They were originally intended to provide homes for settlers from the three major clans or groupings of Choctaw Indians comprising the nation.

Over time, the clan affiliations and allegiances rapidly became less important after the Choctaw reached Indian Territory, in part because the geography was different, and there was great disruption due to population loss in the removal.

When the court house at Tiak Heli burned in the last part of the 19th century, the district moved its administrative center to Mayhew.

[2] Present-day Sunkist, Oklahoma (in southeastern Atoka County) developed about one-half mile west of that historic community.

[4] Included in the Pushmataha District were the Choctaw Nation counties of Atoka, Jack's Fork, Blue, Jackson, and Kiamitia (Kiamichi).

[5] As Oklahoma's statehood loomed, the Pushmataha District, and its constituent counties, slowly wound down their governmental functions as the United States Courts in the Indian Territory assumed their powers.