Researching the Osage Murders

Osage delegation in Washington D.C., 1920's (Library of Congress).

(National Archives) ... In the 1920s, after the discovery of the presence of millions of dollars in oil under the Osage reservation, a man named William Hale hatched a plot to kill Native Americans so he could take the profits for himself.
The Osage had “headrights,” meaning they received the money from the oil. Although he was behind the murders of at least 60 Native Americans—including nearly an entire family—Hale was put on trial for only one of his victims, Henry Roan. Continued