Creek Indian Tribe Quotes
In 1832 the Supreme Court held that the state of Georgia could not remove Creek and Cherokee Indians from lands that had been guaranteed to them by a federal treaty. The president disagreed with the court, then headed by John Marshall:. Marshall could not do so without the executive. The Indians were illegally removed to Western lands.
Describing events in the battle of Talishatchee, where Tennessee soldiers under General Andrew Jackson wiped out every one of the adult male Red Stick Creek Indians in the settlement in retaliation for their massacre of the population of Fort Mims:
The Creeks—the Cherokee traditional rivals and enemies were under a different command but all the other Indians were under Stand Watie’s command. In this quotation, we see the negative reaction that many Southerners had toward Quantrill and his cutthroats. This quote and others show that the Quantrill atrocities were generally known throughout the South. The Confederate command structure however, did nothing to rein in Quantrill’s atrocities much less discipline him for his war crimes. It is not clear to whom Waite referred as “enemies”—the Union troops or the Creeks, their traditional enemies. The slavery issue of the Civil War divided more than the nation. The Cherokee’s were badly divided over social class, aristocracy, strategy in keeping their land and tribal sovereignty, and slavery. A number of the older families had Black slaves. Stand Waite was one of the old, traditional, Cherokee, families, who were not happy losing their traditional power and influence when Jon Ross was elected tribal leader. He and his majority faction would not support the South in the Civil War. Stand Waite did, and after Ross was murdered Waite became the Second Cherokee Tribal leader.
He was referring to the Chickasaw, Creek (Muscogee), and Choctaw Native American Tribes. Historically individual whites including families had little difficulty with most Native Americans so long as they were few. The hostilities against whites generally began when large numbers of whites began to settle on traditional Indian land or hunting grounds and contest the Native Americans for their own land. The entire conflict between Native Americans and whites was in essence a battle for land.
Jefferson probably had the most enlightened policy towards the Native Americans and did not see them as a people apart from Americans. His phrase “we consider them as part of ourselves” would not be concurred with by another American President for over 100 years. Unfortunately, there were many American whites who did not have Jefferson’s view, and there was no practical way the Federal Government at the time could enforce benign and equality policies. Relations with most Indian tribes went down hill and may have reached the lowest point under the Administration of Andrew Jackson.
