Creek Freedmen facts for kids

Creek Freedmen are people of African descent who were once enslaved by members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. This happened before 1866. After the American Civil War, the Creek Nation signed a new treaty with the United States in 1866. This treaty made the Creek Freedmen free.

Many of these African Americans had moved with the Creek people from the southeastern United States in the 1830s. They had lived and worked on the land in Indian Territory ever since. The treaty said that Freedmen who wanted to stay in the Creek Nation could become full citizens. Many of them already had family ties to Creek tribal members.

Today, the term "Creek Freedmen" also includes their descendants. Many Creek Freedmen had some Creek ancestry. However, when the Dawes Commission registered tribal members, this ancestry was often not recorded. In 2001, the Creek Nation changed its rules for who could be a member. They now require members to prove they are descendants of people listed as "Indian by Blood" on the Dawes Rolls. The Creek Freedmen have gone to court to challenge this decision.

A Look Back: History of the Creek Freedmen

Most of the Freedmen were formerly enslaved by Creek tribal members. These tribal members lived in both the upper and lower Creek lands in the Southeast. In some Creek villages, Creek citizens married enslaved men or women. They had children together who were of mixed heritage. Marriages between different groups were common back then. Because of this, many Creek Freedmen had some Creek Indian ancestors.

The Civil War and New Treaties

During the American Civil War, most of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation sided with the Confederacy. After the Union won the war, the United States made new treaties in 1866. These treaties were with the Creek Nation and other tribes, known as the Five Civilized Tribes. These tribes had also allied with the Confederacy.

The new treaty said that the tribes had to free their enslaved people. It also said they had to offer these freed people citizenship in their nations. This meant the Freedmen could vote and share in land and money settlements. The treaty also set aside the western half of the Creek territory. This land was later called the Unassigned Lands. The U.S. planned to use it for Freedmen and other Native American tribes from the Great Plains. The Creek Nation had to give up about 3.25 million acres of land. The United States agreed to pay them about $975,165 for it.

The Dawes Commission and Rolls

In 1893, the United States created the Dawes Commission. Its goal was to help Native Americans become more like other Americans. It also aimed to divide communal tribal lands into individual plots. Each household would get 160 acres. To do this, all tribal members had to be registered.

Starting in 1898, U.S. officials created the Dawes Rolls. These rolls documented tribal members for land allotments. Registrars quickly put people into groups: "Indians by Blood," "Freedmen," or "Intermarried Whites." The Creek Freedmen citizens were included in the Creek Nation's section of the rolls. The enrollment process ended in 1906.

The Dawes Rolls are important historical records. Many tribes in Oklahoma use them to decide who can be a member. People applying for membership often need to show they are direct descendants of someone on the rolls. However, tribal members and historians have said that the rolls had many mistakes. For example, many Freedmen had Creek ancestry, but they were only listed on the "Freedmen" rolls. They were not noted as being "Indian by Blood." Since the late 1900s, this classification has caused problems for many Freedmen descendants. The Creek and other nations have made their membership rules stricter.

Life for Creek Freedmen

Most Creek Freedmen were farmers in the 1800s and early 1900s. Some also raised bees and made honey, like Tartar Grayson, who was known as the "Great Bee Man." Children of Creek Freedmen went to schools that were separated by race. These schools were also common in European-American areas. But the Freedmen children lived in Creek territory as citizens of the Creek Nation.

Changes to Membership Rules

The peace treaty of 1866 gave the Freedmen full citizenship and rights as Creek people. This was true no matter how much Creek or Native American ancestry they had.

In 1979, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation reorganized its government and constitution. They based it on the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936. At this time, they changed their membership rules. They now required members to be descendants of people listed as 'Indians by Blood' on the Dawes Rolls.

Because of this change, they removed Creek Freedmen descendants who could not prove descent from "Indians by Blood." This happened even though the 1866 treaty had granted them citizenship. The Creek Nation said they had the right to decide who their citizens were. Since the Creek Nation changed its rules in 2001, they have not included people who cannot prove descent from those listed as "Indians by Blood" on the Dawes Rolls.