Louis F. Burns

Louis Francis Burns (Osage Nation, January 2, 1920 – May 20, 2012) was a Native American historian, author, and teacher, known as a leading expert on the history, oral history and culture of the Osage Nation. Burns wrote more than a dozen books and scholarly works on the Osage people.

His publications include numerous articles and ten books, including: Treaties, Constitution, and Laws of the Osage Nation (reprint ed., 1967); Turn of the Wheel (1980); The Osage Annuity Rolls of 1878, 3 vols., (1980–81); Osage Indian Bands and Clans (1984); Osage Indian Customs and Myths (1984); Osage Mission Baptisms, Marriages, and Interments, 1820-1886 (1986); A History of the Osage People (1989); and Symbolic and Decorative Art of the Osage People (1994).

Legacy and honors 2002, Burns was inducted into the Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame. He joined another prominent Osage author, John Joseph Mathews, the late historian and Osage Council member, who had been posthumously inducted in 1996. Burns was knighted by the Companions of l'Hippocras (Chevalier de l'Hippocras du Therme). He was listed in the 27th edition of Marquis, Who's Who in the West, the 19th edition of Marquis, Who's Who in the World, and forthcoming Who's Who in America. He is also listed in the British International Men of Achievement, Dictionary of International Biography, and 2,000 Outstanding Scholars of the Twentieth Century.