Cherokee Nation is the sovereign government of the Cherokee people. We are the largest of three federally recognized Cherokee tribes and are based in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the capital of the Cherokee Nation. Our headquarters are located in the historic W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex, with sub-offices and service sites throughout Cherokee Nation’s 14-county jurisdictional area.
Originally located in the southeastern United States in parts of Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, the Cherokee Nation was forced to relocate to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) in 1838 after gold was discovered in our homelands. The thousand-mile forced removal became known as the “Trail of Tears” and came at a cost of nearly 4,000 Cherokee lives through sickness and harsh travel conditions.
Today, Cherokee Nation is one of the largest employers in northeast Oklahoma and is the largest tribal nation in the country. As the governing body of the Cherokee people, the Cherokee Nation has the right to structure its own government and constitution; make and enforce its own laws; regulate business, land, environment, and wildlife; and impose taxes within the Cherokee Nation’s jurisdiction.
The Cherokee Nation also provides for the safety of its citizens, other residents and visitors through its law enforcement agency, the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service. The Marshal Service has jurisdiction over all tribal and trust land throughout the tribe’s 14-county jurisdiction and is cross-deputized with more than 50 federal, state, county and city law enforcement offices to provide seamless services to everyone in the area.
The Cherokee Nation government, like the United States government, consists of three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. The three branches are separate and distinct, providing a checks-and-balance system. The tribe‘s business arm, Cherokee Nation Businesses, operates a variety of businesses, including gaming and manufacturing, and combined with tribal government figures, employ about 11,000 people in northeast Oklahoma. The Cherokee Nation’s total economic impact in Oklahoma in the fiscal year 2018 was $2.16 billion.
