Native Floridians
Five Native American men
who were prisoners at Fort Meriam
The Seminoles
The Seminoles of Florida call themselves the "Unconquered People," descendants
of just 300 Indians who managed to elude capture by the U.S. army in the 19th
century. Today, more than 2,000 live on six reservations in the state
located in Hollywood, Big Cypress, Brighton, Immokalee,
Ft. Pierce, and Tampa.
Some Florida Indian Nations
Timucuan Indians,The Miccosukee Indians (were originally part of the Creek Nation),Creeks, Calusa Indians, The Calusa: "The Shell Indians",
The Tocobaga Indians,The Tequesta Indians, The Apalachee, Ais,
Mayaca, Hororo,Tallahassee, Chattahoochee, Okeechobee, Loxahatchee,
Suwannee and more.
Seminole history begins with bands of Creek Indians from Georgia and Alabama
who migrated to Florida in the 1700s. Conflicts with Europeans and other
tribes caused them to seek new lands to live in peace. Groups of Lower
Creeks moved to Florida to get away from the dominance of Upper
Creeks. Some Creeks were searching for rich, new fields to
plant corn, beans and other crops. For a while, Spain even
encouraged these migrations to help provide a buffer between
Florida and the British colonies.
In 1500, more than 100,000 Native Americans lived in Florida. By the
1700s, warfare and European diseases such as smallpox and measles had
wiped out most of the original inhabitants.
The 1770s is when Florida Indians collectively became known as Seminole,
a name meaning "wild people" or "runaway."
In addition to Creeks, Seminoles included Yuchis, Yamasses and a few aboriginal
remnants. The population also increased with runaway slaves who found
refuge among the Indians.
At war with the U.S. Run-ins with white settlers were becoming more regular by
the turn of the century. Settlers wanted Indian land and their
former slaves back.
In 1817, these conflicts escalated into the first of three wars against the United
States. Future U.S. President Andrew Jackson invaded then-Spanish
Florida and defeated the Seminoles.
After passage of the Indian Removal Act in 1830, the U.S. government attempted to
relocate Seminoles to Oklahoma, causing yet another war -- the Second Seminole War.
By May 8, 1858, when the United States declared an end to conflicts in the third
war with the Seminoles, more than 3,000 of them had been moved west of the
Mississippi River. That left roughly 200 to 300 Seminoles remaining in
Florida, hidden in the swamps.
For the next two decades, little was seen of Florida Seminole. Until trading posts
opened in late 19th century at Fort Lauderdale, Chokoloskee and other
places, that's when some Seminoles began venturing out to trade.
The Seminoles gain more independence In the late 1950s, a push among Indian
tribes to organize themselves and draft their own charter began -- this came as
a result of federal legislation which allowed Indian reservations to act as
entities separate from the state governments in which they were located.
After surviving the first half of the 20th century through agriculture
and by selling crafts, individuals saw that organizing as a constitutional
form of government would be a positive step. The Seminole tribe improved
their independence by adopting a constitutional form of government. This
allowed them to act more independently. So on July 21, 1957, tribal
members voted in favor of a Seminole Constitution which established the
federally recognized Seminole Tribe of Florida.
In 1970, the Indian Claims Commission award the Seminole (of both Oklahoma and Florida, collectively) $12,347,500 for the land taken from them by the U.S. military.
Some Indian Leaders
OSCEOLA
Black Drink Singer
His name was Osceola, or Asi-Yaholo, which came from asi,
a drink containing caffeine, and Yaholo, a cry shouted by men
who served asi during tribal ceremonies. He was born
Billy Powell in 1804 in Alabama,a Creek Indian village near
the Tallapoosa River in what is now eastern Alabama, he was the son
of a Creek Indian mother. His stepfather was a Scotsman named Powell.
When he was 9, Osceola and his mother came to what is now Florida,
home of the Seminoles.
Although he was not a chief, warrior Osceola's ability and fiery
spirit made him the symbol of resistance and a key leader
in the Second Seminole War. He was captured while under a
"flag of truce". Osceola died in 1838 while imprisoned at
Fort Moultrie, South Carolina. Osceola's death in prison
at Fort Moultrie, SC, was noted on front pages around the
world. In 1838 he was the most famous Native American.
TUKO-SEE MATHLA
(John Hicks)
This Seminole chief once saved a number of white men from being
killed after they had been taken prisoner. When he supported the
plan to move the Native Americans west he was killed by dissenting
Seminoles
MICANOPY
(Head Chief)
As one of the most important chiefs in Florida, Micanopy fought
against removal until the pressure of thousands of troops, disease,
and starvation wiped out his band of warriors.
NEAMATHLA
Neamathla, considered a man of eloquence and influence
among the Seminoles, advised his people not to accept the
government plan to move. Governor William DuVal deposed him
by refusing to recognize him as a chief of the Seminoles
BILLY BOWLEGS -Hollater-Micco
(more commonly known as Billy Bowlegs)
AND HIS WIFE
Billy Bowlegs was the principal Seminole leader
in the Third Seminole War (1855-1858). Bowlegs and his
war-weary band surrendered on May 7, 1858. Thirty-eight
warriors and eighty-five women and children,
including Billy's wife, boarded the steamer, Grey Cloud,
at Egmont Key to begin their journey to Indian territory.
Bowlegs died soon after his arrival.
Abiaka (a.k.a. Sam Jones)
Was a powerful spiritual leader who used his
"medicine" to stir Seminole warriors into a frenzy. Like
Osceola, Abiaka embodied the Seminole qualities of pride,
defiance and independence. A man of great cunning, Abiaka
directed a number of successful battles, including the Battle
of Okeechobee in 1837.
Many years older than most of the Seminole leadership of
that era, Sam Jones was a staunch resistor of removal. The
only major Seminole leader to remain in Florida. Starved,
surrounded, sought with a vengeance, Sam Jones would
answer no flag of truce, no offer of compromise, no
demand of surrender. His final camp was in the
Big Cypress Swamp, not far from the Seminole
Tribe's Big Cypress community of today.
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