Fred Lookout was born into an Osage family in 1861 or November 1865[a] near present-day Independence, Kansas.

They were made of bent poles for frame work, with elm bark around the base, with cattail stems forming the sides and buffalo hides spread over the top for a roof.

[2] Lookout married Julia Pryor (Osage), a member of the Bear clan, and they settled on a farm near Pawhuska, Oklahoma.

In 1914, he was appointed principal chief by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Walter L. Fisher, replacing Bacon Rind.

The Osage had retained mineral rights on their land and were becoming wealthy from revenue from oil leases.

[2] During the Osage Indian murders, Lookout's family claimed he survived a shooting attempt and then hired Chicago Mafia members as bodyguards.