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Genealogy of William Crockett Coley (1885–1965) and Native Ancestry Investigation

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Family Background and Early Life

William Crockett Coley (often recorded as William Crockett Callaway Coley) was born in Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) on August 2, 1886 [1] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KN19-MKT/william-crockett-callaway-coley-1886-1965). (Some later records, such as his grave, list his birth year as 1888 [2] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15719341/william-crockett_callaway-coley), but all sources agree he was born in Indian Territory in the mid-1880s.) His parents were John Rufus Coley and Louisa Holden Coley. At the time of William’s birth, John Rufus was about 37 years old and Louisa about 31. William grew up during the final days of Indian Territory, before Oklahoma became a state in 1907.

John Rufus Coley was not a native of Oklahoma; according to family records he was born around 1853 in Virginia [4] (https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/results?firstName=john&lastName=colety&page=2). He married Louisa Holden (sometimes recorded as “Lou Ellen Holder”) in the late 1870s, likely before or shortly after moving to Indian Territory. Louisa was born around 1855, and like her husband, she had no documented tribal affiliation – her maiden name Holden suggests European-American ancestry, and no records tie her to any Native family or nation. The couple’s first known child, Rosa Coley, was born in “Oklahoma” (Indian Territory) in December 1880 [3] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KLVS-D48/rosa-coley-1880-1956), indicating the family was living in Indian Territory by that time.

Throughout the 1880s and 1890s, John and Louisa’s family moved around the Oklahoma-Arkansas border region. They had multiple children, some born in Indian Territory and at least one in Arkansas. For example, a daughter (recorded as “Mollie” Coley) was born in Arkansas in October 1887 [5] (https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/results?firstName=moleie&lastName=coley), while another son, Jesse Walter Coley, was born in Heavener, Le Flore County, Indian Territory in February 1898 [6] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/GWMN-L41/jesse-walter-coley-1898-1981). This pattern of children’s birthplaces (Indian Territory and Arkansas) shows the Coleys were not permanently settled within a tribal community, but rather moved freely as other frontier settler families did.

In 1906, William C. Coley married Etta May Goodwin in Sebastian County, Arkansas [2] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15719341/william-crockett_callaway-coley) – just across the state line from Indian Territory. They eventually had a large family (at least ten sons and five daughters). By the 1920s, William had settled in eastern Arkansas: the 1920 U.S. Census finds him in Johnson Township, St. Francis County, Arkansas, and by 1930 he was living in Coldwater Township, Cross County, Arkansas [7] (https://sites.rootsweb.com/~arcross/New/ADI/ADI.pdf). These census records list William and his family as white, with no indication of any Native American status (race designations in those censuses identify him as non-Native). William Crockett Coley died on June 7, 1965, in Arkansas, closing out a life that began in Indian Territory but was spent largely in Arkansas as an American farmer and family man.

John Rufus Coley, William’s father, also spent his later years in Arkansas. He died on February 21, 1920 in Cross County, Arkansas [3] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KLVS-D48/rosa-coley-1880-1956). A Cross County death index confirms his death under the name “Rufus John Coley” on that date [7] (https://sites.rootsweb.com/~arcross/New/ADI/ADI.pdf). His death in Arkansas (not in Oklahoma) and the records surrounding him reinforce that he was considered a non-Indian resident. Louisa (Holden) Coley’s exact death date is less clear from available records, but there is no evidence she was ever enrolled in any tribe. (One clue suggests she may have lived into the 1930s or later – an Ancestry record notes a “Lou Ellen Holder” dying in 1955 in Pontotoc County, OK, possibly referring to Louisa – but this detail is speculative. Regardless, no tribal records are associated with her.)

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Census and Vital Records Evidence

All available census data portrays the Coley family as non-Native. The 1900 census was conducted while Oklahoma was still Indian Territory, and although the original 1900 schedules for Indian Territory distinguished citizens of tribes from others, the Coley family does not appear in any “Native” category. By 1910 and 1920 (after Oklahoma statehood), John and Louisa Coley and their children show up in regular county census rolls in Oklahoma/Arkansas with no special tribal designation. For instance, William C. Coley’s household in 1920 and 1930 in Arkansas is listed with him as a white head of household [7] (https://sites.rootsweb.com/~arcross/New/ADI/ADI.pdf). If William or his parents had been recognized as Native American, we would expect to see them labeled as such or living on tribal land in these censuses, but that is not the case.

In addition to census records, vital records and other documents consistently record the family as ordinary U.S. citizens, not as members of any tribe. William’s 1906 marriage license in Sebastian County, AR (by context) and his later documents identify him as a resident of Arkansas [2] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/15719341/william-crockett_callaway-coley). John Rufus Coley’s death record in 1920 (Cross Co., AR) similarly makes no note of any indigenous status [3] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KLVS-D48/rosa-coley-1880-1956), [7] (https://sites.rootsweb.com/~arcross/New/ADI/ADI.pdf). These documents routinely identified Native Americans (often by blood quantum or tribal affiliation, especially in Oklahoma records of that era), so the absence of any such notation strongly indicates the Coleys were not regarded as Native.

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Dawes Rolls and Tribal Enrollment Records

A crucial source for verifying Native American ancestry in Oklahoma around the turn of the 20th century are the Dawes Rolls (the Final Rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898–1914). Extensive research found no evidence that William C. Coley, his parents, or any of his immediate siblings were enrolled on the Dawes Rolls. Their names do not appear among the certified citizens of the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, or Seminole nations during that period.

To be thorough, a search of Dawes enrollment lists for the surname Coley was conducted. The results show a few individuals named Coley on the rolls – but none match our Coley family members. For example, a man named Johnson Coley, age 24, is listed as a “Full blood” Choctaw on the Dawes rolls (roll number 8305) [12] (https://www.okhistory.org/research/dawesresults.php?pageno=1270&lname=%). Likewise, a young woman Lovina Coley, 21, appears as a Full-blood Choctaw with roll number 12538 [13] (https://www.okhistory.org/research/dawesresults.php?pageno=21&lname=%). These Choctaw individuals share the surname Coley, but they are unrelated to William Crockett Coley’s family. They were Native Choctaws by blood, whereas William’s family were non-Native settlers who just happened to live in the same region. The given names and family details don’t correspond to John Rufus, Louisa, or their children, and genealogical research has not linked William’s line to these Choctaw Coleys. It appears to be a coincidence of surname.

Another set of Coleys on the Dawes Rolls are listed with no blood quantum – for instance, Anderson Coley (45 M), Biney Coley (32 F), Wilburn Coley (22 M), and Edward Coley (10 M) [14] (https://www.okhistory.org/research/dawesresults.php?pageno=49&lname=%). These look to be entries on the Freedmen rolls (likely former slaves of one of the tribes or their descendants). Again, none of these names align with John Rufus Coley’s known family. There is no indication that John Rufus Coley was ever a Freedman or had any African or Native heritage – on the contrary, his roots in Virginia suggest he was of Anglo-American descent.

It’s also worth noting that in 1896, during an earlier enrollment attempt for the Five Tribes, a “John L. Coley” filed a Cherokee citizenship application (Commission Case #3745) [15] (http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~ewyatt/1896%20Dawes%20Commission%20Index/1896%20Cherokee/Cherokee%20Cross%20Reference/3701%20to%203800.html). This could easily be confused with John R. Coley, but available evidence indicates it was a different individual (possibly John Louis Coley). John Rufus Coley’s middle initial was “R,” and in all known records he went by John R. or just Rufus. There’s no record of John R. Coley himself applying for Cherokee or any other tribal citizenship. If he had believed he had Cherokee ancestry, one would expect to find his name in the Cherokee registers or in the Dawes enrollment correspondence, but we do not.

Additionally, the Guion Miller Roll (1906–1909, which catalogued Eastern Cherokee claimants) and other tribal rolls were checked for the Coley name. No members of William’s immediate family were found on those lists either. In short, none of the primary sources for Native American enrollment list William C. Coley or his parents as tribal members, which is strong evidence that they did not have a legally recognized Native American status.

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Conclusion: Native Ancestry Determination

After examining all available genealogical records – including U.S. census data, birth/marriage/death records, and Native American enrollment documents – there is no positive evidence that William Crockett Coley (1885–1965) had any Native American ancestry. All evidence points to his family being of non-Native (likely European) origin who lived in Indian Territory and Arkansas during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Key points supporting this conclusion:

  • Place of Birth vs. Ethnicity: William was born in Indian Territory [1] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KN19-MKT/william-crockett-callaway-coley-1886-1965), but being born in that region did not automatically confer Native status. Indian Territory had many white and black residents who were not tribal citizens.
  • Parental Background: William’s father, John Rufus Coley, was born in Virginia and is consistently recorded as a white settler [3] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/KLVS-D48/rosa-coley-1880-1956). His mother, Louisa (Holden) Coley, likewise appears to be of settler stock with no links to a tribal community. Neither parent is found on Native rolls or described as anything other than white in records.
  • Census Records: The family’s census entries show them as ordinary U.S. citizens. Post-1900 censuses in Oklahoma/Arkansas list them under general population schedules, not on separate “Indian” schedules. No census notation of any Indian blood or tribal language exists for the Coleys.
  • Dawes Rolls (Five Tribes Enrollment): No listing for William, his siblings, or his parents appears on the Dawes Final Rolls.
  • No Oral/Family Claims Documented: Our research did not uncover any contemporary claims by William or his immediate kin of being Native American. They consistently identified as white in legal documents and vital records.

In summary, all available documentation disproves the notion of a direct Native American heritage in William Crockett Coley’s family. They were settlers in Indian Territory, not members of a tribe. The presence of the Coley surname on Choctaw rolls is an intriguing coincidence but appears unrelated to William’s lineage. Thus, based on the evidence gathered – census records, Dawes Roll searches, and vital records – William C. Coley’s ancestry does not include Native American roots. The family’s heritage traces to European-American settlers, which is clearly reflected in the records.

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Sources

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