In the past, Native Women worked to erect tipis, gathered wood, heard and sheared sheep, spun and wove wool, planted and tended the surrounding land. The Native Woman today still does all these things and much more as time progress so does the roles in her family.

Anglo culture did not comprehend the honor, status, and wealth accorded Native American women for their industry and expertise. Nor did they recognize the less visible powers that women held - those of arranging marriages, consulting on peace and war, leading special ceremonies and directing tribe movements.

". . . . shortly after Matilda Joslyn Gage was arrested in 1893 at her home in New York for the "crime" of trying to vote in a school board election, she was adopted into the Wolf Clan of the Mohawk nation and given the name Karonienhawi (Sky Carrier).  In the Mohawk nation, women alone had the authority to nominate the chief, after counseling with all the people of the clan. What it must have meant to Gage to know of such real-life political power?''

Maa-ya-ha (Grandmother Nellie) The maternal grandmother of Ernestene Cody Begay, Maa-ya-ha, was born around 1879 into the band of Western Apaches living near Cibecue Creek. She knew a great deal about herbs, was an accomplished basket weaver, farmer and midwife. She also served as an attendant during many Sunrise Dances. Maa-ya-ha had ten children with her husband, Eskin-na-chik

Maa-ya-ha's mother was present at the battle at Cibecue in 1881. When fighting broke out she was told to hide and not to move as people ran everywhere. She remembered running with her shoes under her arm and suddenly realizing that they had been shot. She spent hours hiding under a bush until it became dark and she saw smoke coming from the wickiups and heard voices.

Maa-ya-ha's life was difficult when she was very young and food was scarce. Later on, however, she and her husband made a good life for themselves as skilled farmers and ranchers. Community members often turned to the couple for help. Maa-ya-ha died in 1970.

{Sacagawea or Sacajawea} Shoshone Native American woman, who served as an interpreter and guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805 and 1806. Sacagawea was probably born in present-day Idaho. She was captured by members of the Hidatsa tribe and was sold as a slave to the Missouri River Mandans, who sold her to a Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau. She became one of his wives and gave birth to a son, Jean Baptiste, in February 1805. Explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, who had spent the winter of 1804 and 1805 with the Mandans, hired Charbonneau as an interpreter and guide for the rest of their trip west. Sacagawea and her young son were allowed to go with the expedition when it set out in April 1805. The expedition left present-day North Dakota and traveled through what are now Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon; during the journey, Sacagawea proved invaluable. When the expedition encountered a tribe of Shoshone led by her brother, Sacagawea obtained food, horses, and guides; this enabled the explorers to continue. Sacagawea, carrying her young son on her back, was legendary for her perseverance and resourcefulness. She and Charbonneau remained in North Dakota when the expedition returned to Missouri in 1806.

Scholars are not sure when Sacagawea died. One of the two Native American wives of Charbonneau died in 1812 and was thought to be Sacagawea; however, an old Native American woman who died on a reservation in 1884 also claimed to be Sacagawea and displayed considerable knowledge of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Of the many memorials to Sacagawea, the most famous is a statue in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon.

In 2000 the United States Mint issued a new golden dollar coin with the image of Sacagawea on it. The coin depicts Sacagawea with her infant son asleep on her back.

Lozen was born into the Chihenne, Warm Springs Apache band, during the late 1840's. She was the sister of Chief Victorio and a skillful warrior, a prophet, and an outstanding medicine woman. Victorio is quoted as saying, "Lozen is my right hand . . . strong as a man , braver than most, and cunning in strategy, Lozen is a shield to her people."

Legend has it that Lozen was able to use her powers in battle to learn the movements of the enemy and that she helped each band that she accompanied to successfully avoid capture. After Victorio's death, Lozen continued to ride with Chief Nana, and eventually joined forces with Geronimo's band, eluding capture until she finally surrendered with this last group of free Apaches in 1886. She died of tuberculosis at the Mount Vernon Barracks in Mobile, Alabama.

Wilma

Wilma Mankiller became Deputy Chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1983. Two years later at the young age of thirty-one she became Principle Chief of the Cherokee Nation. This was the first time a woman had held this position.

Mankiller grew up on a reservation in Oklahoma. The Bureau of Indian Affairs moved her family and others to San Francisco as part of their tribal relocation program in 1956 so as to "urbanize" poor rural native people. During her time there she participated in the women's movement. A 1969 demonstration by Indian college students who took over Alcatraz Island inspired her to dedicate her life to the uplifting of her people.

Some reports say that she attended the University of Arkansas and earned a sociology degree. Others say she attended both San Bruno and San Francisco State colleges in San Francisco, later earning her bachelor's degree at Flaming Rainbow College in Oklahoma in 1977. During this time she was injured in a serious car accident. She nearly lost her leg and through the course of seventeen operations to repair it, she did some serious soul searching, deepening her spirituality and further dedicating herself to the good of her people.

Knowing the Bureau of Indian Affairs as she did, she believed it essential for Indians to take care of their own affairs. Oklahoma Cherokee do not live on reservations, so she worked administering social programs through the tribal government. Mankiller established community development programs in the north eastern part of the state. This program provided millions of dollars worth of assistance for needy American Indians. In addition, she pressed the government to improve housing conditions, education, and health care conditions. Utility services were improved under her guidance. And this was all before she became chief.

She married Charlie Soap in 1986. She developed kidney problems requiring a transplant soon afterwards. Her brother served as donor, and it was after her recuperation that she decided to run for Chief so as to more effectively promote tribal causes.

The election of a woman was not something the tribe took likely. Many opposed it, and during her campaign she was harassed and her property vandalized. During her term as Chief her marriage to Charlie Soap dissolved due to disagreements over her role. They have two daughters.

Wilma Mankiller was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 1986. In addition to serving as Chief of the Cherokee Nation, she served as President of the Inter-Tribal Council of Oklahoma. She was always active in a variety of concerns ranging from education to women's issues. She retired in 1995 due to health concerns.

Wilma Mankiller has demonstrated enormous will, determination and skill in accomplishing many essential goals for her people. She serves as an important role model not just for the Cherokee people, but for everyone.