PPT 6

The Western Confederacy

  • A coalition of tribes in the Ohio River Valley opposing U.S. expansion. Key members: Miami, Delaware, Shawnee, and Cherokee. Leaders cited: Little Turtle and Blue Jacket.

  • Early U.S. military setbacks against Native forces before 1795.

The Battle of the Wabash

  • Also known as the Battle of the Thousand Slain.

  • Participants: approximately 1000 on each side.

  • Outcome: one of the worst U.S. defeats by Native forces; huge loss of life.

  • Casualties: about 630 U.S. soldiers killed; Indian casualties ranged roughly between 40-150.

General “Mad Anthony” Wayne and the Road to Fallen Timbers

  • General Anthony Wayne commanded the Legion of the United States.

  • Battle of Fallen Timbers occurred in Aug. 1794, near present-day Toledo, Ohio.

  • Result: decisive defeat of Native forces.

  • Consequence: led to the Treaty of Greenville in 1795, wherein Indians ceded most of Ohio to the United States.

The New Republic and Indians

  • Thomas Jefferson’s policy ideas contrasted with Washington’s approach.

  • Phrase: “the blessings of civilization.”

  • The Intercourse Act of 1793 established formal relations and trade with tribes.

  • Roles: farmers, blacksmiths, Indian agents (e.g., Benjamin Hawkins).

  • Policy aim: move Native communities toward agriculture, reduce dependence on the hunting of vast forests, and integrate into a settler-led economy.

Jefferson to Harrison (1803) – Policy view excerpt

  • Jefferson’s private view to Indiana Territory Governor William Henry Harrison outlines strategic aims:

    • Live in perpetual peace with Indians; cultivate affectionate attachment; provide protection against wrongs by white settlers.

    • Shift subsistence from hunting to agriculture, including spinning and weaving; women become central to domestic production.

    • Encourage land exchange by manipulating trade (selling at low margins to drive private traders out of business) to push Indians toward ceding lands.

    • The long-term goal: settlements circumscribe and gradually approach Indians, potentially leading to incorporation as U.S. citizens or removal beyond the Mississippi.

    • Emphasis on attracting influential Indians into debt to facilitate land cessions.

    • If a tribe resisted, the policy envisaged seizure of the tribe’s country and removal across the Mississippi as a peace condition; otherwise, continue liberalities as a humanitarian cover.

Americanizing Indians (The shift toward market economy and social change)

  • Introduction to commodities as marketable items to satisfy wants/needs.

  • Movement from subsistence to capitalism; decline of reciprocity with tribes.

  • Shifts in leadership structures and gender roles; rise of patriarchy; women steered more toward domestic labor.

  • Emphasis on individual property rights and the growth of debt as a tool of influence and control.

Missionaries and ethnocentrism in Indian policy

  • Missionaries established schools; involved organizations included:

    • American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions; Moravians; Quakers; Congregationalists; Baptists; Methodists; Presbyterians.

  • Ethnocentric attitudes observed:

    • Kinship and extended families described as “confusing, immoral, and repugnant.”

    • Indian dress mocked; living in huts described as filthy and smoky.

    • Cherokees cast as culturally deficient; 1820s interactions with Hawaii missionaries noted (e.g., forced attire choices by Hawaiian converts).

Elite Southern Indians

  • Notable individuals and groups:

    • Cherokees: James Vann, Charles Hicks

    • Choctaws: Folsoms, LeFlores, Pitchlynns

    • Chickasaws: George Colbert, etc.

    • Creeks: William McIntosh

  • These elites often engaged with U.S. policy, land sales, and removal debates.

Squatters, Georgia, and land disputes

  • Tensions over land between settlers and Native communities.

  • Jefferson’s deals with Georgia and other states led to numerous disputes; between 1800–1810, about 27 treaties were made; roughly 40{,}000{,}000 acres ceded.

  • Outcome: Tribes forced into smaller areas with fewer resources; underscores the pressure toward removal.

Iroquois and Long-Term Decline of Influence

  • Iroquois (Mohawks and Cayugas under Joseph Brant) moved to Canada; influence and territory declined.

  • Existence of 11 small reservations in NY and one in PA.

  • Ongoing bitterness over “gifts” accepted by leaders (Cornplanter) and Quaker-related friction; gender issues noted.

Handsome Lake and Iroquois reform movements

  • Handsome Lake, brother of Cornplanter, delivered visions—Christian elements (Jesus, George Washington) blended with traditional norms.

  • Call to abandon alcohol and return to traditional practices, with a cautious adaptation strategy in the realm of gender norms; a middle path between tradition and accommodation developed.

Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa (The Shawnee Prophets)

  • Indigenous leaders who advocated a pan-tribal revival and resistance to U.S. expansion.

  • Naive to Western policy; their movement sought to unite tribes to resist settler encroachment and removal.

The Creek War (Red Sticks) and internal politics

  • Conflict between Red Sticks and White Sticks within the Creek Nation.

  • Key figures: Red Sticks leader William Weatherford (Red Eagle); White Sticks leader William McIntosh (White Warrior).

  • Fort Mims and the Battle of Horseshoe Bend ( 1814 ) defined outcomes.

  • Aftermath: loss of Creek lands and diminished support from both British and Spanish.

The Louisiana Purchase and U.S. territorial expansion

  • The United States acquired vast new lands via the Louisiana Purchase (from France) in 1803.

  • Maps illustrate the territorial expansion (Louisiana Territory), including relationships to adjacent regions (Mississippi River, Ohio, etc.).

  • The Oregon Country and other territorial delineations appear on accompanying maps (e.g., 1803–1805 era boundaries).

The Corps of Discovery (Lewis and Clark) 1804–1806

  • Goals:

    • Seek the Northwest Passage (a hypothetical water route to the Pacific).

    • Gauge natural resources and establish American sovereignty.

    • Interact with indigenous groups like the Arikaras, Mandan, and Hidatsa, who practiced agriculture and had clan systems and diplomacy that puzzled Americans.

  • Route and key sites include Fort Mandan, the Missouri River, and statements of geography (e.g., Great Falls, Three Forks, Yellowstone, Snake River) and exchanges with guides like Toussaint Charbonneau and Sacagawea.

Lewis and Clark expedition geography and neighbors

  • Expedition traversed major rivers (Missouri, Mississippi) and valleys; interactions included with the Nez Perce, Shoshone, Blackfeet, and other Pacific Rim tribes.

  • Encounters involved trade goods, diplomacy, and occasional tensions with British traders encountered along the way.

The Nez Perce and Pacific Tribes

  • The Nez Perce interacted with British goods; relied on both salmon and bison for subsistence.

  • They maintained regular contact with British ships and remained skeptical or unimpressed by American expansionism.

  • The return trip involved tensions with the Blackfeet.

Taming The American Frontier (cultural depiction)

  • A 1955 film-like narrative featuring Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and Sacagawea; portrays exploration as a government-sponsored but dramatized documentary.

  • Notable cast and production details indicate a blend of rugged action, romance, and scenic portrayal, set in the Pacific Northwest.

The Fur Trade and Mountain Men

  • John Colter and the era of the Mountain Men.

  • Fur companies: Missouri Fur Company; American Fur Company (John Jacob Astor).

  • Britain’s monopoly over fur trade waned; Rendezvous periods in the 1820s–early 1840s.

  • Fashion trend: silk top hats; beaver pelts deplete due to trapping.

Southern tensions and Seminoles

  • Escalating friction with Seminoles in the Southeast as U.S. state interests expanded.

  • Geographic focal points include the Mississippi River region and adjacent territories.

The Negro Fort and Seminole-Ally conflicts in Georgia

  • The Black Seminoles and enslaved people formed a refuge and a threat to Georgia planters.

  • The U.S. Army attacked, with Creek allies, using “hot shot” to devastating effect; roughly 30 survivors were captured and sold into slavery.

  • The Seminole leader Neamathla is identified as not being Creek by status or lineage.

Andrew Jackson and Florida, 1818–1821

  • 1818: Jackson invades Florida; also the Jackson Purchase (Chickasaw lands in West Tennessee).

  • 1819: Jackson helps found Memphis as a commercial hub via investment.

The Treaty of Moultrie and Neamathla’s Speech (1823)

  • Neamathla’s speech expresses concern about U.S. expansion and encroachment.

  • The treaty process reflects shifting power dynamics and the pressure toward removal.

Indian Removal (Policy and Practice)

  • Andrew Jackson as a key proponent of removal policies.

  • The era culminates in broad removal movements from the Southeast toward lands west of the Mississippi.

Andrew Jackson – Biography and Presidency

  • A Tennessee lawyer who became a prominent political and military figure:

    • 1796: One of the first Tennessee Representatives

    • Served as a Senator for one year; Tennessee Supreme Court judge.

    • Purchased The Hermitage in Nashville, 1804.

    • 1819: Investor in Memphis; later became President in 1828.

Jackson’s Reputation and Frontier Policy

  • Labelled as populist; known for aggressive stance toward Native peoples and land policy.

  • Noted for land speculation related to Indian territories.

King Cotton, Gold, and Indian Removal Policy

  • The rise of cotton as a dominant economic force (King Cotton).

  • The Georgia gold rush and other state interests pushed for removal.

  • Support for removal existed in Jackson’s political base.

  • Indian Removal Act of 1830 authorized voluntary exchanges of Eastern lands for Western lands; removal pressure intensified.

  • Senate vote: 28-19; House vote: 102-97 (illustrative of political contention).

  • David Crockett among notable figures in opposition to removal.

Andrew Jackson’s 1830 Vision (quote)

  • Quote: "Toward the aborigines of the country no one can indulge a more friendly feeling than myself, or would go further in attempting to reclaim them from their wandering habits and make them a happy, prosperous people." – Andrew Jackson, 1830

Cherokee Alphabet, Newspapers, and Legal Advocacy

  • Sequoyah (Sequoia) creates the Cherokee syllabary in 1821.

  • Elias Boudinot (Buck Watie) launches the Cherokee Phoenix, a Cherokee-language newspaper, in 1828.

  • James McDonald (Young Choctaw attorney) advocates for Choctaw legal rights, beginning in 1824.

Creek Nation’s Internal Conflicts and Land Cession

  • 1821: Creek National Council imposes death penalty for selling land without tribal approval.

  • Feb. 1825: William McIntosh and others sign the Treaty of Indian Springs, ceding Creek land in Georgia for 200{,}000.

  • Opposition voices: Opothleyahola (among others).

  • Apr. 1825: Menawa leads former Red Sticks in the execution of the signatories.

Choctaws and Choctaw Leadership

  • Greenwood LeFlore becomes the first Principal Chief.

  • Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek signed in 1830.

  • Internal opposition: Mushalatubee and Peter Pitchlynn.

The Marshall Decisions (U.S. Supreme Court, 1823–1832)

  • Chief Justice John Marshall authored three major Indian-related decisions:

    • Johnson v. M’Intosh, 1823: Indians did not own land in the sense of title; they had occupancy rights.

    • Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, 1831: tribes described as “dependent nations” or wards of the United States.

    • Worcester v. Georgia, 1832: Only the federal government could legislate affecting Indians; states lacked authority.

The New Echota Treaty and the Removal Debate

  • The New Echota Treaty, 1835, marked a split in Cherokee leadership:

    • The National Party (anti-removal) vs. the Treaty Party (pro-removal).

    • Key figures: John Ross (National Party); Major Ridge (aka The Ridge); John Ridge; Elias Boudinot (Buck Watie); Stand Watie.

  • The treaty paved a path toward removal despite opposition from many Cherokee.

Options for American Indians in Southern States (1835 onward)

  • Cherokee and other tribes faced a choice:

    • Remain in homeland and renounce tribal identity to become official state citizens.

    • Preserve tribal identity but leave the state to align with removal policies.

Indian Removal Maps and Forced Relocation (1830s–1840s)

  • Visual representations show tribal territories, removal routes, and land allocations in Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma).

  • Notable labeled locations include Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole regions, with major removals occurring between 1835 and 1838–1840.

  • The map highlights movement from Georgia, Alabama, and surrounding states into Indian Territory.

Trail of Tears (1838–1839)

  • The forced winter march of ~18{,}000 Cherokees; about a quarter died during the journey.

  • Included notable individuals such as the wife of John Ross.

Tocqueville and the Choctaws

  • Tocqueville’s observations about the Choctaw are referenced in the context of 19th-century Native policy and social change. (Brief comparative analysis of colonists’ views on Indigenous communities.)

George Harkins and Choctaw Voices

  • George Harkins, a Choctaw leader, expressed deep grief and resolve in the face of removal, noting:

    • "Friends, my attachment to my native land was strong… Here is the land of our progenitors… we have been compelled to venerate its trust; it is dear to us, yet we cannot stay… my people are dear to me, with them I must go."

Native American Identity and Sacred Sites

  • Native identity centered on kinship and place.

  • Sacred sites cited include:

    • Etowah (Cherokee)

    • Nainih Wayeh (Choctaw)

  • A small minority from each tribe managed to stay behind; Eastern and Western Bands reflected post-removal reality.

Not just Southeastern Indians: Wider distribution of tribes in the removal era

  • Notable conflicts like Black Hawk’s War (1832) in the Midwest/Prairie regions are highlighted, showing broader removal pressures beyond the Southeast.

The Second Seminole War (1835–1842)

  • Major conflict in Florida between Seminoles and U.S. forces.

  • Key events include the Treaty of Payne’s Crossing (1832) and the Dade Massacre (1835).

Notable Seminole Leaders

  • Micanopy

  • Osceola

  • John Horse (also known as Carabe)

Neutral Strip and Indian Territory Organization

  • The “Neutral Strip” and the broader arrangement for unorganized territory in present-day Oklahoma.

  • Various tribes listed with overlapping claims and territories:

    • Tonkawa, Cherokee Outlet, Ponca, Otoe-Missouria, Miami, Kaw, Eastern Shawnee, Ottawa, Quapaw, Peoria, Modoc, Wyandotte, Seneca–Osage, Cayuga, Cherokee, Pawnee, Sac and Fox, Cheyenne–Arapaho, Caddo, Wichita, Delaware, Kickapoo, Kiowa–Comanche–Apache, and others.

  • Concept of a large, multi-tribal area designated for relocation and eventual reorganization into Indian Territory.

Pushmataha

  • A prominent Choctaw leader remembered as a great American hero and defender before removal policies intensified.

King Cotton and Economic Drivers

  • Cotton emerged as a dominant economic force in the South; its rise influenced state policy toward removal and land expropriation from Indigenous lands.

The Legal Ideology of Removal and the Marshall Court

  • The interplay between states’ rights and federal authority shaped removal policy.

  • The Marshall Court provided a legal framework that ultimately supported federal supremacy over Indian policy, while simultaneously validating certain occupancy-based rights under Johnson v. M’Intosh and ward-status in Worcester v. Georgia.