A film for public television coming in 2020. The film will explore the fascinating archival evidence of indigenous peoples, the pivotal Creek War of the early 1800s with its controversial leaders; and the Indian culture & traditions that connect to all Alabamians.
The Middle Woodland and Mississippian Ancestors
The Creek Indians along with other southeastern tribes such as the Choctaw and Cherokee, are descended from the peoples of the Mississippian period (ca. AD 800-1500). They were known for giant earthen mounds and complex, hierarchical social structure. The arrival of Europeans in the sixteenth century brought epidemics and widespread warfare and violence to the Southeast, resulting in the scattering of the region's indigenous peoples. Beginning in the seventeenth century, these diverse populations joined together and established settlements along the central Chattahoochee River, the lower Tallapoosa River, and the central Coosa River in what is now east-central Alabama. |
The Creek War: Fort Mims
On August 30, 1813, a force of about 700 Creek Indians led by William Weatherford destroyed Fort Mims in present-day Baldwin County. This resulted in the killing of 250 defenders and taking of at least 100 captives in the first major battle of the Creek War of 1813-14. Approximately 400 American settlers, U.S.-allied Creeks, and enslaved African Americans had taken refuge inside a stockade hastily erected on the plantation of Samuel Mims. The Creek attack on Fort Mims, and particularly the killing of civilian men, women, and children at the end of the battle, outraged the U.S. public and prompted military action against the Creek Nation. |
The Creek War: Horseshoe Bend
On the morning of March 27, 1814, Gen. Andrew Jackson and an army consisting of Tennessee militia, United States soldiers, and Cherokee and Lower Creek allies attacked Chief Menawa and his Upper Creek (Red Stick) warriors fortified in the Horseshoe Bend of the Tallapoosa River. More than 800 Upper Creek warriors died at Horseshoe Bend defending their homeland. After being shot several times, Menawa escaped capture by jumping into the Tallapoosa River. This was the final battle of the Creek War of 1813-14. In treaty signed after the battle, known as the Treaty of Fort Jackson, the Creeks ceded more than 21 million acres of land to the United States. |
William McIntosh (ca. 1775-1825)
Also known as Tustunnuggee Hutkee, was a controversial nineteenth-century Creek Indian leader. His father, British loyalist Capt. William McIntosh, moved to Creek territory during the American Revolution. McIntosh's mother, Senoya, was a member of the prominent Creek Wind Clan. During the War of 1812, McIntosh alienated many Creeks by joining with Andrew Jackson and other so-called "friendly" Creeks. McIntosh was a masterful political manipulator who tried to centralize power among the Creeks, repeatedly arranged and accepted bribes from American officials, and signed treaties that ceded most of the Creek's southeastern lands to the United States government in return for personal gain. He was executed for his actions in 1825 by agents of the Creek National Council, led by Creek Chief Menawa. |
William Weatherford (“Red Eagle”)
Arguably the best known Red Stick war leader in the Creek War of 1813-14 and also of mixed parentage, Weatherford was born into the Wind Clan near Coosada, an Alabama town of the Creek confederacy. He led the attack against the garrison established at the home of Samuel Mims, referred to as Fort Mims but is said to have left before the massacre of women and children. Weatherford continued to participate in many battles against the armies of Andrew Jackson along the Alabama, Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers. During a famous battle at “Holy Ground”, Weatherford escaped certain death or capture by leaping on horseback from a bluff into the Alabama River amid a hail of gunfire. Later, after a series of defeats, he strode into General Andrew Jackson’s camp and surrendered. Jackson, impressed with the warrior’s audacity and bravery, allowed him leave when he promised to help convince other Red Sticks to stop fighting.
Arguably the best known Red Stick war leader in the Creek War of 1813-14 and also of mixed parentage, Weatherford was born into the Wind Clan near Coosada, an Alabama town of the Creek confederacy. He led the attack against the garrison established at the home of Samuel Mims, referred to as Fort Mims but is said to have left before the massacre of women and children. Weatherford continued to participate in many battles against the armies of Andrew Jackson along the Alabama, Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers. During a famous battle at “Holy Ground”, Weatherford escaped certain death or capture by leaping on horseback from a bluff into the Alabama River amid a hail of gunfire. Later, after a series of defeats, he strode into General Andrew Jackson’s camp and surrendered. Jackson, impressed with the warrior’s audacity and bravery, allowed him leave when he promised to help convince other Red Sticks to stop fighting.