Indigenous Peoples of Georgia

Learn about the indigenous people of Georgia, the tribes and bands, state recognized tribes, agencies, reservations and records.

To learn how to get started with American Indian research, find research facilities, and American Indian websites click here.

Tribes and Bands of Georgia
A list of Native Americans who have lived in Georgia has been compiled by John R. Swanton in his The Indian Tribes of North America Many of the tribes in this list may have had very limited contact with the area which became Georgia. Some have become extinct or have been consolidated with other tribes. And some may simply be variant spellings.


 * Apalachee
 * Apalachicola
 * Catawba
 * Chatot
 * Cherokee
 * Chiaha
 * Chickasaw
 * Chickasaw Indians Creek
 * Guale
 * Hitchiti
 * Kasihta
 * Oconee
 * Okmulgee
 * Osochi
 * Sawokli
 * Shawnee
 * Tamathli
 * Timucua
 * Yamasee
 * Yuchi

Other tribes may have also been residents of the area of Georgia, at least for a short time.

Georgia State Recognized Tribes

 * The Cherokee of Georgia Tribal Council (also known as Cherokee Indians of Georgia, Inc.)


 * Georgia Tribe of Eastern Cherokees, Inc.,


 * Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe East of the Mississippi, Inc.

Agencies of the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Agencies and subagencies were created as administrative offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and its predecessors. Their purpose was (and is) to manage Indian affairs with the tribes, to enforce policies, and to assist in maintaining the peace. The names and location of these agencies may have changed, but their purpose remained basically the same. Many of the records of genealogical value were created by these offices.

The following list of agencies that have operated or now exist in Georgia has been compiled from Hill's Office of Indian Affairs..., Hill's Guide to Records in the National Archives Relating to American Indians , and others.


 * Creek Agency

Records
The majority of records of individuals were those created by the agencies. Some records may be available to tribal members through the tribal headquarters.They were (and are) the local office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and were charged with maintaining records of the activities of those under their responsibility. Among these records are:


 * Allotment records
 * Annuity rolls
 * Census records
 * Correspondence
 * Health records
 * Reports
 * School census and records
 * Vital records

Family History Library
For a complete list of available study the FamilySearch Catalog search by Tribe and Locality


 * Office of Indian Trade 1795-1821 13 films - M1334 Film
 * Office of Indian Affairs, Superintendent of Indian Trade. Letter book of the Creek trading house. 1795-1816,.
 * Davis, Robert Scott. A Guide to Native American (Indian) Research Sources at the Georgia Department of Archives and History Available through the FamilySearch Catalog WorldCat
 * Thaxton, Donna B., Carlton J. Thaxton and C. Stanton Thaxton. Georgia Indian Depredation Claims  WorldCat
 * Trowell, C. T. Exploring the Okefenokee: Letters and Diaries from the Indian Wars, 1836-1842. Research Paper (C.T. Trowell). Manuscript series no. 1;5. WorldCat

FamilySearch Catalog Georgia Native Races list titles of interest

Reservations
From the mid-1800s, the official policy of the United States government toward the American Indian was to confine each tribe to a specific parcel of land called a reservation. Agencies were established on or near each reservation. A government representative, usually called an agent (or superintendent) was assigned to each agency. Their duties included maintaining the peace, making payments to the Native Americans based on the stipulations of the treaties with each tribe, and providing a means of communication between the native population and the federal government.

Sometimes, a single agency had jurisdiction over more than one reservation. And sometimes, if the tribal population and land area required it, an agency may have included sub-agencies.

The boundaries of reservations, over time, have changed. Usually, that means the reservations have been reduced in size. Sometimes, especially during the later policy of "termination," the official status of reservations was ended altogether.

For a current reservation map - Georgia - Indian Reservations- The National Atlas of the United States of America. Federal Lands and Indian Reservations. by the U.S. Department of Interior and U.S. Geological Survey

The following list of reservations has been compiled from the National Atlas of the United States of America, the Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America , and other sources. Those reservations named in bold are current federally-recognized reservations, with their associated agency and tribe(s). Others have historically been associated with the state or are not currently recognized by the federal government.


 * Georgia Tribe of Eastern Cherokee
 * Tama Tribal Town

For Further Reading
See also American Indian For Further Reading. Native American Online Genealogy Records  Click this button for links to databases, indexes, or sites that help you find an American Indian ancestor by topic or tribe.
 * Georgia-History for a calendar of events
 * Georgia-Military for a list of forts