Daisy Hawley Blackbird

Daisy Blackbird, 109, passed away April 12, 2012. She is believed to have been the oldest enrollee Chickasaw Indian in Oklahoma. The Dawes Commission gave her 160 acres since she was born before 1907.

She was born January 18, 1903 on a farm near Tupelo, Indian Territory called Byrd’s Prairie. Her parents were the late Elizabeth Colley Hawley and Arthur Edwin Hawley. She was the second oldest of 10 siblings. There were three brothers –Roy, Fred, and Ralph Hawley and seven sisters-Lydia Hawley, Nell Crosby, Bess Kroutil, Emily Starnes, Betty Lee Gibson and Wanda Montgomery. All are deceased except her youngest sister, Wanda Montgomery of the home.

The family later moved into Tupelo where she graduated from Tupelo High School. Daisy and her sister moved to Kansas City to attend Kansas City University where she received a teacher’s certificate. She returned to Coalgate, Oklahoma and taught school. She and her sister moved to Alaska for a short time and then to Oklahoma City where she went to work at the State Capitol as payroll clerk for the Oklahoma Supreme Court judges. It was there she met and married Judge William H. Blackbird enjoying 25 years of marriage before his death in 1976.

Daisy was always proud of her Chickasaw Heritage. Her portrait by Mike Larson hangs in the Chickasaw National Museum in Sulphur, OK. She was featured in the book titled “Salt of the Earth”. She has received many awards of congratulatory and citations from the Chickasaw Nation Governor and the Oklahoma State Legislature. She has been grateful for all the contributions from the Chickasaw Nation.

Daisy has been a resident of Oklahoma City for over 50 years and a member of First Christian Church Oklahoma City since 1949. Unable to attend in her later years the ministry and Christian friends have kept in touch with her.

Daisy was a loving and warm-hearted person who touched the lives of all those she encountered in this long life.

Survivors include numerous nieces and nephews and friends who will cherish her memories. The family would like to thank the doctors, nurses, Professional Home Care, Inc. and all who provided assistance and comfort to her life in the last years. Memorials may be directed to the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum, 900 N Broadway, suite 200, OKC 73102.

Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m., Wednesday, April 18, 2012, at First Christian Church, OKC, 3700 N. Walker Ave, Oklahoma City 73118 with interment at Memorial Park Cemetery, Oklahoma City, OK.