The Act transformed most of the current state of Oklahoma into an Indian Territory, where southern aboriginal natives (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole, also called the Five Civilized Tribes) were relocated.

In 1834, Congress created the first Indian Territory,[1] with the Five Civilized Tribes occupying the land that became the State of Oklahoma, excluding its panhandle.

[18] A second component of this decision was that in 1871, Congress decided that the United States would no longer deal with Indian tribes through a formal treaty-making process, providing that "[n]o Indian nation or tribe within the territory of the United States shall be acknowledged or recognized as an independent nation ...".

Arkansas recognizes the doctrine of Riparian water rights,[26] based on English common law, and generally accepted in the eastern part of the United States.

Today Oklahoma has a unique set of water rights statues based on groundwater and streamwater.

The act also preserved Indian court civil authority by stipulating that "and any person residing in the Territory of Oklahoma, in whom there is Indian blood, shall have the right to invoke the aid of courts therein for the protection of his person or property, as though he were a citizen of the United States: Provided, That nothing in this act contained shall be so construed as to give jurisdiction to the courts established in said Territory in controversies arising between Indians of the same tribe, while sustaining their tribal relations"[29] The Oklahoma Organic Act provided for a mechanism for Indian tribes to allocate their communally held land to individual tribal members, and to distribute unallocated property to non-Indians.

Section-line roads to provide access to land parcels, were to be maintained on each side of every one-mile-square section throughout the territory.

"Provided, that the Indians who become Citizens of the United States under the provisions of this act do not forfeit or lose any rights or privileges they enjoy or are entitled to as members of the tribe or nation who which they belong.

Railroads were also given the right to "cross, intersect, join or unite it railroad with any other railroad now constructed or that may hereafter be constructed at any point upon its routes"[31] "Congress may at any time hereafter change the boundaries of said Territory, or attach any portion of the same to any other State or Territory of the United States without the consent of the inhabitants of the Territory hereby created: Provided, That nothing in this act shall be construed to impair any right now pertaining to any Indians or Indian tribe in said Territory under the laws, agreements, and treaties of the United States, or to impair the rights of person or property pertaining to said Indians, or to affect the authority of the Government of the United States to make any regulation or to make any law respecting said Indians, their lands, property, or other rights which it would have been competent to make or enact if this act had not been passed"[32] The Dawes Act, (also called "The General Allotment Act") was adopted by Congress in 1887, and authorized a survey of Indian tribal land for the purposes of dividing the land into allotments for individual Indians.

The General Allotment Act's "goal was to end tribal ownership of land by assimilating Indians as part of an agrarian society.

The act also provided that the government would purchase Indian land "excess" to that needed for allotment and open it up for settlement by non-Indians.

The Dawes Commission was created by Congress in 1893 as a further attempt to convince the members of tribes to receive their tribal land allotments.

"[35] A Constitutional Convention was convened by residents of Indian Territory and proposed to Congress that a State of Sequoyah be admitted to the Union.

Charles N. Haskell was selected to represent the Creek Nation at the convention, and later became the first Governor of the State of Oklahoma.

One of the act's purposes was to pave the way "for Oklahoma's admission to the union on an "Equal footing with the original States", conditioned on its disclaimer of all right and title to lands "owned or held by any Indian, tribe, or nation.

"[47] The same act also provided for the people of New Mexico and of Arizona to form a constitution and State government and be admitted into the Union.