Am I able to join the Cherokee tribe?

Question

It is the closet tribe to me the problem is I'm 3/16 Cherokee 1/16 Navajo and 1/32 Apache, would I qualify since I am alittle over 1/4 Native American and I have Cherokee blood?

The rest of my ancestry is 1/16 Spanish and the rest is Scottish and other things.

Answer 1

You'd have to be able to prove ancestry at the very least.

Answer 2

http://americanindian.net/cherokee.html

Here is a good overview of the process.

Proof that you are Cherokee is not enough, you have to show that your ancestors were also enrolled.

Answer 3

The ONLY way to be able to gain membership into one of the Federally Recognized Cherokee Nations is:

YOU have to prove you descend from someone on one of the Rolls. For the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma that is the Dawes Roll, for the Eastern Band of Cherokee it is the Baker Roll.  If you cannot provide proof through birth, marriage etc certificates that you have a direct ancestor who appears on one of these rolls then you have no chance.  In addition for the Eastern Band of Cherokee you have to have a blood quantum of 1/16.  The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma did away with their blood quantum requirement.

And you have to make the choice of which you are going to try to gain membership in.  You CANNOT apply to more than one.

Answer 4

A tribe will only look at it's own, only the 3/16th could count toward trying to join the Cherokee. Which would be far from enough for many, but Cherokee I've heard have a pretty low requirement. The total sum mainly works for your family tree and the government's nosiness.