Chronicles of Oklahoma
Volume 7, No. 4
December, 1929
BRIEF OUTLINE OF THE CHOCTAW AND THE CHICKASAW NATIONS IN THE INDIAN TERRITORY 1820 TO 1860
By Muriel H. Wright
Assisted by Peter J. Hudson
Page 388
The first cession of lands by the United States, from the country now partly included within the limits of Southern Oklahoma,
was made to the Choctaws, under the terms of a treaty concluded near Doak's Stand, Mississippi, on October 28, 1820.1 This treaty was signed by Major General Andrew Jackson, of the United States Army, and General Thomas Hinds, of the State
of Mississippi, as commissioners on the part of the United States; and the three celebrated chiefs Apvkshvnntvbbi, Pashimmvlhtaha, and
1In reducing the Choctaw language to writing, the English alphabet has always been used since the time that the first texts
were produced soon after the arrival of the missionaries among the Choctaws. In the Choctaw language i is pronounced as i
in machine; long e as e in they. The vowel a has two sound values: namely, (1) a broad as in father; and (2) modified a, with
almost the sound of a in what or, more nearly, the sound of u in sun. Early authorities adopted the letter v (v in Italic
type) to indicate the modified sound of a, since the consonant v is absent in Choctaw. This undoubtedly was a wise plan, otherwise
many persons who were unfamiliar with the Choctaw, as a spoken language, might have had a tendency to render modified a as
a in that, when pronouncing Choctaw words and, especially, names. The editors of Rev. Cyrus Byington’s dictionary of the Choctaw
language (Bulletin 46 of the Bureau of Ethnology) used the dot under the a to indicate its modified sound. However, it seems
that this diacritical mark, as it is used in the Standard Dictionary of the English language, does not give quite the proper
pronounciation to the sensitive ear of the Choctaw. Also, it is not always convenient to place the dot under the a to indicate
its proper sound in writing a word in Choctaw. Hence, it seems wisest to follow the old authorities and adopt v (or v in Italic
type) to indicate the modified sound of a in a Choctaw word or name, in this and subsequent papers.
A peculiarity of the Choctaw language is to be found in the nasal sounds, which have no equivalents in the English alphabet,
though they can be approximated by ang, ing, ong, ung. These nasal sounds were formerly indicated by placing a line under the vowels but are given in italics here.
For the derivation, meaning, and pronunciation of the names of the three chiefs, Amosholitvbbi, Apvkshvnnvtvbbi, and Pashimmvlhtaba,
see Appendix A.
Page 389
Amosholitvbbi,2 together with one hundred head men and warriors, on the part of the Choctaw Nation. The second article of this treaty defined
the boundaries of the cession made to the Choctaws, as follows:
Beginning on the Arkansas River, where the lower boundary line of the Cherokees strikes the same; thence up the Arkansas to
the Canadian Fork, and up the same to its source; thence due south to Red River; thence down Red River, three miles below
the mouth of Little River, which empties itself into Red River on the north side; thence a direct line to the beginning.
According to this description, the Choctaws were ceded the country extending from South Central Arkansas Territory, across
what is now Southern Oklahoma and the Panhandle of Texas, into the east central part of New Mexico. The cession lay between
the Red River, its southern boundary, and the Arkansas and Canadian rivers, which together formed its northern boundary.
The western boundary, as described above, was never marked, since it lay on foreign soil west of the 100th Meridian, which
had been established as the boundary between the United States and the Spanish possessions in the Southwest, under the terms
of the treaty signed with Spain, on February 22, 1819. Thus, in reality, the Choctaws were ceded a part of their lands in
“New Spain,” owing to the fact that General Jackson and his colleague—in addition to other leading officials at Washington—were
unfamiliar with the topography of the southwestern part of the region known at that time as Arkansas Territory.
Early in the spring of 1821, Secretary of War John C.
2Kappler, “Laws and Treaties” (Indian Affairs) vol II, pp. 191-95. (During the negotiations, P ashimmvlhtaha, as one of the delegates representing the Choctaws, said that a part of the country being offered his ’people
was, in Mexican territory and that a line running due south from the source of the Canadian would never touch any portion
of Red River. He had accompanied hunting parties to that region and knew it well. General Jackson then produced a map which
purported to show the country being assigned to the Choctaws. Looking at it carefully, P ashimmvlhtaha is recorded to have said, “The paper is not true.” He then stooped down and drew an outline of the Canadian and
upper branches of the Red River on the ground with the handle of his pipe-tomahawk, remarking, “There is the north; here is
the south; and, you see, the line between the two points does not touch any portion of Red River.”—H. B. Cushman, “A History
of the Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Natchez Indian,” pp. 124-5. )
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Calhoun appointed Henry D. Downs, of Mississippi, as a special commissioner to survey the eastern boundary of the Choctaw
country in the West. Immediately after negotiating the Treaty of Doak’s Stand, the War Department had learned that this boundary
would affect the preemption claims of many white settlers of Southwestern Arkansas Territory, who were living west of such
a line. That he might be informed concerning the true condition of affairs, Secretary Calhoun instructed Mr. Downs to find
out and report upon the number of white inhabitants in the Choctaw country, the position of their settlements, and the point
from which a line could be drawn to serve as its eastern boundary, “deviating as little as possible from that called for by
the treaty.”3
Mr. Downs began his survey on Sunday, August 19, 1821. It was found that a certain dogwood tree on the north bank of Red River,
three miles below the mouth of Little River, stood at the southeast corner of the Choctaw country. This tree was selected
to serve as a corner post, the letters U. S. being marked on its southeast side and C. N. on its northwest side. From there,
the line was run in a northeastern direction to the south bank of the Arkansas, opposite the corner of the Western Cherokee
country, which was located (from 1817 to 1828) at the mouth of Point Remove Creek on the north bank of the river.4 The running of the line was completed on Sunday, September 23, a post being set up to designate the northeast corner of the
Choctaw Nation and marked “115 miles 19 chains 50 links” (i.e., the distance from Red River) on its south side, “C. N.” on
its west side, and “U. S.” on its east side. This post was one mile and thirty chains from the Cherokee
4Under the terms of the Cherokee treaty of July 8, 1817, the Cherokees of Arkansas, or Western Cherokees were assigned lands
on the White River north of the Arkansas. The lower boundary line of this tract from the mouth of Point Remove Creek to the
White River was surveyed in the spring of 1919, by William Rector under the authority of the commissioner of the General Land
Office.—Charles C. Royce, “Cherokee Nation of Indians,” in Fifth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, p. 222. see, also,
map of the territory assigned the Western Cherokees in Arkansas (Plate IX), accompanying the same.
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corner, the Arkansas River being six hundred and fifty yards wide at that point. The survey was resumed on October 4, the
meanders of the Arkansas River being followed on its south bank, to the mouth of the Canadian.5
In his report accompanying the map and field notes of his survey, Mr. Downs stated that white settlers were scattered along
the Arkansas as far west as the mouth of the Canadian, and along Red River as far up as the mouth of the Kiamichi. He suggested
that a line drawn from the mouth of the Canadian River to the mouth of Jacks Fork on the Kiamichi, thence down the latter
stream to Red River, should be adopted as the eastern boundary of the Choctaw country. This would include about 375 white
families as inhabitants of Arkansas Territory, and would necessitate the retrocession of an estimated amount of 6,500,000
acres on the part of the Choctaws. As a matter of fact, if the line proposed by Mr. Downs had been made the eastern boundary
of their country, they would have been forced to return approximately 9,000,000 acres to the Government.
Owing to continued complaints from the citizens of Arkansas Territory, Congress passed an act on March 3, 1823, establishing
the western boundary of Arkansas on a line drawn due south from the southwest corner of Missouri to Red River.6 This new boundary was far west of the Choctaw line as surveyed by Mr. Downs in 1821. There was great rejoicing among the
people of the Territory when this news reached them, but, much to their dismay, it was found upon examination that the land
claims of a number of settlers were even yet in the Choctaw country. In a letter addressed to Secretary Calhoun, dated December
22, 1823, Henry C. Conway, delegate to Congress from Arkansas, called attention to this fact. He also submitted a petition
from the Territorial Legislature, seeking another change in the western boundary of Arkansas and suggesting that it be established
still farther west along a line drawn south from the falls of the Verdigris River to the mouth of the Kiamichi on Red River.
During the next ses-
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sion of Congress, additional legislation, enacted on May 23, 1824, moved the western boundary of Arkansas so that it began
at a point forty miles west of the southwest corner of Missouri and ran due south to Red River.7 A short time afterward, the new boundary was surveyed by John C. Brown. This line ran a few miles east of the present site
of Muskogee to the Red River, striking the left bank of the Kiamichi at its confluence with that stream.8
These changes in the Arkansas boundary were made without the consent of the Choctaws, the question of their ownership of the
country in the western part of the, Territory, seemingly being a matter of small importance. As soon as Mr. Downs had submitted
the report of his survey in 1821, Secretary Calhoun contemplated making a proposition to the Choctaws for altering the eastern
boundary of the lands assigned them under the Treaty of Doak’s Stand. Finally, in the fall of 1824, a delegation of Choctaws
was induced to proceed to Washington to negotiate a new treaty. The members of this delegation were Apvkshvnnvtvbbi, Pashimmvihtaha, Amosholitvbbi, Robert Cole, Daniel McCurtain, Talking Warrior, Red Fort, Nitvkechi, David Folsom, and John L. McDonald, with John Pitchlynn as interpreter. On January 20, 1825, a treaty was agreed upon
and signed by John C. Calhoun, as commissioner on the part of the United States, and the members of the Choctaw delegation,
with the exception of Apvkshvnnvtvbbi and Pashimmvlhtaha, both of whom had died since their departure from Mississippi on their mission to Washington. The first article of
the new treaty read as follows:9
The Choctaw Nation do hereby cede to the United States all that portion of the land ceded to them by the second article of
the Treaty of Doak Stand, as aforesaid, lying east of a line beginning on the Arkansas, one hundred paces east of Fort Smith,
and running thence, due south, to Red River; it being understood that this line shall constitute, and remain, the permanent
boundary between the United States and the Choctaws; and the United States agreeing to remove such citizens as may be settled
on the west side, to the east side of said line, and prevent future settlements from being made on the west thereof.
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Under these terms, all Choctaw lands lying between the line surveyed by Mr. Downs in 1821 and the new eastern boundary, amounting
to 5,030,912 acres, were ceded back to the Government and were thenceforth included in Southwestern Arkansas. The new boundary
was surveyed in 1825-26 by James S. Conway, who spent three months in marking the one hundred and fifty miles from the point
designated on the Arkansas to the Red River. So accurate was his survey that thirty years later when a new survey of the boundary
was ordered it was found the original line did not vary an inch.
In order to carry out the proposed policy of removing all the eastern Indians to the region lying west of Missouri and Arkansas
Territory Congress authorizing the President, by an act of May 28, 1830, to set aside the necessary amount of western territory,
belonging to the United States, for the use of the Indians.10 Within two weeks after this legislation had been signed by President Jackson, steps were taken to secure final treaties for
the removal of all the tribes living east of the Mississippi River.
Early in the following September, John H. Eaton and John Coffee, as duly authorized commissioners on the part of the Government,
visited the Choctaws at the tribal council house on Dancing Rabbit Creek in Mississippi. On their part the Choctaws were exceedingly
reluctant to cede the balance of their Mississippi lands. The negotiations continued over a period of two weeks, a treaty
being finally drawn up and signed by the “Chiefs, Captains, and Warriors of the Choctaw Nation,” on September 27, 1830; securing
their consent to the removal of their people from Mississippi and the relinquishment of all their tribal lands in that state.
No additional land was allowed them, other than that assigned them in 1820, the second article of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit
Creek being as follows:11
11Kappler, “Laws and Treaties.” op. cit., pp. 310-18. (It may be noted here that the Choctaws received no consideraion in money for their Mississippi lands, amounting to 10,423,139
acres in 1830. This was the basis of the well known “Net Proceeds Claim,” in which the Choctaws maintained that they were
rightfully due the net proceeds of the $8,095,139, received by the United States subsequent to 1830, from the sale of the
lands ceded by them according to the terms of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek).
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The United States under a grant specially to be made by the President of the U. S. shall cause to be conveyed to the Choctaw
Nation a tract of country west of the Mississippi River, in fee simple to them and their descendants, to inure to them while
they shall exist as a nation and live on it, beginning near Fort Smith where the Arkansas boundary crosses the Arkansas River,
running thence to the source of the Canadian fork; if in the limits of the United States, or those limits; thence due south
to Red River, and down Red River to the west boundary of the Territory of Arkansas; thence north along that line to the beginning.
The boundary of the same to be agreeable to the Treaty made and concluded at Washington in the year 1825. The grant to be
executed as soon as the present Treaty shall be ratified.
This treaty was signed by President Andrew Jackson and proclaimed on February 21, 1831. In fulfilling the last provision of
the article mentioned above, a patent was issued to the Choctaw Nation on March 23, 1842, signed by President John Tyler.
It also bore the signatures of Daniel Webster, as Secretary of State, and John Spencer, as Secretary of War.12 At the end of their main immigration to the Indian Territory in 1834, the Choctaws established their government under a written
constitution which provided for the organization of four departments: namely, legislative, executive, judicial, and military.
Under the old tribal form of government that had existed from the latter part of the 18th Century, the Choctaws had been divided
into three distinct divisions, each of which was composed of several clans. Each of these three divisions had its own chief
and was entirely separate in its local government. However, the three chiefs, the sub-chiefs, and all the leading warriors
met at irregular intervals in a general council to consider matters of common interest for the whole tribe. Some years before
the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, the
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parts of the country in which each of the divisions lived were called “districts,” for political purposes, though their boundaries
do not seem to have been clearly defined. Beginning with 1826, when the Choctaws first adopted a constitutional form of government
in Mississippi, the position of chief was made elective in each district, every four years. In 1830, Greenwood Leflore was
the ruling chief over the Western District; Amosholitvbbi, over the Eastern (or Northeastern) District; and Nitvkechi, over the Southern (or Southeastern) District.
Early in the summer of 1831, before the first general migration of the Choctaws took place, Amosholitvbbi and Nitvkechi addressed a communication to the Secretary of War, in which it was stated that the localities had been selected where
the people of each of the old districts should settle upon their arrival in the new country. Those of Greenwood LeFlore’s
district (the Western District) were to settle on the east side of “Micqubisher,”—ie., the Kiamichi River;13 those from Nitvkechi’s district (the Southern
13The name “Micqubisher” was a corruption of a combination of two Choctaw words, which was used to designate the Kiamichi River,
in the communication, mentioned above, signed by Amosliolitvbbi, Nitvkechi, and Capt. Hopaii-shvbbi and addressed to the Secretary
of war, John H. Eaton, under date of June 16, 1831. In the Choctaw language, the letter k takes the place of the combination
of cq in English; the consonant r is wanting. Thus the first two syllables of Micquibisher should have been written “miku,”
which in itself is a corruption of “miko” meaning “chief.” The Choctaws also spoke of the U. S. Government agents and officials as “miko.” Evidently, the b in the penultimate syllable of Micqubisher was a typographical error for the letter a; then, also, correcting
the syllable with the letter a, one would have aisha (properly aiasha) instead of bisher, meaning “the place where he or it is.” It seems very probable that this name referred to old Fort Townson at the mouth of
the Kiamichl River, where Lieut. J. F. Stephenson, of the 7th Infantry, U. S. A., was in charge of a subsistance station for
the Choctaws, in the spring of 1831. More than likely, the writer of the letter for the chiefs to Secretary Eaton did not
know the name, much less the spelling, of the Kiamichi River. Therefore, the Choctaw words “Miko-aiasha” were used to designate that stream from the fact that Lieutenant Stephenson was stationed at its mouth; that is,
“the place where the chief (Government agent) is or stays.” This explanation is corroborated from the fact that the Kiamiehi
River formed the boundary line between Oklafalaya District and Pushamataha District from the time they were first organized.
Nitvkechi settled west of the Kiamichi and continued as chief of the latter district; Thomas LeFlore settled east of the river
and became chief of the former district, carrying out the plans of settlement agreed upon in the above mentioned letter.
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District), on the west side of the Kiamichi; and those from Amosholitvbbi’s district (The Northeastern District), in the northern part of the new country, along the Arkansas River. According to
this plan, when the first general council of the Choctaws took place in the Indian Territory, the new country was divided
into three political districts, with definite boundary lines, each district being named after some association with its corresponding
district in Mississippi. The district in the northern part of the country, bordering the Arkansas and Canadian rivers, was
officially called “Mosholatubbee District;” that to the southwest bordering the Kiamichi, on the east and Red River on the
south, “Pushamataha District;” and that in the southeastern part of the nation, bordering the Arkansas boundary on the east
and Red River on the south, “Oklafalaya or Red River District,” (later changed to Apukshunnubbee District).14
Under the provisions of the constitution of the Choctaw Nation, each of the three political districts was governed by a chief
elected every four years by the people of his district, the incumbent being eligible to succeed himself for a second term
only. The General Council, or legislative body, consisted of the three chiefs and twenty-seven council members who were chosen
in annual elections by the people of their respective districts. Judges were elected by the people in each district and trial
by jury was guaranteed, the jurors being selected in the ordinary way. The fourth, or military department was composed of
a general, elected by the people, and thirty-three captains from each district, the latter having been chosen under the provisions
of the fifteenth article of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. The first seat of the government of the Choctaw Nation, in
the Indian Territory, was called “Nvnih Waya.” Its site was about two and one-half miles northwest of the present town of
Tuskahoma, in Pushmataha County, where a commodious council house of hewed logs was completed in 1838.15
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UNION WITH THE CHICKASAWS
In carrying out the general policy of the Government to secure the cession of all lands belonging to any Indian tribe east
of the Mississippi River, a treaty was concluded to that effect with the Chickasaws at their council house, on Pontotoc Creek,
Mississippi, October 20, 1832. General John Coffee had been especially appointed by President Jackson, as the commissioner
on the part of the United States, to enter into the necessary negotiations. The representatives on the part of the Chickasaws
were Ishtehotopa, Tishomingo, Levi Colbert, George Colbert, William M’Gilvery, and Samuel Sealy, besides fifty-seven members
of the tribal council.
At that time the Chickasaw country lay in Northern Mississippi and Northwestern Alabama. This country was divided into four
districts: namely, Ishtehotopa District, with Ishtehotopa as chief; Tishomingo District, with Tishu Miko (or Tishomingo), as chief;16 the Sealy District, with Samuel Sealy as chief; the McGilvery District, with Wiliam McGilvery as chief. Under the old tribal
form of government, Ishtehotopa was the hereditary chief or Miko, generally called the “king,” in English. However, at the time of the removal treaties, he was merely the nominal head
of the Chickasaws, the real control being in the hands of the sub-chiefs and certain prominent mixed blood members of the
Nation.
The terms of the Treaty of Pontotoc provided that the Chickasaws cede all their country east of the Mississippi to the United
States. These lands were to be surveyed and sold by the Government, under the general provisions with
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reference to public lands in Mississippi and Alabama. The proceeds from these land sales, aside from certain stipulated expenses,
were to constitute a trust fund to remain under the direction of the Government for the benefit of the Chickasaw Nation. A
part of this trust fund, under provisions included in the fourth article of the treaty, was to be used in the purchase of
a new country for the Chickasaws, west of the Mississippi. Two years after this treaty, a supplemental treaty was concluded
at Washington on May 24, 1834. It made further detailed stipulations with reference to the Chickasaw land sales and provided
that a commission of seven members of the tribe should pass upon the validity of all such sales. This commission also had
the power to judge the competency of individual Chickasaws in the management of their personal funds arising under the terms
of the Treaty of Pontotoc. The members of the commission were Ishtehotopa, Levi Colbert, George Colbert, Martin Colbert, Isaac
Albertson, Henry Love, and Benjamin Love.
From the time that the Chickasaws were first approached on the subject of disposing of all their country in the East,—in the
late fall of 1826,—Government officials steadily urged that they settle in the Choctaw country, west of the Mississippi. The
Choctaws and Chickasaws were related tribes, ethnologically. They spoke the same language, with the exception of some dialectal
differences, and the members of the two tribes had intermarried to some extent. The plan of uniting the two tribes was at
last consummated in a treaty concluded at Doaksville, on January 17, 1837. The signers on behalf of the Choctaws were the
chiefs Thomas LeFlore, of Oklafalaya District; Nitvkechi, of Pushamataha District; and Joseph Kincaid, of Mosholatubbe District,
in addition to seventeen commissioners who had been especially appointed by the General Council.17 A delegation composed of John McLish, Pitman Colbert, James Brown, and James Perry, signed the treaty in behalf of the Chickasaws.
17Of these seventeen commissioners Peter P. Pitchlynn, George w. Harkins, Israel Folsom, Robert M. Jones, Silas D. Fisher, and
Samuel wowster (Wowster or Worcester?) signed their names; John McKenney, Eyachahofaa, Nathaniel Folsom, Lewis Breashears,
James Fletcher, George Pusley, and the captains Oakchia, Thomas Hayes, Pistambee, Holahtahoma, Eyotah, Isaac Perry, Nowahhambee,
made their marks. Other signatures appearing on the treaty were those of William Armstrong, Acting Superintendent Western
Territory; Henry R. Carter, Conductor of the Chickasaw Delegation; Josiah S. Doak, Vincent B. Tims, Daniel McCurtain, U. S.
Interpreter; P. J. Humphreys, and J. T. Sprague, Lieutenant U. S. Marine Corps.—Kappler, “Laws and Treaties,” op cit., pp.
486-8.
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The Treaty of Doaksville provided that the Chickasaws should have the privilege of forming a district in the Choctaw country,
to be known as the “Chickasaw District of the Choctaw Nation.” They were to hold this district on the same terms with the
Choctaws, except the right of its disposal which was to be held in common by the two tribes. The second article of the treaty
defined the boundaries of the Chickasaw District, as follows:18
The Chickasaw district shall be bounded as follows, viz: beginning on the north bank of Red River, at the mouth of Island
Bayou, about eight or ten miles below the mouth of False Wachitta; thence running north along the main channel of said bayou
to its source; thence along the dividing ridge between the Wachitta and Low Blue Rivers to the road leading from Fort Gibson
to Fort Wachitta; thence along said road to the line dividing Musha-la-tubbee and Push-meta-haw districts; thence eastwardly
along said line to the source of Brushy Creek; thence down said creek to where it flows into the Canadian River, ten or twelve
miles above the mouth of the south fork of the Canadian; thence west along the main Canadian River to its source, if in the
limits of the United States, or to those limits; and thence south to Red River, and down Red River to the beginning.
This district was to have equal representation in the General Council and was to be placed “on an equal footing in every other
respect with any of the other districts” of the Choctaw Nation. The Chickasaws were entitled to all the rights and privileges
of the Choctaws and were subject to the same laws. However, the finances of the two tribes
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were to be kept separate; that is, each retained the right to manage and to participate in its own funds. In consideration
for all these rights and privileges the Chickasaws paid the Choctaws the sum of $530,000.
In order to carry out their part of these provisions, the Choctaws changed their constitution during the ensuing council after
meeting the Chickasaws at Doaksville. From that time, the Choctaw Nation was made up of four districts: namely, Mosholatubbee
District, Pushamataha District, Apuckshunnubbee District, and Chickasaw District. The name of the Oklafalaya District was
changed at this time in honor of the late Apvkshvnnvtvbbi, so long the chief of the Western District of the Choctaws in their
country east of the Mississippi.
Under these constitutional changes, each district had its own chief elected every four years by the citizens within its limits.
The General Council, still consisting of only one legislative branch, was composed of forty members elected annually by the
people, according to the population in each district. This arrangement, however, did not meet the approval of the people generally,
since Apuckshunnubbee District, which had the largest population, had the advantage in the meetings of the General Council.
To rectify this situation, the constitution was changed again in 1843. From that time, the General Council was made up of
two branches, a senate and a house of representatives. Each district had an equal number of senators. Members in the lower
house of the Council were chosen in annual election upon the ratio of one representative for every one thousand inhabitants,
an additional member being allowed for a fractional number of five hundred or more inhabitants. All officials in each district
were to be selected from the citizens living within its boundaries.
As events transpired, these constitutional provisions did not meet the approval of the Chickasaws as a whole, so that as the
years passed they grew more and more dissatisfied with their political connection with the Choctaws.
The Chickasaw District sent duly elected representatives to the General Council in 1841 for the first time. Upon their arrival
in the West, beginning in the fall of 1837, the Chickasaws had settled throughout the Choctaw districts where many of them—especially
the wealthy slave holders
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—remained for a number of years. With the establishment of Fort Washita as a regularly garrisoned post in 1892, each year
saw an increasing number of Chickasaws settling permanently in their own district. However, as late as 1851, it was authoritatively
reported that 3134, or approximately only two-thirds of the total number were living there.
This condition gave the Chickasaw District comparatively few representatives in the lower house of the General Council, the
members of which were apportioned according to the population in each of the several districts. Even though the Chickasaws
living throughout the Choctaw districts had equal rights with any other citizens, yet, since they were scattered throughout
the country, they had little influence in the elections or small chance of ever holding office, for the Choctaws, especially
the full-bloods who were numerically the strongest element, were always inclined to vote for Choctaws. Their attitude was
not one of prejudice against the Chickasaws, but rather one that involved their own interests and loyalty to their own people.
The fact that the Treaty of Doaksville had provided that their financial interests should be kept separate, tended to foster
the spirit of national distinction among both the Chickasaws and the Choctaws.
The Chickasaws were the wealthiest of any of the Indian people in the matter of individual annuities arising from their large,
tribal trust fund. The assertion was frequently made that their wealth was a detriment in some ways, since it made them liable
to the intrigues of traders who were apt to prey upon those of them judged incompetent by the commission appointed under the
terms of the Treaty of 1834. Such a condition gave rise to factional strife among the Chickasaws in 1845.
An annuity of $60,000—the first made to the Chickasaws after their removal to the Indian Territory—was paid out by the United
States in 1844. Each individual’s share was about fourteen dollars. This was considered a large sum, for—it was pointed out
by agents of the Government—a family of five thus drew seventy dollars in cash, enough to keep its members in easy circumstances
for a whole year without further income. Early in the summer of 1845, by mutual agreement among the Chickasaws them-
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selves, the commission of seven (Ishtehotopa, Levi Colbert, George Colbert, Martin Colbert, Isaac Love, and Benjamin Love)
resigned to save in the matter of expense to the Nation, the business in regard to the eastern land sales being practically
completed. It was thought any other affairs relating to them as a nation could be handled by the regularly elected officials
of the Chickasaw District. At the end of the tribal council in which this decision was made and after the leading men had
left the council ground, some other Chickasaws held a meeting and reorganized the old form of tribal government. Ishtehotopa,
as the hereditary chief, or “king,” was made the chief executive, to be assisted by several officials, the principal one of
whom was a “disbursing agent.” Provisions were also made to pay some of these officials annual salaries of twelve hundred
dollars. The new government was upheld by a decided majority of the Chickasaws, most of whom were living outside of the Chickasaw
District, from fifty to one hundred and seventy miles.
When the annuity ($60,000) was about to be made in 1845, the new officials requested Major William Armstrong, United States
superintendent of the Western Territory, to pay it to Ishtehotopa’s agent for distribution among the Chickasaws. The minority
party immediately objected, claiming that the persons advocating such a course were the dupes of traders at Boggy Depot. Since
the minority party constituted the duly elected authorities of the Chickasaw District, Major Armstrong proceeded to pay out
the annuity in the usual manner, share and share alike to each individual. Thus the matter was settled but the feelings aroused
at that time helped to serve as a basis for politics among the Chickasaws for many years. They continued to meet in tribal
councils from time to time for consideration of business in regard to their financial affairs.
Several questions also arose in 1845 that caused friction between the Choctaws and the Chickasaws. In that year, the General
council of the Choctaw Nation passed a law providing that none of the officials of the Chickasaw District should be paid salaries
out of the Choctaw funds.19
19The controversies that arose between the Chickasaws and Choctaws were directly due to the wording of the Treaty of Doaksville,
negotiated in 1837. The financial affairs of both nations were kept entirely separated. Since provisions had been made in
the fifteenth article of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, for the payment of their three district chiefs, three secretaries,
three speakers, and ninety-nine captains (thirty-three to each district), the Choctaws did not feel called upon to pay the
officials in the Chickasaw District, especially since the Treaty of Doaksville made no specific provisions for the same. In
reading the second article of this treaty, it will also be seen that the eastern boundry of the Chickasaw District began “on
the north bank of Red River, at the mouth of Island Bayou, about eight or ten miles below the mouth of False wachitta.” As a matter of fact the mouth of Island Bayou was nearly twenty-six miles below the mouth of the Washita River. As the region west of Island Bayou along Red River and up the Washita was one of the
richest sections of the country, many Chickasaws settled there and opened up large cotton plantations. They rightfully claimed
that they were living in the Chickasaw District. On the other hand, the Choctaws maintained—also rightfully—that the Chickasaw
boundary began not more than ten miles below the mouth of the Washita River, according to the terms of the agreement made
at Doaksville. If the latter, view were true, many of the Chickasaw settlers in that region would be living east of the Chickasaw
boundry in Pushamataha District. The feelings that were aroused over this contention were exceedingly bitter on both sides.
Page 403
A dispute likewise arose over the eastern boundary of the Chickasaw District, which involved the jurisdiction of the chief
and the circuit courts of that district and the Pushmataha District. It also involved the matter of apportionment for representation
in the General Councils. As a result of these controversies, the following year (1846) some of the Chickasaws asked that their
people be assigned a district where they could have their own government.
Further changes were made in the constitution of the Choctaw Nation in 1850, during a convention over which Peter P. Pitchlynn
presided as chairman. These changes especially affected the judicial system. The judicial power of the Nation was vested in
a supreme court, district circuit courts, and county courts. The General Council, by a join vote, elected four supreme judges,
one from each district, every four years; it likewise elected four district judges every two years. The Supreme Court had
appellate jurisdiction only, under such regulations as were prescribed by law. It met once a year at the capital of the Nation,
usually during the session of the General Council. The District Circuit Court had original jurisdiction over all criminal
cases in the district, not otherwise provided for by law; exclusive original jurisdiction over all crimes amounting to a felony,
and original jurisdiction in all civil cases not cog-
Page 404
nizable before the county judges. District Court was held four times a year in each district.20
The whole nation was divided into nineteen counties, each of which had a judge, elected by the people every two years, and
an inferior court that took cognizance of all minor offenses, tried cases in which the amount did not exceed fifty dollars,
and held the preliminary trials in criminal cases. It also had jurisdiction in all matters relating to disbursement of money
for county and district purposes. All cases tried by the county courts could be appealed to the higher courts in the usual
order. The nineteen counties, according to districts were: Mosholatubbee District,—Skullyville, Sugar Loaf, Sans Bois, and
Gaines Creek counties; Apukshunnubbee District,—Wade, Nashoba, Eagle, Red River, Bok Tuklo, Towson, and Cedar counties; Pushmataha
District,— Kiamichi, Tiger Spring, Jacks Fork, and Shappaway counties; Chickasaw District, Panola, Wichita, Caddo, and Perry
counties.
As the years passed, the sentiment among the Chickasaws in favor of a separation from the Choctaws increased, so that early
in the fifties, a large majority was pressing the United States Government for such a move. The first step toward this end
came in a settlement of the dispute that arose over the eastern boundary of the Chickasaw District, an agreement being reached
in a second treaty concluded at Doaksville, on November 4, 1854. Those signing this treaty as the properly authorized commissioners
of the part of the Choctaws, were Thomas J. Pitchlynn, Edmund McKenny, R. M. Jones, Daniel Folsom, and Samuel Garland. The
Chickasaw commission was composed of Edmund Pickens, Benjamin S. Love, James T. Gaines, Sampson Folsom, and Edmund Perry.
The four district chiefs of the Choctaw Nation, at that time, also signed their names; namely,
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George W. Hawkins, of Apukshunnubbee District; Peter Folsom, of Mosholatubbee District; Nicholas Cochanaur, of Pushamataha
District; and Jackson Frazier, of Chickasaw District. The first article of the treaty defined the boundaries of the Chickasaw
District, as follows:21
Beginning on the north bank of the Red River, at the mouth of Island Bayou, where it empties into the Red River, about twenty-six
miles on a straight line, below the mouth of False Wachitta, thence running a northwesterly course, along the main channel
of said bayou to the junction of three prongs of said bayou nearest the dividing ridge between the Wachitta and Low Blue rivers,
as laid down upon Capt. R. L. Hunter’s map; thence northerly along the eastern prong of Island Bayou to its source; thence,
due north to the Canadian River, thence west, along the main Canadian to one hundred degrees of west longitude; thence south
to Red River and down Red River to the beginning; provided however if the line running due north from the eastern source of
Island Bayou to the main Canadian shall not include Allen’s or Wapanucka academy within the Chickasaw district then an offset
shall be made from said line so as to leave said academy two miles within the Chickasaw district, north, west, and south from
the lines of boundary.
In the second article, the Choctaws agreed that the Chickasaws should employ a surveyor to run and mark the eastern boundary
of the Chickasaw District. On their part the Chickasaws agreed to bear all the expenses of the survey. It was mutually agreed
that the chiefs of each of the Choctaw districts should appoint a commissioner to supervise the running of the line which
was to be marked at every mile upon trees where there was sufficient timber, or otherwise by permanent monuments of stone.
Such a survey was to be completed by the 1st of August, 1855. Before the expiration of that time, however, an entirely new
treaty was concluded at Washington between the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations and the United States.
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Two days after the agreement had been signed at Doaksville, November 6, 1854, the General Council passed an act changing the
name of Tiger Spring County, in Pushamataha District, to Blue County with the same boundary lines. About the same time, the
name of Shappaway County was changed to that of Atoka. In November, 1855, Mosholatubbee District was laid off into five counties;
namely, Skullyville, Gaines, Sugar Loaf, Sans Bois, and Tobaksi counties. Tobaksi (Coal) County lay in the northeastern part
of the part of the District, east of the new boundary line of the Chickasaw District.
SEPARATION OF THE CHOCTAWS AND CHICKASAWS
The dissatisfaction of the Chickasaws over their position in the Choctaw government was wholly along political lines at first
for they were personally friendly with the Choctaw people, among whom they had settled. Since they represented only about
one-fourth of the total number of citizens in the Choctaw Nation, they were generally outvoted by the Choctaws, who thus retained
full control of the government. The Chickasaws were placed in an anomalous position in that they not only participated in
the government of the Choctaw Nation but also kept up their former tribal organization as well. It was, but natural that they
would have a deeper interest in the latter especially since that organization, in which only Chickasaw officials took part,
had full charge of their financial affairs.
On their side, the Choctaws maintained that they had not sold any of their country under the terms of the Treaty of Doaksville,
in 1837; that they had granted the Chickasaws the right to incorporate themselves as a part of the Choctaw Nation, with equal
rights and privileges with all other citizens within its borders. They held that they could not suspend jurisdiction over
any portion of their country, without sacrificing their national interests.
In 1852, delegations from both nations had been sent to Washington to secure a settlement from the Government of certain claims
arising from the terms of the removal treaties that had been made twenty years previous to that time. Edmund Pickens, Benjamin
S. Love, and Sampson Folsom were the authorized delegates from the Chickasaw Nation. Forbis LeFlore and Thompson McKinney
were the
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delegates from the Choctaw Nation. The Chickasaws succeeded in negotiating a treaty on June 22, 1852, with Kenton Harper,
acting as commissioner on the part of the United States. Its provisions included (1) the sale of the remnant of the lands
belonging to the Chickasaws in the East. (2) a settlement of their claims under an accounting of their financial affairs to
be made by the Secretary of the Interior, (3) certain stipulations in regard to the management of the Chickasaw trust fund.22
In addition to payments due many individual citizens of the Choctaw Nation for their farm implements, live stock, and special
allotments of land in Mississippi, all of which they had been forced to abandon at the time of the removal to the Indian Territory,
it was found that the Nation was due the net proceeds from the sales made by the Government of the tribal lands relinquished
under the terms of the Treaty of 1830. Forbis LeFlore and Thompson McKinney learned in conversations with some of the clerks
and officials in the Indian Office at Washington that the “Net Proceeds Claim,” especially, was due the Choctaw Nation in
accordance with justice. They returned to the Indian Territory and imparted this information to some of the leading Choctaws.
In 1853, the General Council made provisions for the appointment of an authorized delegation to represent the Choctaw Nation
at Washington, with full power to settle all claims for its citizens. Peter P. Pitchlynn, Israel Folsom, Dickson W. Lewis,
and Samuel Garland were members of this delegation, LeFlore and McKinney not receiving reappointment on account of politics
in the Nation. Even though the delegation put forth every effort to secure the recognition of the Net Proceeds claim by the
United States, it was steadily refused by Government authorities for two years.
In the meantime, the Government had been contemplating the removal of the Indians of Nebraska, Kansas, and Texas to permanent
reservations in the western part of the Indian Territory. The fact that the region south of the Canadian in the western part
of the Choctaw Nation was practically uninhabited, with the exception of a few villages of the Wichitas, some Delawares, and
roving bands of the Plains tribes, led the Government to consider securing
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this country from the Chickasaws and Choctaws for the purpose of permanent, Indian reservations.
In 1855, the Chickasaws appointed Sampson Folsom and Edmund Pickens as delegates to proceed to Washington to urge that the
Chickasaws be assigned a country where they could establish their own government. The General Council of the Choctaw Nation
also reappointed the members of the delegation, of 1853 to remain in Washington for the purpose of securing a “final and satisfactory
settlement of all unadjusted Choctaw matters.” Upon the arrival of the Chickasaw delegates. George W. Manypenny, as commissioner
on the part of the United States, entered into negotiations looking toward the settlement of affairs with two nations.
Four leading issues were involved in these negotiations. The Government sought a relinquishment from the Choctaws of all their
claims to any territory west of the hundredth meridian. It also wished to secure a lease from the Choctaws and Chickasaws
of all their common territory between the 98th and the 100th meridians for the settlement of other Indian tribes thereon.
The Chickasaws demanded that a separate district be assigned them where they could establish their own government. The Choctaws
held out for a settlement of their Net Proceeds claim from the United States.
The negotiations continued for a period of three months, a treaty finally being drawn up and signed on June 22, 1855. Under
its terms, all lands held under the Choctaw patents, issued in 1842, were held in common by the Choctaws and Chickasaws. The
Chickasaws were assigned all the country lying between the eastern boundary of the former Chickasaw District, as defined by
the terms of the Treaty of Doaksville in 1845, and the 98th Meridian, to be organized under their own laws. All the territory
lying between the ninety-eighth and the hundredth meridians (from this time referred to as the Leased District) was leased
to the United States for the permanent settlement of the Wichitas and other Indians thereon, the Choctaws and Chickasaws retaining the right to settle anywhere
within its limits. In consideration for the above relinquishment and lease, the United States paid $800,000, three-fourths
of this sum to the Choctaws and one-fourth
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to the Chickasaws. The Net Proceeds claim of the Choctaws was to be submitted for adjudication to the United States Senate,
whose decision was to be final. With the exception of the Chickasaw District the laws of the Choctaw Nation were coincident
with all the country included within the boundaries as defined in the Choctaw patent. Any Choctaw or Chickasaw had the right
to settle within the jurisdiction of either of the two nations, with all rights as a citizen of that nation. In consideration
for the stipulations contained in the treaty, the Choctaws were paid $150,000 out of the national fund of the Chickasaws held
in trust by the United States. As was formerly the case, all their financial affairs were to be kept separate, no citizen
of either nation should be entitled to participate in the funds belonging to the other nation.
The treaty of 1855, was submitted to the General Council of the Chickasaws, its ratification being confirmed by that body
on October 3, 1855, with Joel Kemp, as president of the council; Dougherty Colbert, as financial clerk; and Cyrus Harris,
as clerk of the Council. However, this ratification was made upon the condition that the nineteenth article of the Treaty
be amended to provide for the appointment of commissioners by the contracting parties to supervise the survey and marking
of the eastern and western boundaries of the Choctaw Nation and the western boundary of the new Chickasaw District.
The new treaty was also approved by the General Council of the Choctaw Nation and signed by the authorities of the same on
November 16, 1855: namely, by Tandy Walker, as president of the Senate; Kennedy McCurtain, as speaker of the House; George
W. Harkins, as chief of Apukshunnubbee District; Nicholas Cochanaur, as chief of Pushmataha District; and Adam Christy, as
speaker of the Council and acting chief of Mosholatubbee District.
Inasmuch as the Choctaws did not consider the amendment to the nineteenth article, submitted by the General Council of the
Chickasaws, that body met again on December 13, 1855, and rescinded its former action of ratification. This act was signed
by J. McCoy, as president of the Council, Dougherty Colbert, as financial clerk, and Cyrus Harris, as secretary. Johnson Frazier,
chief of the Chickasaw District of the Choctaw Nation and Douglas H. Cooper, U. S.
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Indian agent, attached their signatures as witnesses. Notwithstanding this action on the part of the Chickasaws, the new treaty
was ratified by the United States Senate, in executive session on February 21, 1856, and proclaimed by President Franklin
Pierce, on March 4, following.23
As a result of the Treaty of 1855, the Chickasaws proceeded to organize their own government under the style and title of
“The Chickasaw Nation.” A constitution was drafted and signed on August 30, 1856, during a convention held. at Tishomingo,
with Jackson Kemp, as president, George D. James, as vice-president, and A. V. Brown, as secretary.24 The new government was republican in form, with the regularly organized legislative, executive, and judicial departments.
The constitution contained a bill of rights, and guaranteed trial by jury. The supreme executive power was vested in a chief
magistrate, who was styled as “The Governor of the Chickasaw Nation.” The legislative powers were vested in a senate and house
of representatives. The style of all laws was: “Be it enacted by the Legislature of the Chickasaw Nation.” The judicial branch
was made up of a supreme court, circuit courts, and county courts, the judges of the two higher courts being elected by a
majority vote of both houses of the Legislature.
The Chickasaw Nation was divided into four counties namely, Panola, Pickens, Pontotoc, and Tishomingo. The Legislature met
annually on the first Monday in October, at “Tishomingo City.” The counties corresponded to four senatorial districts, each
electing three senators every two years. The members of the lower house were elected annually by the qualified voters, four
representatives each
24Other members of the convention were: Sampson Folsom, William Simpson, Ar Chanah Tuby, Benjamin Maytuby, Benjamin S. Love,
Cyrus Harris, James Gamble, Martin Shecoe, Lemuel Colbert, Morgan Colbert, Robert Love, G. F. M’Lish, E Me Hutt Tubby, E Lah
Noon Tubby, Joseph Colbert, Im Mun Tubby, Winchester Colbert, Christopher Columbus, Own Ut Ubby, Edmund Pickens, A. Alexander,
D. Colbert, Henry McKinney, Capt. Jerry, Capt. Lewis, Pesubby, James Patterson, Joel Kemp, Capt. Ned, Capt. Wilson Frazier,
Capt. Hoytubby, Capt. Hothli Cha, Capt. T. F. Anderson, Capt. Emoshi Oha, Capt. Emar Ho Ti Cha, Capt. G. W. Allen, Capt. Pis
Um Oun Tubby, Capt. John Parker, Capt. E Lap Am Bee, James N. M’Lish, Sam’l. Colbert, John M. Johnson, William Kemp, Horace
Pratt.
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from Pickens and Tishomingo counties; and five each from Panola and Pontotoc counties. A sheriff and the necessary number
of constables were elected every two years in each county. The constitution also provided that the Legislature should elect
a superintendent of public instruction every four years. In turn, the superintendent appointed school trustees for the neighborhood
schools as they were established in the different counties.
The Choctaws, also, drafted a new constitution in a convention held at Skullyville, during January, 1857. Tandy Walker was
elected as president of the convention; S. D. Fisher, William B. Pitchlynn, and S. P. Willis were elected as clerks.25 The new constitution, commonly known as the “Skullyville Constitution,” provided for the regular organization of the legislative,
executive, and judicial departments, on a plan similar to the constitutions of some of the neighboring states. The offices
of the three district chiefs, which had been adopted in the former constitutions in keeping with the old tribal organization,
were abolished. Instead, there was to be one chief executive to serve under the style of “The Governor of the Choctaw Nation.”
All officers of the Nation at the time of the Skullyville Convention were to hold their positions until the election of other
officials, under the provisions of the new constitution.
The adoption of the Skullyville constitution raised a storm of protest among the Choctaws. Its opponents maintained that the
action of the Skullyville conventionists was arbitrary, that any proposed changes in the laws of the Choctaw Nation should
be submitted to the people for approval. They claimed that the new constitution had been drawn up by designing lawyers who
were paving the way for the regular organization of the Choctaw Nation as a territory of the United States. This would mean
the ultimate breaking up of the communal system of government, the abolishment of the offices of district chiefs being cited
25The following were members of the Skullyville Convention: Robert Kincaid, E. W. Folsom, Kennedy McCurtain, William Cass, Mishoman
Tubbee, McKee King, James Thompson, John Page, James Garland, Mitchell LeFlore, William James, John Lewis, L. D. Garland,
Bushpo Tuppah, Coleman Cole, swinney Frailer, Alfred Wade, William Roebuck, J. E. Dwight, Daniel Folsom, Jacob Folsom, John
McIntosh, William K. Stuart, Francua Battiest.
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as an instance of an attempt to destroy the old laws and customs. To any such changes the Choctaw people were unalterably
opposed.
The opponents of the Skullyville Constitution finally held a convention in Blue County, during which resolutions were drawn
up setting forth their objections. Still, later they met at Doaksville where they framed another constitution and proceeded
to hold an election for a new general council and new chiefs. In the meantime, a governor and other officials had been elected
under the Skullyville Constitution, all of whom were duly recognized by the Federal Government as the constituted authorities
of the Choctaw Nation. The situation became so tense that a state of civil war practically existed among the people. In order
to restore quiet and peace, a resolution was passed by the General Council on October 26, 1858, authorizing the “Governor
of the Choctaw Nation” to call an election for submitting to the vote of the people the question of “Convention or no Convention,
to alter or amend the existing Constitution, or frame a new one.” On September 28, 1869, Ex-Governor Tandy Walker issued a
proclamation, approved by the General Council on October 20, calling for such an election. On October 24, the General Council
passed a resolution stating that the returns of this election lead been “almost unanimous in favor of a convention,” and providing
for the election of delegates to the same to be held on January 11, 1860. Representation in the convention was apportioned
on the same basis as representation from each district in the General Council.
The convention met on the date specified, George Hudson being elected as president and W. A. Dibrell, as clerk. A constitution
was drafted and adopted. It declared a bill of rights guaranteed trial by jury, and provided for the distribution of the powers
of government in regularly organized legislative, judicial, and executive departments.
The legislative department, acting under the style of the “General Council of the Choctaw Nation,” was composed of a senate
and house of representatives. Until apportionment should be made by law in the future, the new constitution provided for the
election of senators by counties, singly and severally, in each of the three organized districts, as follows: In Mosholatubbee
District, Sugar Loaf,
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Skullyville, and Sans Bois counties elected one senator each; Gaines and Tobaksi counties, together, one senator. In Apukshunnubbee
District, Towson elected one senator; Cedar and Wade counties, together, one senator; Eagle and Nashoba counties, one senator;
Red River and Bok Tuklo, one senator. In Pushamataha District, Kiamichi, Blue, Atoka, and Jacks Fork counties each elected
one senator. The region west of the 98th Meridian, known as the “Leased District or Leased Land,” was named “Houtbbee District,”
though it was never regularly organized.
The judicial system was made up of a supreme court, circuit courts, and county courts. The supreme court was composed of three
judges, one chosen from each of the three organized districts and elected every four years by a joint vote of the General
Council. There were three circuit courts, one for each of the three organized districts. The circuit judges and county judges
were elected by the citizens in each district.
The supreme executive power of the Nation was vested in one principal chief, assisted by three district chiefs, all of whom
held their respective positions for the term of two years from the time of their installation into office, being eligible
for only two terms in succession. The duties of the principal chief included seeing that the laws of the Choctaw Nation were
faithfully executed, convening or dismissing the general council submitting information to that body in regard to the, state
of the government, recommending for its consideration such measures as he might deem expedient for the welfare of the people,
and serving as commander of the militia of the Nation. The district chiefs had such superintending control in their respective
districts as the General Council prescribed. The seat of government was permanently located at Doaksville:26
By MURIEL H. WRIGHT
Asisted by PETER J. HUDSON
26The first compilation of the Chickasaw laws was published in 1860, under the title, “Constitution, Laws, and Treaties of the
Chickasaws.” Other compilations of the Chickasaw laws, included one published in 1878 and another, in 1899, the latter being
compiled under the direction of Davis Homer. The first compilation of the Choctaw laws was published about 1845. The second
appeared in 1852. The third was compiled by Joseph P. Folsom and published in 1869, being commonly known as the “J. P. Code.”
Other compilations of the Choctaw laws, aside from the annual session laws of the General Council, appearing in pamphlet form,
were known as the “Standley Code,” published by T. H. Standley in 1884; and the “Durant Code,” published by A. R. Durant,
Davis Homer and Ben Watkins, in 1894. The latter, however, was never authorized for use by the General Council, since it lacked
the dates of passage of most of the laws contained therein. The constitutions adopted by the Chickasaw Nation and the Choctaw
Nation, in 1856 and 1860, respectively, remained in effect—with some modifications—until abolishment of their national governments
in 1906. Under the Skullyville Constitution, the Choctaw capital was temporarily located at Boggy Depot. Within two years
after the adoption of the constitution of the Choctaw Nation at Doaksville in 1860. the seat of government was permanently
fixed at Armstrong Academy, to be known as “Chahta Tamaha.” It was provided by an amendment to the constitution that the General
Council should hold its first meeting there on the first Monday of October, 1863. By an act of the General Council passed
October 16, 1883, the seat of government was located about a mile and a half from old Nvnih Waya, to be known as “Tushkahumma.”
This was the last capital of the Choctaw Nation. The seat of government of the Chickasaw Nation remained permanently located
at Tishomingo.
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APPENDIX A
THE DERIVATION OF THE NAMES AMOSHOLITVBBI, APVKSHVNNVTVBBI AND PASHIMMVLHTAHA
The name “Amosholitvbbi” is derived from two verbs, amosholi meaning “to persevere” and vbi (v pronounced as a u in sun) meaning “to kill.” In forming a noun from two verbs in the Choctaw language, the letter t is
used as a connective and is attached to the syllable that proceeds it. In words of two or more syllables, the accent falls
on the penult; in words of four or more syllables, there is also a secondary accent on the second syllable before the penult.
Therefore, A-mo-sho″lit-vb′bi (literally, to persevere and to kill) means “one who perseveres and kills.”
“Apvkshvnnvtvbbi” is derived from the two verbs, apvkshvna meaning “to cling to” and vbi meaning “to kill.” The rules given in connection with the foregoing name apply here. A-pvk-shvn″nvt-vb′bi (literally, to
cling to and to kill means “one who clings to and kills.”
“Pashimmvlhtaha” (the generally accepted but corrupt spelling being Pushamataha or Pushmataha) has had many interpretations during
the century and a quarter since the name first appeared in print. One that seems most probable, upon which the spelling in
this article is based, is as follows: The noun “pashi” means “hair,” (i. e., in this case, the scalp lock). The past participle immvlhtaha means “prepared or finished.” In forming a name from these two words, the i in pashi is dropped for the sake of euphony before immvlhtaha. Pa-snim″mvlhta′ha (literally, prepared with scalp locks) means “one who has prepared himself by taking many scalp locks.”
Among the Choctaws, when a warrior wets advanced to the position of “great or honored warrior,” he was given a new name. It
happened at one time, that a certain warrior had won more scalps from his enemies,—especially from the Osages in the West,—than
any of the other Choctaws. Therefore, he was given the name of Pashimmvlhtaha, meaning
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“the warrior who has prepared himself for his position by taking more scalp locks than anyone else.” Pashimmvlhtaha had attained his high rank and this name some time before 1802. By the year 1805, he had become one of the three great
chiefs of the Choctaws.
APPENDIX B
SURVEY OF THE EASTERN BOUNDARY OF THE CHOCTAW NATION 1821.
Sunday, August 19, 1821.—From the mouth of Little river, run down Red river, north, 71 degrees east, 15 chains; north, 84
degrees east, 10 chains; south, 80 degrees east, 10 chains; south, 70 degrees east, 40 chains; north, 70 degrees east, 25
chains; north, 25 degrees east, 20 chains; north, 70 degrees east, 10 chains; east, 20 chains; south, 70 degrees east, 10
chains; south, 62 degrees east, 40 chains; south, 46 degrees east, 20 chains; south, 20 degrees east, 10 chains; south, 4
degrees east, 10 chain, to a dogwood on the banks of the Red river, three miles below Little river, marked U. S. on the southeast
side, C. N. on the northwest side; a sweet gum tree, north, 27 degrees west, distance 123 links for a pointer; also, a hickory,
south 81 degrees east, distance 1 chain 13 links; distance across Red River 181½ yards.
Tuesday, 21st.—Beginning at a dogwood three miles below Little river; thence north, 20 degrees 15 minutes east, on the line
between the United States and the Choctaw Nation, run six miles; land a great portion fit for cultivation.
Wednesday, 22nd.—At 7 miles, crossed a creek called Bodeark, waters of Red river; camped that night 14 miles from Red river;
hills and flats; some part fit for cultivation.
Thursday, 23d—Run 5 miles; camped at 19 miles from Red river; passed some farms; land rich, full of oyster and clam shells;
waters of Ozan.
Friday, 24th.—At 20 miles 40 chains, crossed Ozan, a large creek, waters of Little Missouri; camped a week, in order to make
arrangements for crossing the mountains between us and the Arkansas.
Sunday, 2d.—September-Continued the line, camped 26 miles from Red river; timber, pine and white oak; flats and small hills;
soil of inferior quality.
Monday, 3d.—Crossed Little Missouri at 27 miles and 43 chains; some cane on both sides, but too wet for cultivation; camped
at 30 miles from Red river last three miles, poor pine hills.
Tuesday, 4th.—Waited to get corn ground.
Wednesday, 5th.—At 33 miles, crossed Wolf Creek; at 36 miles and 54 chains, crossed a small creek; at 37 miles, camped; rocks
and mountain land, unfit for cultivation.
Thursday, 8th.—At 39 miles and 72 chains, crossed Aulevine, a large creek, waters of Washita; at 41 miles and 7 chains, crossed
again; at 41 miles and 22 chains, crossed again; at 43 miles, camped; rocky hills and mountains, unfit for cultivation.
Friday, 7th—Run 6 miles; camped at 49 miles from Red river; land level, chiefly unfit for cultivation.
Saturday, 8th.—Crossed Fourche au Caddo at 50 miles and 30 chains; camped at 56 miles; land poor and hilly.
Sunday, 9th.—At 60 miles and 30 chains, crossed a large creek; land unfit for cultivation; camped.
Monday, 10th.—At 65 miles and 75 chains, crossed Bassett’s creek; at 66 miles, crossed another creek; timber, pine; hills
and flats, unfit for cultivation.
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Washita; at 71 miles and 40 chains, crossed a large creek running northwest; camped here.
Wednesday, 12th.—At 72 miles, crossed said creek; at 73 miles, crossed again to west side; bottoms caney.
Saturday evening, 15th.—Run 3 miles on a line over a high mountain, camped here.
Sunday, 16th.—Run 7 miles; camped at 84 miles from Red river; crossed the Dardinelle trace at 83 miles and 75 chains; hills
and flat land; inferior quality of soil.
Monday, 17th.—Run 5 miles; crossed a high rocky mountain 3 miles over, and camped on the north side, at 89 miles from Red
river.
Tuesday, 18th.—Run 5 miles, and camped at 94 miles from Red river; rocky mountains; land unfit for cultivation.
Wednesday, 19th.—Run 3 miles over rocky mountains, and camped at 97 miles from Red river; unfit for cultivation.
Thursday, 20th.—Run 4 miles, and camped on the south side of Fourche la Five, 101 miles from Red River.
Friday, 31st.—Crossed Fourche la Five, run 4 miles, and camped on the south side of Cypress mountains, at 105 miles from Red
river; land flat and wet, chiefly unfit for cultivation.
Saturday, 22d.—At 109 miles, north side of Cypress creek mountain; at 109 miles and 70 chains, crossed Cypress Creek; at 110
miles, flat oak land; at 111 miles, camped.
Sunday, 23d.—At 115 miles 10 chains and 50 links, the south bank of the Arkansas River. The corner, a post marked on the south
side 115 miles 10 chains 50 links; on the west side C. N.; on the east side U. S.; distance from the Cherokee corner, on the
north bank of the river, 1 mile and 30 chains, Arkansas River 630 yards wide.
October 4th.—Started from a post on the south side of the Arkansas, opposite the lower boundary of the Cherokees to meander
the Arkansas; the river, downwards, bearing north, 40 degrees east; Petit John mountain bearing south 80 degrees west.
| S. 45 |
degrees |
W. 0 |
miles |
40 |
chains. |
| S. 89 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
40 |
“---- |
|
“ |
|
“ |
|
“---- |
| N. 57 |
“ |
W. 3 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
| N. 72 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
| S. 87 |
“ |
W. 0 |
“ |
50 |
“---- |
| S. 75 |
“ |
W. 0 |
“ |
50 |
“----P. J. bear. S. 50° W. |
| S. 62 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
0 |
“----To mount P. John, 20 yards wide. |
| N. 89 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
40 |
“---- |
| S. 86 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
0 |
“----To Gallery rock. |
| S. 68 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
20 |
“---- |
| S. 5 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
30 |
“----To P John creek 3° due south. |
| S. 44 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
| N. 63 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
20 |
“---- |
| N. 40 |
“ |
W. 3 |
“ |
0 |
“----To an Island. |
| N. 75 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
50 |
“---- |
| N. 36 |
“ |
W. 0 |
“ |
40 |
“---- |
| N. 44 |
“ |
W. 4 |
“ |
0 |
“----To Dardinelle rock. |
| N. 41 |
“ |
W. 1 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
| N. 63 |
“ |
W. 3 |
“ |
40 |
“----To Ill. bo. 30 yda., bear N. 5° W. |
| N. 63 |
“ |
W. 3 |
“ |
40 |
“----To W. Webber’s. |
| N. 76 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
| N. 53 |
“ |
W. 2 |
“ |
0 |
“---- |
Page 417
| N. 65 |
“ |
W. 3 |
“ |
0 |
“----To Piney creek, 40 yards wide, bearing N. 20° W. |
| S. 69 |
“ |
W. 4 |
“ |
40 |
“---- |
| N. 55 |
“ |
W. 0 |
|
