Dora Steel Schexnider Young

Dora Steel Schexnider Young (January 22, 1939 – December 25, 2017) was a Sac and Fox politician who served as the first woman elected chief of the Sac and Fox Nation from 1973 to 1975.

Dora Steel Schexnider Young
Chief of the Sac and Fox Nation
In office
1973–1975
Personal details
BornDora Steel Corker
(1939-01-22)January 22, 1939
Claremore, Oklahoma, United States
DiedDecember 25, 2017(2017-12-25) (aged 78)
Stroud, Oklahoma, United States
CitizenshipAmerican
Sac and Fox Nation

Biography

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Dora Steel Schexnider Young was born on January 22, 1939, in Claremore, Oklahoma, to Thomas Coker Sr. and Frances Walker Coker.[1] A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, she was elected to the tribe's business committee in the 1970s. On August 25, 1973, she was elected the first woman chief of the Sac and Fox Nation by a 67 vote margin. She lost reelection in 1975, but was elected secretary-treasurer in 1976 and held that office until 1980. She was briefly reelected in 1995 for a short term. She died on December 25, 2017, in Stroud, Oklahoma.[2]

References

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  1. "Dora Steele Young". swearingenfuneral.com. Swearingen Funeral Homes. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  2. Everett, Dianna (August 16, 2018). "Young, Dora Steel Schexnider". okhistory.org. The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Archived from the original on 11 July 2025. Retrieved 31 October 2025.