Ross Family Foundation

05/25/2026

On this Memorial Day the Ross Family Foundation would like to take a moment to remember all those who have laid down their lives so that we could be free.

“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” John 15:13

Donadagohvi

Wado.

05/23/2026

The fraudulent treaty that ultimately led to the Trail of Tears.
190 years later the Ross Family remembers the suffering that resulted from this single act of betrayal.
Chief John Ross and a majority of other Cherokee opposed removal from their ancestral homelands, and fought to the end to resist this tragedy.
While in the end Chief Ross was unable to stop the removal of his people, his steadfast leadership and wisdom lessened the sheer brutality of what might have been an even greater tragedy.

190 years ago on this day in , the Treaty of New Echota was ratified by the U.S. government.

The Treaty of New Echota was a negotiation between the U.S. government and an unauthorized faction of Cherokees, known as the “Treaty Party.” The treaty included ceding away Cherokee land east of the Mississippi River in exchange for compensation and was used as the legal basis for the Cherokees’ forced removal from their ancestral homelands to present-day Oklahoma, on what became known as the Trail of Tears.

Although the treaty was not negotiated or approved by the legal representatives of the Cherokee Nation, including the Cherokee National Council or Principal Chief John Ross, it passed the U.S. Senate by just a single vote.

The terms of the Treaty of New Echota were brought forward by the Treaty of 1866, and subsequent agreements, to the extent it was not inconsistent with those final and binding treaties between Cherokee Nation and the United States.

📺 Learn more about the Treaty of New Echota in this OsiyoTV Cherokee Almanac: https://youtu.be/9LW-PgCltoE?si=rLzaxNxQg4TlhXkR

05/08/2026

Stopped by Ross Cemetery to check on the progress since cleaning a few endangered stones on April 30th. Here’s an example of before and after results. Just one week after cleaning and applying D2 biological solution, the results are dramatic! The stone will continue to brighten but this is a remarkable improvement.

This is the grave marker of Lulu Crutchfield. Daughter of E and M Crutchfield, she was born July 9th 1870, died March 4th 1886. She was just 15 years old at the time of her death. She is buried at Ross Cemetery in Park Hill Oklahoma and has no other Crutchfield family interred in the cemetery. Her life mattered and we will continue to make sure her final resting place is respected and taken care of.

04/30/2026

Today we spent a few hours carrying out repairs at Ross Cemetery in our seemingly never ending efforts to restore and preserve the final resting place of our Cherokee ancestors.
It’s easy at times to become frustrated and overwhelmed with the sheer amount of work that still needs done. Today I had to pause and compare just how far things have come over the last few years.
The progress, while slow, is indeed remarkable and quite extraordinary. Slowly, we are prying back this historic place from the clutches of neglect and the elements which most certainly would in short order have succeeded in irreversible destruction and the loss of one of our most precious artifacts. The before and after pictures are stunning!

04/10/2026

Repairs yesterday at Ross Cemetery, Park Hill.

04/10/2026

Yesterday the Ross Family Foundation along with our friends from Cherokee Cemeteries Restoration Organization, and Park Hill Community Organization carried out a litany of repairs inside Ross Cemetery. Main focus was the cleaning, restoration and preservation of the top obelisk portion of John McDonald Ross’ grave marker. The top portion has not been cleaned due to the height. Today we had the proper equipment to safely clean away all the imbedded mold, lichen, and organic growth that has accumulated since 1842. After cleaning the surface was treated with D2 biological solution. It will likely require multiple applications over the next year to bring the marble back to a bright finish.

All historic marble stones received an application of D2 as part of the ongoing restoration process. We also removed from the ground the broken grave marker of JB Antione and after repairing the stone affixed it to a new base. This stone was on the list of critical repairs needed after it was found to have suffered catastrophic damage from mower impacts and breakage due to the heavy lawn equipment being carelessly driven over it. The marker will undergo additional cleaning and infil as needed in the future.

There were also several foot stones that we aligned, leveled and straightened, as well as a few leaning headstones which were brought back true and leveled.

03/24/2026

02/13/2026

Follow up to a post we shared previously as part of our History Unearthed series. The grave stone of Susan Lowery Ross discovered.
Yesterday we spent time revisiting the site to perform additional research and carried out some ground clearing to prepare the site for ground penetrating radar to be deployed.
We were very pleased to meet some other direct descendants who made the trip from Dallas TX to come and be part of the work, and to see the gravestone they’d spent years searching for without success.
We weren’t able to locate any additional markers on this visit, so we will push forward with GPR studies to gain a better understanding of the site.

Special thanks to everyone who came out to help and to our friends with Cherokee Cemeteries Restoration Organization for their support!

02/10/2026

Shop now and help us make a difference! Everything we do is geared towards preserving and protecting our family history. You can wear your support and show off your family history in style!
Every project we undertake requires a significant financial investment, and they wouldn’t be possible without your help.

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