The name "Chilocco" is apparently derived from the Creek tci lako, which literally meant "big deer" but typically referred to a horse.

[7] The Indian Territory land was set aside for the school by an 1884 executive order signed by 21st President of the United States Chester Arthur.

Chilocco provided academic and vocational education to American Indian students from all tribes in the United States.

Students "remember twenty-two bugle calls a day, Government-issue uniforms, scanty meals, inadequate health care, and a paucity of individual attention."

Instruction focused mostly on vocational training rather than academic subjects and students were required to perform manual and domestic labor known as "actual work.

The Chilocco school aimed to teach Native girls subservience, and did not have a true stake in their education.

"[10] The curriculum at the school focused on agricultural trades, including horseshoeing and blacksmithing, but also included building trades, printing, shoe repair, tailoring, leather work, and in later years plumbing, electrical work, welding, auto mechanics, food services and office education.

As one graduate said, "It wasn't a matter of enjoying [Chilocco], it meant we were educated, clothed, fed, and had a roof over our head.

In the school's 1980 yearbook, Superintendent C. C. Tillman wrote, "Chilocco is another in a long list of broken promises.

[19] In 2011, Chilocco was closed to the public and used as a training and practice facility for federal law enforcement personnel.

[20] In November 2017, the Department of Homeland Security published a statement in The Newkirk Herald warning local residents it was conducting tests at Chilocco Indian School.

The department stated these chemicals are nontoxic and nonhazardous, but many in the community of Newkirk, Oklahoma expressed skepticism.