by Paul Follett, 580-581-3450, ext. 6
Come meet Oklahoma’s greatest historian – Angie Debo
“Angie Debo is Oklahoma’s greatest historian,” so proclaims former Governor Brad Henry. I agree, if not the greatest, she is at least my favorite.
The Southwestern Oklahoma Historical Society and the Lawton Public Library offer a chance to view Angie Debo through the eyes of interpreter Laurette Willis. Willis will portray Debo Tuesday evening, Aug. 9, at the Worley Center, Great Plains Technology Center located at 4500 SW Lee, Lawton.
The program begins at 7:00 pm with a musical presentation by the 2010 Western Heritage Wrangler Award winner, LeRoy Jones.
Angie Debo was a noted scholar specializing in Native American and Oklahoma History. Known as a troublemaker for much of her life, she offers an unflinchingly honest portrayal of Native American history. Today she is regarded as an authority in her field.
Due to her gender, Debo was unable to secure a university position, a place where she rightfully belonged. Debo taught high school for many years and later taught at the West Texas Teacher’s College.
As an independent scholar, Debo authored and co-authored 13 books and hundreds of articles, some of them controversial at the time. Her most important title is the classic And Still the Waters Run: the Betrayal of the Five Civilized Tribes a scathing indictment of Indian allotment policy and practice designed “to swindle tribal members out of their land.”
Completed in 1936, the book was so controversial that the University of Oklahoma Press refused to publish it. The book finally appeared in print in 1940 with Princeton University Press as publisher. As a result of the book’s publication, Debo was barred from teaching in Oklahoma for several years.
She earned a master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Chicago in 1923. Women were not accepted into history programs at that time, effectively barring them from the profession.
Her Ph.D. is in history, awarded by the University of Oklahoma in 1933. Her dissertation, “The Rise and Fall of the Choctaw Republic” was published by the University of Oklahoma Press. While controversial, the book did receive the John H. Dunning Prize from the American Historical Association.
Today Angie Debo is recognized as an important historical voice. She is the recipient of the 1988 Scholarly Distinction award offered by the American Historical Association.
She published her last book at age 85, a biography of Geronimo.
Come learn more about this amazing and heroic Oklahoma historian and scholar and one remarkable woman on August 9th at the Great Plains Technology Center.
Portrayer Laurette Willis is an award-winning actor, playwright, and director of DoveTale Productions with over twenty-five years in the entertainment business. She is known for bringing history to life in over 20 original one-woman shows for a variety of community and historical organizations.
Since 2007, she directed and performed in the outdoor drama “Under the Cherokee Moon,” which she wrote for the Cherokee Heritage Center in Tahlequah.
Tree Tracer is a column written by Paul Follett and published in the Lawton Constitution newspaper.
