Senate candidate in Massachusetts has a Cherokee ancestor

Tuesday, May 1, 2012  

Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, has a Cherokee ancestor, according to a genealogist.

Warren's great-great-great grandmother is listed as Cherokee on an 1894 document, The Boston Globe reported. If the ancestor was full-blood, that would make Warren 1/32 Cherokee.

Warren grew up in Oklahoma. She said her family has been told they have Cherokee and Delaware ancestry.

None of her direct ancestors, however, have turned up on the Dawes Roll, although the genealogist said research is ongoing. Membership in the Cherokee Nation is tied to the roll.

Membership in the Delaware Nation is linked to an allottees list, as well as blood quantum. Membership in the Delaware Tribe is based on a 1906 roll compiled by the federal government.

Get the Story:
Genealogist says Warren may be able to claim Cherokee heritage; Brown and Warren campaigns continue to trade barbs (The Boston Globe 4/30)
US Senate race in Mass. focusing on question of Democrat’s claim of Native American heritage (AP 4/30)
Elizabeth Warren’s embattled campaign: Cherokee tie found 5 generations ago (The Boston Herald 5/1)
Candidate for Senate Defends Past Hiring (The New York Times 5/1)

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Column: Democratic candidate accused of being a fake Indian (4/30)