USA > Oklahoma > A history of Oklahoma > Part 3
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Slavery Introduced into Oklahoma .-- The Indians of the tribes from the South had adopted many of the habits and customs of their white neighbors in the states east of the Mississippi. As the ownership of negro slaves was lawful in all of those states from which these tribes had moved. many of them had become slave owners. When they moved
3.1
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
to their new reservations in the Indian Territory, they brought their slaves with them.
Indian Wars .- The Indian wars in the Indian Territory during this period were few and not of much importance. Most of them were between Indians of the tribes who had moved from the East, on the one side, and those of the tribes which were native in this part of the country, on the other. In nearly every case the Government induced the members of the various tribes to cease from warfare against each other and to live as friends.
New Military Posts .- Two military posts were estab- lished during this period, Fort Coffee, in the Choctaw Na- tion, on the Arkansas River, in 1834, and Fort Wayne, in the northeastern part of the Cherokee Nation in 1838.
The Fur Trade .- The coming of the Indians of the civ- ilized tribes into the eastern part of Oklahoma soon caused the fur traders to leave their old trading posts in that sec- tion of the country and led them to build new posts further west. Besides the trading posts of the big fur companies and their agents, there were many independent traders who went out on the Plains with a few pack animals loaded with knives, colored cloths, trinkets and other wares suitable for. trading. These were exchanged for furs; buffalo robes and , other articles to be had in the camps of the wild Indians.
Early Progress .- The Indians who moved to Oklahoma from east of the Mississippi between 1825 and 1840 were al. ready well on the way toward civilized life. They therefore began to prosper in their new homes after they became set- tled once more. They raised small fields of corn, wheat and cotton and kept large herds of live stock, including horses, cattle and hors. Their government agents and the mis- sionaries, who had come to labor among them, tried to en- courage them to adopt all the ways of civilization. Some of the traders, on the other hand, wanted these Indians to abandon the ways of civilization and live altogether by hunting and trapping. They lived plainly, their fields and
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35
INDIAN MIGRATION FROM THE EAST
herds and the game that abounded in the forest and on the prairie supplying most of their needs. With but few excep- tions their homes were built of logs. As a tribe, the Chero- kees were the most progressive. This was largely due to the fact that the writing and printing of their language had been made possible by the invention of the Cherokee alphabet by Sequoyah.
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1727376
SEQUOYAH
PROSPEROUS INDIANS
The Western Cherokees, who had already been living in the Indian Territory for some years before the arrival of the main body of the tribe from east of the Mississippi, had so many horses, cattle and hogs at the time of the migration of the remainder of the tribe that the Government was enabled to purchase from them enough animals for the use of the new comers in stocking their farms.
While most of the Indians of the tribes from the East were engaged in farming and stock raising, a few of them became mer- chants and others became wandering traders among the wild tribes of the Plains. Some of the Cherokee Indians seem to have been engaged in river traffic by means of flat boats on the Cumberland
36
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
and Tennessee before they came West. They still kept up an active interest in such affairs, which is evident from the fact that, as early as 1837, they owned and operated a fine steamboat which plied be- tween their country on the Arkansas and the lower Mississippi to New Orleans.
Tribal Constitutions .- The Cherokees had a tribal constitution which had been formally adopted in 1827. It was republican in form, having legislative, judicial and executive departments. This Cherokee constitution is said to have been modeled after that of the state of Mississippi and, in turn, it served as a model for the con- stitutions of the Chickasaw, Choctaw and Creek nations.
SEQUOYAH.
Sequoyah, or George Guess, was born about 1760, being the son of a white father and a Cherokee mother. There is a tradition to the effect that his father was Nathaniel Gist, son of Christopher Gist, the North Carolina seout who accompanied George Washington on his memorable mission to the French posts on the Allegheny, in 1753, the story running that Nathaniel Gist was captured by Chero- kee Indians at Braddock's defeat on the Monongahela and kept as a prisoner among them for many years. This has never been estab- lished as a fact, however, and it is more probable that his father was a German peddler from one of the Moravian settlements of the adjacent region in Carolina.
Sequoyah grew up ignorant and untutored. When young he was unable to speak or understand English and, even in later life when signing his name to a document in English, he merely made his mark as any illiterate would. When he first saw books at the mission schools he was informed that the characters represented the words of the spoken language. Not understanding how this was done, he attempted to make characters of his own for the Cherokee language. At first he undertook to make a separate character for each word, but finding that .impracticable, he reduced his invention to a system by making a separate character, or letter, for each possible syllable in the language and one for the letter "s." In all, he had eighty- five characters or letters in his alphabet. He was enabled to teach this syllabic alphabet to any Cherokee, old or young, within three weeks. Types of the new alphabet were cast and books and news- papers were printed in the Cherokee language. As a result, the print- ing of books and pamphlets for the Cherokee Indians in Roman text ceased, save when the English language was used.
Sequoyah was greatly honored by his people and his memory is revered by them to this day. Ho first visited the Western Chero- kees, in Arkansas, in 1822. The next year he moved west and re- mained. He was a leader of the Western Cherokees (Old Settlers) at the time of the migration of the Eastern Cherokees in 183S-9. He died in 1844 while on a hunting and exploring excursion to New Mexico and was buried near Taos, in that state.
Summary .- The story of the removal of the Indian tribes from the southern states and their settlement in the Indian Territory will always be one of thrilling interest, not alone to their descendants but to the American people
3-0. IT.
37
INDIAN MIGRATION FROM THE EAST
generally. The tales of the deeds of pioneers always fas- cinate us, but the pioneering stories of no state have sur- passed those of the Indian Territory in heroic, pathetic and tragie interest. That period of the history of Oklahoma may furnish inspiration for the artists, musicians and poets of generations yet unborn.
:
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS
Third Period. 1
1. When and by whom was the Santa Fe Trail located .? What part of Oklahoma did it traverse ? Tell briefly the story of the Santa Fe Trail and its importance in the early history of the South- west.
2. When did the first steamboat reach Fort Gibson? What was the name of the steamboat ? The name of its captain ?
3. What noted author visited Oklahoma in 1832? What inter- esting book tells the story of his trip? 4
4. When did Congress pass an act providing for the establish. ment of an Indian Territory? What Indian treaties were made shortly afterward ?
5. Tell the story of General Leavenworth's expedition. What tribes of Indians were visited? What veteran of the American Revo- lution accompanied the expedition? What noted painter of Indian portraits ?
6. What tribes migrated to Oklahoma during this period? From what part of the United States did they come? What tribe joined the Choctaws?
7. When was slavery introduced into the Indian Territory? By whom was it introduced?
S. Where did the fur traders operate in the Indian Territory during this period? What other traders were there besides those who owned and operated trading posts ?
9. Tell what you can about the life, occupation, customs and prosperity of the immigrant tribes.
38
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
Cherokee Alphabet.
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39
FOURTH PERIOD
(1840-1860)
AN ERA OF PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT.
The Great Floods of 1844 .- The year of 1844 was a memorable one in the Indian Territory as elsewhere through- out the West on account of the great floods which prevailed. In addition to the annual "June rise," which was due to the melting of snow in the mountains about the sources of the rivers, there was a season of unusual rainfall through- out the region of the Great Plains. All of the rivers in the Indian Territory overflowed their banks, causing great de- struction of property and some loss of life.
Overland Trade and Travel .- During the summer of 1850, Lieut. J. II. Simpson surveyed and laid out a road from east to west across Oklahoma. From the Arkansas River the road followed the north bank of the Canadian to a point near Chouteau's trading post, in what is now the south- ern part of Cleveland County. Thence it followed the south bank of the Canadian to a point in the northern part of Caddo county, whence it crossed over to the valley of the Washita. After following the valley of that stream for some distance it re-entered the Canadian valley in Roger Mills County. Another overland trail, known as the Texas Road, came to be much used for travel and freighting during this period. Originally it was part of a military road leading from Fort Scott ( Kansas) to Fort Gibson. From Fort Gib- son to the Red River it followed the trail which was first marked out by the Leavenworth expedition in 1834, passing through Boggy Depot.
Indian Trade .- Trade among the Indians of the civilized tribes was not greatly unlike that of the country merchant
40
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
of that period in other parts of the country. Trade among the Indians of the wild tribes of the Plains was a profitable business, although there was often much risk in it.
Growth of Slavery .- With the increase of wealth among the Indians of the civilized tribes, the owning of negro slaves also increased. Most of the slave owners in the Indian Ter- ritory were Indians of the mixed-blood class. Some of these owned large plantations upon which many slaves were worked.
The Texas Cession .- On November 25, 1850, the state of Texas withdrew its claim to the ownership of lands lying north of 36° 30' north latitude. The tract which thus be- came a part of the public domain of the United States in- cluded the counties of Beaver, Cimarron and Texas in the state of Oklahoma.
River Navigation .- During this period, steamboat navi- gation on the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries was largely used for both trade and travel. The merchants and traders of the Indian Territory made use of steamboats in shipping in goods and supplies and also in shipping out the products of the country which they handled. Some of the big steamboats from the lower Mississippi used to come - up the Arkansas as far as Skullaville and Fort Gibson. Steamboats also navigated the Red River at certain seasons of the year as far up as the mouth of the Washita, a great deal of cotton being shipped to New Orleans in that way.
At the Steamboat Landing.
The arrival of a steamboat at Fort Gibson, or Skullaville, in olden times was always an important event in the life of the com- munity. The sound of the whistle of the approaching vessel was a signal which was sure to cause an immediate gathering of the major portion of the inhabitants at the landing on the river bank. The negro deck hands were soon busind in unloading the cargo. Before long the landing would be covered with piles of freight for the mer- chants and traders and with great quantities of stores for the Gov. ernment military posts and Indian agencies. Meanwhile many In- dians of the Cherokee, Creek, Osage and other tribes would line the shore, most of them staring in wouder at the great "fire-canoe." At such times the engineers found great sport in blowing off the mud- valve with its loud roar, whereupon the crowd would run away from the boat.
1
41
AN ERA OF PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT
The cargo for the down-stream voyage sometimes included beef hides, casks of tallow and bags of corn, but almost always there would be great bales of buffalo robes and deer skins and furs, to- gether with barrels and sugar hogsheads filled with pecans. Finally. when the craft was ready for its return voyage, some of the mer- chants and traders, who had been waiting for the arrival of "a good boat, "' would go aboard, followed by servants or employes carrying powder kegs or ax-boxes, filled with Mexican silver dollars, thus prepared for a journey to Memphis, New Orleans, St. Louis or Cin- cinnati, where they planned to purchase new stocks of goods for their trade. Then, when the boat's bell clanged and the gangplank was raised and the reversed engines would start the paddle-wheels, the big craft would slowly back out into the channel, while the negro deck hands (who always sang at their work) would give voice to the wild chant of "Far' yo' well, Miss Lucy, "' and soon the steam- boat would disappear around the bend of the river, leaving the little outpost to resume its wonted isolation and loneliness.
RIVER STEAMBOAT OF TYPE IN USE IN 1850-60
Besides the steamboats, keelboats and canoes. there was an occasional flatboat to be seen on the Arkansas. These were geu erally from Southwestern Missouri, where they were built, loaded with bacon, hides, ginseng, sarsaparilla, snakeroot and other pioneer commodities and products, then floated down the Cowskin to the Neosho (or Grand) and thence down to the Arkansas and Mississippi. where a market would be found for both boat and cargo, the crew returning home overland. Some of the Creek and Seminole Indians used to reach the outside world with such surplus products as dried peaches, beans, pecans, gopher peas, riee, etc., in large "dug-out" canoes, each made of a single cottonwood log of mammoth propor- tions, in which they floated down the Canadian to the Arkansas. Some of these canoes were of sufficient size to hohl large barrels laid lengthwise.
Exploring Expeditions .- The wilderness of Central and Western Oklahoma still continued to be explored at rare intervals. In 1843, Capt. Nathan Boone, First U. S. Dra. goons, commanded an expedition which explored the valleys
42
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
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AN ERA OF PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT
of the Arkansas, Cimarron and Salt Fork (Nescatunga), in Northern Oklahoma and on northward into Southern and Central Kansas. In 1845, Lieut. James J. Abert explored the valleys of the Canadian and Washita rivers in the ex- treme western part of Oklahoma. In the spring and summer of 1852, the sources of the Red River were explored by an expedition under the command of Capt. Randolph B. Marcy.
The Indian Territory Reduced in Size .- In May, 1854, Congress passed an act providing for the organization of the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. These two territories were formed from parts of what had been known for nearly twenty-five years as the Indian Territory. The Indian Territory, proper, was thus reduced to the area which it in- cluded up to the passage of the Organic Act under which Oklahoma Territory was organized in 1890. The Kansas- Nebraska Act fixed the 37th parallel of north latitude as the boundary between Kansas Territory and the Indian Territory.
Indians in Kansas Territory .- Although Kansas was thus cut off from the Indian Territory, it contained the reservations of nearly twenty tribes of Indians, besides which there were several tribes of wild Indians of the Plains in the western part of the new ter- ritory. Eventually nearly all of these tribes were removed to Okla- homa, though not until after the close of the Civil War.
The Northern Boundary Surveyed .- The boundary line between Kansas and the Indian Territory was surveyed in the summer of 1858, by a party under the command of Lieut. Col. Joseph E. John- ston, of the Second U. S. Dragoons. Colonel Johnston afterward be- came one of the most distinguished generals in the Confederate Army.
Tribal Changes .- When the Chickasaws came west they joined the Choctaws and purchased an interest in the Choc- taw reservation. For many years, they were also under the same tribal government and were supposed to have equal rights and privileges with the Choctaws. This arrangement was somewhat irksome to the Chickasaws because they were always out-numbered and out-voted. The Choctaws were therefore always in full control of the tribal government and only Choctaws were elected to office. The Chickasaws
44
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
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45
AN ERA OF PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT
finally insisted upon separating from the Choctaws and they were permitted to do so upon payment of $150,000 to the Choctaws, in 1855.
When the Seminoles first moved west from Florida, in 1845, they joined their relatives, the Creeks. Although they were given the right of full citizenship in the Creek Nation. the Seminoles were not satisfied. Like the Chickasaws, they preferred to govern themselves rather than be governed by the stronger tribe with whom they lived. In August, 1856, the Creeks and Seminoles made a treaty with the Govern- ment in which it was provided that a part of the Creek reservation should be set aside for the ownership and use of the Seminoles alone.
The Choctaws and Chickasaws having separated as the result of the agreement of 1855, both natious adopted new constitutions in 1857. The Choctaw Nation afterward adopted a considerable portion of the statutes of the state of Mississippi as their own laws. After the laws of the Chickasaw Nation had been adopted by the tribal legislature under the new constitution, a young man, who was a member of the tribe, was sent into Texas with the original copies (no duplicates being retained), for the purpose of having them printed. The young man who had been entrusted with this im- portant mission mysteriously disappeared and the laws with him. As a result it became necessary to convene the tribal legislature in special session for the purpose of re-enacting the laws thus lost.
The reservation which was set aside for the Seminoles was bounded on the east by a line which would divide the present county of Pottawatomie into two very nearly equal parts. Thence it ex- tended westward and northwestward to the Texas line, bounded on the south by the Canadian river and on the north by the North Canadian and the Cherokee Outlet.
Indian Wars .- The Comanche and Kiowa Indians of Western Oklahoma were at war with the whites much of the time during this period. Most of their raids were directed against the frontier settlements of Texas and the overland emigrant and freighting trains on the Santa Fe Trail. Peace councils were held and treaties were made from time to time but peace seldom lasted long. In these peace couneils, the Indians of the civilized tribes often took part, trying to induce the wild Indians to quit the warpath and live on friendly terms with the whites and other Indian tribes.
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46
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
Life Among the Civilized Tribes .- The lives led by the people of the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole tribes during the period between the time they be- came settled in their new homes in the Indian Territory and the outbreak of the Civil War were simple, care free and happy. Their wants and needs were few and these were casily supplied. They lived at peace with the Government and with each other. The work of the patient and self- sacrificing missionaries among them was meeting with suc- cess. The neighborhood school as well as the national or tribal academy and seminary was doing its part to help them in the way of civilization. In many Indian homes there was real refinement. Not a few of the young men and women were sent to the colleges and seminaries in the east-
4
OLD CHICKASAW CAPITOL AND LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (Built in 1856)
ern states to finish their education and training for life. There was not a railroad nearer than the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. All communication with the outside world
47
AN ERA OF PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT
was by river steamboat, wagon train and stage coach. It was amid such surroundings that the Indians were slowly but surely making progress in the ways of knowledge, skill and enterprise and in the accumulation of wealth.
Indian Tribes Settled on the Washita .- Late in the sun- mer of 1859 a number of small tribes and bands of Indians, which had been living on two reservations on the Brazos River in Texas, were removed to the Indian Territory and settled in the valley of the Washita River, within the limits of what is now Caddo County, Oklahoma. These tribes (which included the Caddoes, Keechis, Wacoes, Anadarkoes, Tonkawas, Absentee Shawnees, a small band of Delawares and the Peneteka Comanches) left Texas to avoid a war of extermination. Shortly after they arrived at their new reservation on the Washita, they were joined by the Wich- itas, who formerly lived in the Wichita Mountains.
New Military Posts .- The military posts established in the Indian Territory during this period were Fort Washita (1842) and Fort Arbuckle (1851), both of which were located in the Chickasaw Nation, and Fort Cobb (1859), which was located in the Leased District, west of the Chickasaw Na- tion.
Summary .- The period of twenty years which ended shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War was distin- guished as one of quiet and peaceful development in the Indian Territory. During this period the people of the five civilized tribes made great progress. Besides improving their farms and accumulating greater wealth in the way of flocks and herds and more comfortable homes. the people of these tribes gave other evidence of substantial development. They no longer depended on the missionary stations to fur- nish their only educational facilities, but began the estab- lishment of tribal schools, academies and seminaries. Church organizations were common among them and temperance societies were formed in several of the tribes. In the Chero- kee Nation an agricultural society was maintained. Many of the Indians had neat, well-kept homes, with all of the comforts and conveniences of civilized life.
48
HISTORY OF OKLAHOMA
1
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS
Fourth Period.
1. Why was the year 1844 a memorable one in the Indian Ter- ritory ?
2. Why should the annexation of Texas to the United States be mentioned in Oklahoma history?
3. What great overland trails traversed Oklahoma? For what were these trails used ?
4. What can you tell of trade among the Indians during this period ?
5. Tell what you know about the growth of slavery in the Indian Territory.
6. Ilow was merchandise shipped into the Indian Territory dur- ing this period ?
7. Who finally explored the sources of the Red River?
S. Why did the Chickasaws seek to be independent of the Choctaws? Review some of the Indian treaties of this period.
9. What new military posts were established during this period? Give the location of each.
10. Tell what you know about life among the Indians of the civilized tribes during this period.
11. What tribes of Indians moved from Texas to Oklahoma in 1859? Why did they leave Texas? Where were they located in Oklahoma?
49
FIFTH PERIOD
(1860-1865)
THE CIVIL WAR IN OKLAHOMA.
The Indian Territory at the Outbreak of the Civil War. -- The dawning of the Civil War was a most unhappy event for the Indians of the civilized tribes. With the exception of the Seminoles, they had all been at peace with the white men for nearly fifty years and some of the tribes had been friendly for more than twice that long. Most of them were farmers. They raised fields of grain and cotton, owned herds of horses, cattle and hogs. Many of them owned negro slaves by whom much of the field labor was done. The life of the Indians'was simple and care-free and their few wants were easily supplied. They wanted to remain at peace. They · had no desire to take part in this trouble, which they right- fully called a White Man's quarrel. They had been friendly with the government of the United States so long that they were loath to make any change. On the other hand, all of these tribes had come from the South. Many of their cus- toms and habits were peculiar to the South and many of their people were related by ties of marriage and blood to the people of the South. For these reasons they felt that duty called for a new alliance, even though their friendship for the government of the United States was strong.
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