53 pages • 1 hour read
David GrannKillers of the Flower Moon (Adapted for Young Readers): The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
Nonfiction | Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2021A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Index of Terms
Allotment
The Killers of the Flower Moon Glossary defines allotment as “the share of surface land given to each Osage on the tribal roll after the U.S. government had forced the breakup of their communal reservation” (300). Every three months, the Osage population would lease their allotments to oil companies in a dramatic auction. At the height of the oil craze, a single allotment could be leased for over a million dollars.
Black Gold
The Killers of the Flower Moon Glossary defines black gold as “another name for oil” (300). This substitute for oil is only used twice in the book, first to describe the suspicion that Mollie’s family was being killed for their money and access to oil. David Grann mentions “black gold” a second time when he watches a video production of Wahzhazhe, an Osage ballet depicting the people's history.
Boomtown
The Killers of the Flower Moon Glossary defines boomtown as “a town enjoying very fast growth in business success and population” (300). The boomtowns in this story are the backdrop to the crimes committed against the Osage people.
Bureau of Investigation
The Killers of the Flower Moon Glossary defines the Bureau of Investigation as “a division of the Department of Justice responsible for investigating federal crimes. It later became known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)” (300). The development of the Bureau is intrinsically tied to the investigations into the Osage murders. The apparent success in solving these murders justified the Bureau’s work and allowed it to evolve into the FBI.
Headright
The Killers of the Flower Moon Glossary defines headright as “an individual’s portion of the money from the Osage Nation’s oil income, which could only be inherited, not sold (301).” The Osage murders occurred because the killers wanted the headrights of the victims. Because headrights could only be inherited, marriage into Osage families became a tool used in the systematic murder of the Osage people.
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By David Grann
