In a message dated 8/14/2008 1:29:10 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [email protected] writes: The story that has been passed down through to us is that there was a land grab by the cherokees in muskogee and as such ggggpa George Bell disowned them. Saying that he would rather be white than cherokee. It would have been impossible for any tribe to do a land grab of another tribe in Oklahoma prior to 1905, when the Indian nations were divided into allotments. The tribe owned the land. Individual tribal members were allowed to use the land, but did not own it. However, under traditional Creek law, the woman owned the property improvements. If your grandfather was Cherokee, and his wife was Creek, then their children would be considered Creek. What actually happened in reality was that whites settled in places like Tulsa, Muskogee and Henrietta, without permission of the tribe. After awhile, the whites outnumbered the Creeks in these towns, and the whites took over. They ignored the laws of the Creek National Council - essentially becoming autonomous city states. Much of the lawlessness in the old Indian Nations was due to the problem of have predominantly white cities not being subject to anyone except U.S. Marshalls out of Fort Smith, Arkansas. Do you remember the great John Wayne movie, "True Grit?" Does that answer your question? Richard T. **************Looking for a car that's sporty, fun and fits in your budget? Read reviews on AOL Autos. (http://autos.aol.com/cars-Volkswagen-Jetta-2009/expert-review?ncid=aolaut00030000000007 )