryors in Oklahoma are descended from Nathaniel Pryor?

Middlebrooks and Harper cite baptism records from a Kansas mission and the 1822 will of James Pryor in Jefferson Co., MO as the source of the names of Nathaniel children and heirs. They ID his Osage children as Marie and Mary Jane and James’ heirs as Robert L. Pryor, Nathaniel Pryor, Robert McClelland, Jane B. Gilly, and Eliza Oldham. And Angelique who was baptized in 1841 they identify as Osinga, Pryor’s wife. LewisandClark.org cites a 1831 will for Nathaniel Pryor that was probated in St. Louis, MO naming children: Jane B., James, Nancy, Robert L., Eliza, Nathaniel, and his children by his Osage wife named Mary Ann, Angelique, and Marie.  Siblings or children, no one agrees.

We also need to look at the location: Kansas. The land which would become Kansas was part of the Lousiana Purchase in 1803. I remained wild land, inhabited by Native American tribes, trappers, and fur traders until it became the Kansas territory in 1854. The territory encompassed what is now parts of Colorado and all of Kansas. In 1861 Kansas because a state.

 Then there’s a question of how surnames were used amongst the Osage. Oklahoma and Indian Territory records show that even in the 20th century many Osage used a Native American name and an anglicized name. Women at times were counted on census records under one surname while living with a spouse of a different surname. Did Osage women change their name after marriage? When they accepted a “European” name, did they adopt the tradition of taking the husband’s surname after marriage? I welcome comment from anyone who knows something about these traditions.

 The tradition of surnames is important. Even in disagreement, the above sources agree that Nathaniel Pryor probably had at lease two Osage daughters, no Osage sons. Would the Pryor surname have been carried on by his daughters? Did Pryor have a son born of an Osage mother who carried on the Pryor surname?

Oklahoma history makes it difficult to pin down which of the Pryors may be related to Nathaniel.  US Policy starting with the “Trail of Tears” in 1831 moved Native Americans from other tribes and regions to lands in the Oklahoma area already occupied by Osage and Quapaw tribes. Beginning in1866 white settlers, many from Texas, began to settle illegally. Nathaniel Pryor may have settled at a trading post near Pryor, OK…but it may be almost impossible to tell which Native American Pryors are descended from Nathaniel Pryor or who were Pryors of Native American ancestry who simply migrated from other states.

Since the publication of the article in 1970, four US Censuses were released, thus adding insight into another forty years. I have sifted through the Pryors on the Indian Territory Census of 1900 and the Indian Census Rolls from the mid 1890’s onward. Extractions are now updated on the Tennessee Pryor website (www.tnpryors.com).

We can see in the Oklahoma Census records how its history is played out. Within a 20 year period Oklahoma saw the greatest influx of white settlers due the “Land Runs” from 1889 to 1895, the discovery of oil in 1894 (the Osage allotments in 1906), and statehood in 1907.

 End of Part I

 Watch for …

Part II: OK Pryors: Osage Pryors

Category: Native Americans, Oklahoma Pryors