Seminole Nation



The Seminole Tribe is part of the group known as the Five Civilized Tribes

Ancestral Homeland: Southeastern United States - Georgia and Florida

Linguistic Group: Muskhogean

Federal Status: Recognized

Miccosukee Tribe live on the Miccosukee reservation or along the Tamiami Trail

Brief Timeline

 * 1817-18: Seminole War; American troops under General Andrew Jackson.  Jackson's victory led to Spain selling Florida to the United States.
 * Februray 22, 1821: Florida became part of the United States.
 * September 6, 1823: Treaty of Fort Moultrie, the tribe gave up 30 million acres of farmland and received .5 million acres in central Florida.
 * May 9,1832: Treaty at Payne's landing; land cessions Indians to remove within three years.
 * March 28,1833: Treaty of Fort Gibson Major Phagan to superintend removal (Indian Treaties 1778-1883 by Charles J. Kappler; page 203-207)
 * December 1835 - August 14, 1842: second Seminole War lead by Osceola
 * 1835-1842: estimated 4,000 Seminole had been removed from Florida. Those removed to Indian Territory (Oklahoma) became the Seminole Nation and one of the Five Civilized Tribes.
 * A refugee band of Seminole negroes removed near the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, Texas.
 * January 4, 1845

Reservations
Big Cyprus

Brighton

Hollywood

Miccosukee

Additional References to the History of the Tribe
Frederick Webb Hodge, in his Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico, gave a more complete history of the Seminole tribe, with estimations of the population of the tribe at various time periods. Additional details are given in John Swanton's The Indian Tribes of North America.

Enrollment:

 * Dawes Commission Enrollment
 * Eastern Cherokee- Guion Miller Enrollment

Treaties

 * 1823 September 18, at Moultrie Creek in Territory of Florida, with the Florida Tribes of Indians
 * 1832 at Payne's Landing, Territory of Florida, annuity, removal, and land cessions
 * 1833 Mar 28, at Fort Gibson
 * 1845 January 4, at Creek Agency, with Creeks and Seminole, annuity, rations, removal
 * 1856 August 7, Washington D.C., removal, with the Creeks
 * 1865 with the Cherokee and other Tribes in Indian Territory
 * 1866 March 21, Washington D.C.

Important Web Sites

 * Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, Constitution.
 * Constitution and By-Laws of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Ratified August 21, 1957.
 * Seminole Tribe Wikipedia