Alice Brown Davis facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Alice Brown Davis
Alice Brown Davis
First female Principal Chief of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, 1922–1935 leader
Preceded by	Hulbutta Micco
Succeeded by	Chief Chili Fish
Personal details
Born	September 10, 1852 Park Hill, Indian Territory
Died	June 21, 1935 Wewoka, Oklahoma
Spouse	George Rollin Davis
Relations	Older brothers, John F. and Andrew Jackson Brown
Children	Eleven children
Parents	Dr. John Frippo Brown, Lucy Redbeard
Education	Ramsay Mission School

Alice Brown Davis (born September 10, 1852 – died June 21, 1935) was a very important leader for the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. She was the first woman to become their Principal Chief, serving from 1922 to 1935. She was chosen for this role by President Warren G. Harding. Alice Brown Davis was part Seminole (from the Tiger Clan) and part Scots. Her older brother, John Frippo Brown, had also been a chief of the tribe. Her other brother, Andrew Jackson Brown, was the tribe's treasurer.

Early Life and School

Alice Brown was born on September 10, 1852. Her birthplace was Park Hill, a Cherokee town in what was then called Indian Territory. She grew up close to Fort Gibson. Her father, Dr. John Frippo Brown, was from Scotland. He had studied at the University of Edinburgh. He came with the Seminole people as a doctor when they were forced to move from Florida.

During this difficult journey, her father married Lucy Redbeard. Lucy was a Seminole woman from the Tiger Clan. The Seminole people have a special system called matrilineal. This means children belong to their mother's family or clan. Alice's parents had seven children in total.

Her older brothers, John F. and Andrew Jackson Brown, began working for the tribe during the American Civil War. Alice, like her brothers, received a good education. One of her teachers was Caroline Bushyhead, a Cherokee woman. Alice learned both English and Mikasuki as her first languages. She also went to the Ramsay Mission School. This school was first started by the Episcopal Church and later run by Baptist missionaries.

In 1867, when Alice was 15, a serious sickness called cholera spread among the Seminole tribe. Alice helped her father take care of the sick people. After the sickness passed, both her parents died. She then went to live with her oldest brother John at his ranch in Wewoka, Oklahoma. Wewoka was the capital of the Seminole Nation.

After finishing her studies, Alice Brown became a teacher. She likely taught at Mesukey Academy for Boys. She also probably taught at Emakwha Academy, a girls' school. Missionaries made these schools open to all children, including children of freedmen (formerly enslaved people) and Seminole children, starting in 1874.

Marriage and Family

In 1874, when Alice was 22, she married George Rollin Davis. He was a merchant from Kansas. They moved to Arbeka in Indian Territory, on Seminole Nation lands. Together, they ran a trading post, a post office, a general store, and the Bar X Bar ranch. They also helped give out money to local Native Americans. This included payments for land rights and Civil War pensions for veterans and widows. Alice and George had eleven children together.

George Davis passed away when their youngest child was still a toddler.

Working for Her People

After 1885, Alice often worked with her brother, Chief John F. Brown. She was an interpreter, a go-between, and an assistant for the Seminole Tribe. This work helped her learn a lot about tribal issues.

In her 40s, after her husband died, Alice Brown Davis became the postmistress of Arbeka. She also continued to run the ranch and trading post. Later, she became the leader of the Seminole Nation's girls' school, Emahaka. This school was built in 1892. Emahaka was a very modern school that taught students from first to tenth grade.

The United States government wanted Oklahoma to become a state. To do this, they required tribal governments in Indian Territory to end. Tribes were supposed to give all their duties to officials from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Alice Brown Davis wanted to protect her school. She believed that Native Americans should be in charge of teaching their own children. So, she first refused to give up control of the school. Her brother, John F. Brown, who was still Chief of the Seminole, finally convinced her that she had to follow the law.

Alice Brown Davis was a member of the Spring Baptist Church in Sasakwa, Oklahoma. Her brother John became the pastor there. She also did missionary work in Florida. She was active in several Baptist groups, including those for the Muscogee Creek, Seminole, and Wichita people.

Leading the Seminole Nation

Laws like the Curtis Act and the Dawes Act changed how tribal governments worked. These laws broke up tribal lands. They gave pieces of land to individual Native American families. Any land left over was called "surplus" by the government. This land was then sold to non-Native Americans. The 1906 Five Civilized Tribes Act finished breaking up tribal governments. This cleared the way for Oklahoma to become a state in 1907.

During these challenging times, Alice Brown Davis worked as an interpreter in court cases. She could speak both English and Mikasuki. In 1903, she traveled to Mexico with other Seminole leaders. They were looking into possible land claims there. She went back in 1905 and 1910. However, the start of the Mexican Revolution ended the Seminole's hopes of settling in Mexico.

In 1922, at 70 years old, Alice Brown Davis was named Principal Chief of the Seminole Nation. President Warren G. Harding appointed her. She was the first woman to be chief of the Seminole tribe. At first, some people did not agree with her appointment. But she eventually earned the support of her people. She served as chief until her death.

A major issue during her time as chief was tribal land. A new survey of Seminole land in 1910 led the U.S. government to give some lands to the Muscogee Creek Nation. This included the land where the Emakaha School and several Seminole churches were located. Alice Brown Davis refused to sign the papers to give these lands to the Creek Nation. She said, "If this be the cause of my resignation I will feel that I have done that which is right and just to myself and my people." Because of the long disagreement about the land, the Emakaha School had to be emptied. It later burned down and was never rebuilt.

Death and Legacy

Alice Brown Davis served as chief until she passed away on June 21, 1935, in Wewoka, Oklahoma. In 1961, she was honored by being added to the National Hall of Fame for Famous Native Americans in Anadarko, Oklahoma. She was also inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. The University of Oklahoma named Davis Hall in her honor. At the 1964 World's Fair, a bronze statue of her was shown. It was sculpted by Willard Stone.