by Eric L.

Although a graduate of a mostly white private high school, I was lucky to attend a good public college that furthered my historical education. Like many pieces of history, the “Osage Reign of Terror,” which took place roughly from the 1910s to the 1930s, was not addressed in my education. Someone suggested that the term is a misnomer because it sounds as though Osage caused the reign of terror; however, the opposite is true.

Killers of the Flower Moon is an entertaining and provocative read. Published in 2017, the book is on bestseller lists again because of the critically-acclaimed Martin Scorsese film, starring Lily Gladstone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Robert DeNiro. Author David Grann is a thorough researcher, and he recounts the history of the Osage people and how they ended up in Oklahoma. They, like so many other Native tribes, were continually pushed West out of desirable land until they arrived on the least desirable part. A chief at the time suggested that they take the hilly land in Oklahoma because the white man would not want it, and perhaps would leave them be. He was wrong. Another chief decided that they would have to parcel it out like real estate – but the Osage owners retained all the mineral rights. A shrewd stratagem, as they realized oil had been discovered.

The reserved mineral rights could not be sold to a non-Osage person, but only inherited in a practice that became known as “head rights.” This seemed a genius move, but unfortunately, the chief was battling with a far more powerful entity. As more oil was found on Osage land, the income generated from the rights to drill became very valuable. All the major oil companies wanted to drill on this land, and were spending large amounts of money to do so. For a short time, the Osage had the most wealth per capita in the United States.

This situation was untenable to some white Americans. The Osage were prohibited from accessing their bank accounts and assigned guardians (through the Bureau of Indian Affairs) who controlled their money; in the movie, you hear Mollie Burkhart refer to herself as “incompetent” when talking to her banker. The need for a guardian was determined by how much native blood a particular Osage person had and thus the extent of their head rights. All this sets the backdrop to the Reign of Terror, when more than an average number of wealthy Osage folks died untimely deaths and others (mostly white men) inherited their wealth.

After a number of botched, failed, and bogus investigations, the nascent FBI, under the direction of a young J. Edgar Hoover, decided to get involved. After all, the murders occurred on federally managed land, which was technically the FBI’s jurisdiction. Grann’s book follows a particularly tragic example, where a WWI veteran, Ernest Burkhart, came to live with his uncle “King” Hale, a cattle rancher in the Osage country. Ernest marries Mollie, whose family died around her from natural and unnatural causes. It is Mollie who ventures to Washington, DC to ask the Bureau of Investigation to provide answers.

I won’t spoil the mystery and subsequent court case, but Grann successfully interweaves a story of the early FBI with the tragedy of Mollie’s family and the plot to inherit their rights. It’s terribly sad, but with an interesting cast of characters and a well-written murder mystery. The story is told largely from the FBI agent’s perspective, but Grann is very thorough in his research and interviews, and he uncovers more than the FBI found (or at least documented). The movie shifts the narrative from the FBI to Ernest Burkhart and King Hale, and to a lesser extent, Mollie.

I’m certain the film will attract some backlash for bringing up the ghosts of our past. It always seems strange to me that we don’t want to better appreciate our collective history. I loved that one wise Osage person wondered whether any of it was worth it, since they lost so much. I can’t pretend to have an answer for that, but it’s a sad and instructive story about American greed and racism. What I’ll take from it, which is well-developed in the book, is that there were some dedicated FBI agents and citizens who spent time investigating and solving some of these crimes despite nearly insurmountable odds. Read the book and see this film; it’s a story worth repeating and knowing.

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann is available in many formats:
print, large print, e-book via Libby/Overdrive, e-book via CloudLibrary,
audiobook on CD, e-audiobook via Libby/Overdrive, e-audiobook via CloudLibrary

You can also get on the waiting list for the DVD of the movie, which is set to be released at the end of February, 2024.

Kristen B. contributed to this review.

Eric is a DIY Instructor and Research Specialist at Elkridge Branch. He enjoys reading, films, music, doing nearly anything outside, and people.