What made America a strong nation in its formative years was that it seemed to be born in conflict—most notably with the indigenous peoples that bordered it. While engaging powerful military leaders like Little Turtle, Tecumseh, and Black Hawk in the northwestern regions, the United States also engaged native tribes in the southeast. This region was home to two flourishing cultures, the Creek and the Seminole. Both nations would encounter the United States in the early days of its expansion into the region and both would be forever altered.
The Creek are a Muskogean-speaking group of Southeast Indian cultural extraction, originally based in Georgia and Alabama but having territorial borders extending into Tennessee, Louisiana, and Florida. The name “Creek” is actually a general term for numerous indigenous communities linked through the same language family. It was the early English settlers who referred to the Muskogee tribes as the Creek due to the location of their major villages, which was always along a river or a stream. The name has remained to this day to refer to both a political and military confederation of tribes in the nineteenth century as well as the remnants of this language group. The Creek were organized into a loose alliance for the purpose of defense but each community was also self-sustaining. As the colonial powers of Europe jockeyed for dominance in the New World, they encountered the Creek Nation at its height. Although the Creek had maintained a friendly relationship with the Spanish and the French, it was with the English that they enjoyed peace and prosperity. The English won their new allies over with weapons which allowed the Creek to maintain their regional dominance. In return, many Creek communities supported the English and their colonial possessions in various wars against the French, the Spanish, as well as other tribes.
When the American colonies rebelled against the British, the Creek Nation by and large remained neutral. However, several of the individual communities did lend their support to their old allies. As a result of their support of the British in the American Revolution, the Creek lost a great deal of their original territory when left to the mercy of the United States. The gradual erosion of the Creek Nation began in Georgia in 1783, when valuable land between the Tuglaloo and Apalachee Rivers was ceded to state authorities. This decision did not sit well with other Creek leaders and tensions between the individual communities and the State of Georgia rose to new levels. In April of 1786, the Creek Nation declared war against the settlers of Georgia. Although there were several attempts at reaching a settlement, a state of quasi-war continued to exist. In 1790, the Creek were forced to accept the provisions of the Treaty of New York City, which ceded lands in Georgia. Although there were efforts by many Creek leaders to remain neutral, the borderlands were ablaze with conflict.
Heavily influenced by the teachings of Tecumseh, Chief William Weatherford (also known as Red Eagle) of the Coweta Creek tribe led his people in a series of raids against American settlements in 1813—this would become known as the first Creek War. In August of 1813, Weatherford and 700 warriors attacked Ft. Mims, overwhelming the garrison there and raiding the surrounding communities. The subsequent civilian casualties raised the ire of both the Americans and the more neutral Creek villages, who allied against Weatherford and his forces. An army of 5,000 volunteers under General Andrew Jackson, augmented by Creek and Cherokee warriors, was raised and soon moved in on the rebel band. What occurred next not only divided the Creek, but forever altered the course of their development as a nation.
Mark C Carnes, Ed, U.S. History. (New York: MacMillan Library Reference, 1996).
Kenneth C. Davis, Don’t Know Much About History. (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2003).
Gilbert Legay, Atlas of Indians. (Hauppage: Barron’s, 1995)
Marilyn Miller and Marian Faux, Eds., American History Desk Reference. (New York: MacMillan, 1997).
Carl Waldman, Atlas of the North American Indian. (New York: Checkmark Book, 2000).
