Allen Wright

For the Bicktertonite figure, see Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite). For the Scottish critic and journalist, see Allen Wright (journalist). For other people with similar names, see Alan Wright (disambiguation).
The Reverend
Allen Wright
Kiliahote
Chief of the Choctaw Nation
In office
1866–1870
Preceded byPeter Pitchlynn
Succeeded byWilliam Bryant
Personal details
Born
Kiliahote[1]

November 1826[1]
Attala County, Mississippi[1]
DiedDecember 2, 1885(1885-12-02) (aged 59)[1]
Boggy Depot, Indian Territory[1]
NationalityChoctaw Nation
Political partyProgressive Party
OccupationMinister, warrior, politician
Known forCreation of the name "Oklahoma."[1]
Military service
Allegiance Choctaw Nation
 Confederate States
Branch/service Confederate army
  • Company of Choctaw infantry (1862–63)
  • Company F, Choctaw and Chickasaw Mounted Rifles (1863–65)
Years of service1861–1865 (C.S.)
RankChaplain

Allen Wright (Choctaw: Kiliahote) (born November 1826 – December 2, 1885) was Principal Chief of the Choctaw Republic from late 1866 to 1870. He had been ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1852 after graduating from Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He was very active in the Choctaw government, holding several elected positions. He has been credited with the name Oklahoma (Choctaw word meaning "Home of the Red Man" in English) for the land that would become the state.[1]

After serving in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, Wright was elected as Principal Chief, serving from 1866 to 1870. He was among the signatories of the Reconstruction Treaty of 1866 to re-establish peace with the United States. Wright served as superintendent of schools for the Choctaw Nation from 1880 to 1884.[1]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Meserve, John Bartlett. Chronicles of Oklahoma vol. 19, no. 4, December,1941. Retrieved December 17, 2012. Chronicles of Oklahoma Archived May 7, 2006, at the Wayback Machine