ABSTRACT
Before Oklahoma became a state, a cultural and historical split existed between the western and eastern regions: The west was called Oklahoma Territory and the east was Indian Territory. In the first capital Guthrie in 1907 white people celebrated statehood: a staged "wedding ceremony" took place in which a "meek Indian bride," actually a white man in drag, was joined in union with a white man "groom." This theatric play represented the imaginary union of the Indian and Oklahoma Territories. African Americans were not part of this sexual and romantic fantasy. They were part of the state's reality, however, especially in the eastern region, the "Indian Territory." Considering the number of possible choices where to settle in the West, what made the Creek and Cherokee Nations particularly attractive to African Americans in search for a new home? Why did they choose the Muskogee Nation over the Cherokee Nation, over Kansas, or over the Oklahoma Territory?
