The members of the Osage Indian tribe became rich when the oil was discovered under their reservation in Oklahoma in the early 20th century. The Osage tribe became dominant in the region in the early 19th century, and the majority of their descendants live in Oklahoma. After the discovery of oil, their members suffered manipulation and numerous murders by whites eager to take over their newly discovered wealth. In 1923, when more than two dozen people of Osage tribe were murdered, the case was assigned to the FBI. It was among the first major homicide investigation for the FBI.
The killings started in May 1921, and the first victim of the massacre was 25-year-old women Anna Brown. Her decaying body was discovered in a ravine by the hunters. She had been shot between the eyes. The same day Anna’s cousin Charles Whitehorn’s dead body was found, and two months later, her mother, Lizzie Kyle, was also murdered. These killings were not confined to family, and another woman was found dead on her lawn. A sympathetic local lawyer was also thrown from a speeding train. The estimated death toll of Osage member was over a hundred, but some of these killings were not reported or covered up. The FBI estimated 60 Osage Indians died violent or suspicious deaths. The FBI found several murders in one family, committed by a gang led by William “King of Osage Hills” Hale. His goal was to gain the oil royalty rights and wealth of several tribe members, including his nephew’s Osage wife, the last survivor of her family. Most of the murders remained unresolved.
To prevent further crimes and to protect the members of the Osage tribe, congress passed a law prohibiting non-Osage from inheriting headrights from Osage, who had half or more Native American ancestry in 1925. In 2011, the US government settled with the Osage for $380 million, which was the largest settlement with a tribe in US history.
Here below are some photos of the members of the Osage Indian tribe members.
#1 Mollie Burkhart, right, with her sisters Anna and Minnie. They were part of the Osage Native American tribe, who were killed one by one in a murder mystery.
#2 Mollie became a prime target after it was revealed her people were living on land where there was oil underneath.
#3 Chief Bigheart ensured that the wealth of the Osage would stay only among tribe members.
#4 Anna Brown was one of the first victims of the Osage killing spree.
#5 The Osage tribe were among the richest people in the world and often rode in chauffeur-driven cars.
#6 The fourth sister Rita with servant.
#7 Another woman of Osage tribe who killed in 1921.
#8 The Osage nation native Americans were among the richest in the world but were eventually forced into a new reservation.
#9 The ravine where Anna Brown’s body was found.
#10 The Al Spencer Gang jokingly hold up others in their crew. All gangsters in the local area were under suspicion of carrying out the murders.
#11 Lawmen seize illegal moonshine in Osage County in 1923 at the time of the murders.
#12 William Hale competing in a roping contest when he was a cowboy.
#13 A pair of Osage women in 1921.
#14 The Osage Council and tribal representatives in Washington D.C.
#15 Rita Smith whose death triggered a federal investigation.
#16 A trial document connecting the various murders back to the ringleader of the murder spree.
#17 FBI Chief J. Edgar Hoover, right, brought in Tom White, left, a stetson-wearing, Texan lawman to solve the case.
#18 The FBI team included a former Texas Ranger who was said to be sutied for ‘any element of danger’.
#19 Killer Bill Hale.
#20 Eventually, Detective Tom White traced the start of the crimewave to Anna Brown’s brother-in-law, a white man called Ernest Burkhart and his domineering uncle Bill Hale.
#21 Devil in the detail.Part of a panoramic 1924 photo of the Osage tribe before this left-hand section with evil Bill Hale, circled, was removed.
Americans. Killing people for oil since 1918.
Prior to that, their land was taken and converted into slave plantations.
Remember after 9/11 when the oil barons used the government to destroy two oil-rich countries and turn them into puppet states?
I highly recommend Killers of the Flower Moon.
Great book, and about to be a Martin Scorcese movie
The production was halted during COVID, but they are now here in OK, preparing to shoot down the road from my father’s house. Originally, the story took place in Gray Horse and Fairfax, where my grandfather used to play dominoes where the guys who orchestrated the killings hung out. This place was the subject of an undercover investigation by an agent, according to the story passed down through the family. They pretended to have an intellectual disability and could only assist with sweeping, picking up empties, etc., and everyone thought he was too stupid to understand what they said, so they talked freely about their involvement in these crimes. The agent came in one day in a suit, speaking normally, to tell the guys who he was and thanked them for making his job easier, then walked out.
Additionally, white guardians were appointed to “help” them manage their wealth. Occasionally, settlers would marry into Native American families, then kill them systematically. According to a recent Supreme Court case, large parts of the territory of Native Americans in Oklahoma were never abolished by Congress, and therefore could be restored to reservation status.
Oklahoma stuff has been debated for years, hasn’t it? In other words, no one with power to change it talks about it at all
In Oklahoma, how low do people have to go to fight over land.
It’s all RED in Oklahoma. Compared to the many, my voice is small. It hurts me that so many people still view Trump positively. Looking at all the struggle, it’s hard not to get frustrated that people care more about being a republican than anything else.
Taking native Americans to boarding schools to introduce them to white culture is reminiscent of the start of American football.
In that case, what would be the outcome? Forcibly evict the people living there now? There is no way that will happen, whether it is legal or not.
No. They have been presented to the Supreme Court. In essence, every Native American citizen convicted under Oklahoma would have to be retried by the federal government. The case began when the state sentenced one Native American to death for killing another native man. There would be no difference in life for everyone living there.
The once rich area is now a desolate ghost town.
It probably still made billions for some terrible people. Those who have produced entitled offspring who have never worked a day in their lives.
Work a little… The law makers have to be paid to continue tipping the scales against us.
There are accountants for that, which are instructed to issue a payment by your lobbyists, who are hired by your hiring agent, who are managed by your managers, who speak to your secretaries, and who are constantly blowing your dick. That can be quite exhausting, to be honest.
How does a desolate ghost town look like? What do they do? You’ve got me on the edge of my seat here.
50,000 people used to live there
Before those meddling kids came along, a desolate ghost town became the nexus of a mastermind criminal.
People I know who have made money say they end up attracting the wrong kind of attention. There is always a demand for what you have.
Why I’d rather win $1 million than $100 million
Either way the lesson is never let down your guard.