Benjamin Sowards, Phoebe Hemphill, U.S
Mint
Wilma Mankiller Quarter from the series ”American Women Quarters”
Americas, USA
2022
Purchased by the museum in 2022
The quarter (25 cent) coin commemorating Wilma Mankiller was issued by the United States Mint in 2022 as part of the ”American Women Quarters” program.
Wilma Pearl Mankiller (1945–2010) was the first woman to serve as ”Principal Chief” of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma (1985–1995). During her administration, she initiated extensive programs to promote the cultural revitalization of her community, as well as health care, education, and financial reforms. She argued that cultural values could help the community overcome current challenges. Her commitment has made her a role model beyond the borders of the Cherokee Nation in Indigenous North America.
The word “Mankiller” is an old honorific from the Cherokee warrior tradition that one of Wilma Mankiller's ancestors adopted as a family name in the early days of the reservation. Wilma Mankiller's feminist activism, therefore, often led to allusions to her name. However, her cultural understanding of the matrilineal and matrilocal Cherokee community did not indicate hostility toward men, but emphasized the balance of gender roles.
Frank Usbeck