Cherokee Rolls: Drennen Roll

The majority of the Cherokee Nation population came west to Indian Territory during the forced removal, also known as the Trail of Tears, which took place in 1838-1839. These “new arrivals” joined the Old Settler Cherokees who’d already voluntarily immigrated west to Indian Territory prior to the Trail of Tears.

In 1851, the Drennen Roll was the first census taken of those Cherokee who came west as part of the Trail of Tears.

Finding your ancestor on this Cherokee roll indicates that they were Cherokee, however this is not a final roll so cannot be used as proof for tribal enrollment in the Cherokee Nation, United Keetoowah Band (UKB), or the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Find original images of this and many other Cherokee rolls and tribal records at Fold3.

Elements of the Drennen Roll:

First Name – The first name of an enrolled individual. In cases where only one name is given, it is listed here.
Last Name
Family Number – Each family who enrolled was given a Family Number. The numbers start a recount within each district, so there will be a family #1 in Tahlequah as well as a #1 family in Flint. To see a full family, click on the Family # in order to see the other individuals listed as part of the household.
Location – The name of the Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory district where the enrolled individual was living at the time of enrollment. Individuals who were listed as “Disputed” had their enrollment disputed.

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Find original images of many Cherokee rolls, as well as other tribal records, at Fold3. The Fold3 collections feature original images of many historical documents never before available on the Internet, including war records, old newspapers, genealogical records, tribal rolls and treaties.