“Billie Jane McIntosh combines accuracy of history and immediacy of fiction to relate the life of her ancestor, a warrior, diplomat, and selfless leader of his Native nation. In that bitter time of dispossession known as Indian Removal when others lost hope, Chief McIntosh believed in a future where his people would both survive and thrive.” — Joseph Bruchac, author of Our Stories Remember “One of the most misunderstood and maligned figures of early United States history is Chief William McIntosh. Historian descendent Billie Jane McIntosh recounts Chief McIntosh’s story in balanced detail with solid research and vivid creativity.” — Gary L. McIntosh, PhD, professor of leadership, Biola University, La Mirada, CA “McIntosh brings to life historical facts, harnessing the clash of civilizations to move the personal story of William McIntosh forward with anticipation and drama and to show inner tensions within characters caught up in this historic time of transition.” — Margery Bouris, officer with the Friends of McIntosh Reserve, Inc. “Billie Jane McIntosh offers a unique historical perspective on an important family and a period of time. The appendices are a plus in understanding the family tree, treaties, and laws of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.” — Tamara M. Elder, author and Curator Research Division, Oklahoma History Center “Imagine Creek life during the tumultuous period of treaty making and removal, written as if you were a participant in the unfolding history. McIntosh quickly draws you in with a masterfully crafted story.” — James R. Floyd, Muscogee (Creek) Nation

History of Creek Indians.

Johnson v. McIntosh and its impact offers a comprehensive historical and legal overview of Native land rights since the European discovery of the New World. Watson sets the case in rich historical context. After tracing Anglo-American views of Native land rights to their European roots, Watson explains how speculative ventures in Native lands affected not only Indian peoples themselves but the causes and outcomes of the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, and ratification of the Articles of Confederation. He then focuses on the transactions at issue in Johnson between the Illinois and Piankeshaw Indians, who sold their homelands, and the future shareholders of the United Illinois and Wabash Land Companies.

Before Las Vegas, there was Phenix City, Alabama--the original sin city. Once the sprawling capital of the Muscogee Indian Empire, the region took a sinister turn when a holy war engulfed the southern territories in 1812, leading to the murder of the infamous Chief William McIntosh. Later, atrocities continued at Fort Mitchell, the killing grounds for early Georgia politicians who fought to the death over rival politics and bitter feuds. By the 1950s, Phenix City was home to the "Dixie Mafia," and crime and corruption ruled over the little riverfront city. Take a walk with author Faith Serafin as she travels through the darkest recesses of Phenix City's past.

Historians have traditionally viewed the Creek War of 1836 as a minor police action centered on rounding up the Creek Indians for removal to Indian Territory. Using extensive archival research, John T. Ellisor demonstrates that in fact the Second Creek War was neither brief nor small. Indeed, armed conflict continued long after peace was declared and the majority of Creeks had been sent west. Ellisor’s study also broadly illuminates southern society just before the Indian removals, a time when many blacks, whites, and Natives lived in close proximity in the Old Southwest. In the Creek country, also called New Alabama, these ethnic groups began to develop a pluralistic society. When the 1830s cotton boom placed a premium on Creek land, however, dispossession of the Natives became an economic priority. Dispossessed and impoverished, some Creeks rose in armed revolt both to resist removal west and to drive the oppressors from their ancient homeland. Yet the resulting Second Creek War that raged over three states was fueled both by Native determination and by economic competition and was intensified not least by the massive government-sponsored land grab that constituted Indian removal. Because these circumstances also created fissures throughout southern society, both whites and blacks found it in their best interests to help the Creek insurgents. This first book-length examination of the Second Creek War shows how interethnic collusion and conflict characterized southern society during the 1830s.

Many of the early 18th and 19th century Scots settlers of the Southeastern United States intermarried and formed partnerships with Native Americans. These mixed-blood relationships produced talented Indian leaders who negotiated and translated during peace treaties, maintained traditional values, and formed valuable alliances. Chilly McIntosh, son of legendary Creek Chief William McIntosh, Jr., was one of these leaders. With roots in both ancient Scotland and the Creek Wind Clan, he was an amalgam of both cultures. As elected Chief of his tribal township, he made efforts to straddle the divide between both the traditional and progressive factions, while at the same time performing duties as Clerk of the Creek Tribal Council. Accepting the fact that his people were being displaced from their lands, he made efforts to see that they were treated fairly during their journey west.From his youth in the Indian towns to his relocation to the Oklahoma lands that were to be his final home, we explore the many facets of his long and varied life. We learn of the controversial death of his father, Chilly¿s participation in the recording of the Laws of the Creek Tribe, his visit with General Lafayette, the role he assumed while leading his people west, his life as a Civil War Colonel, and his service as a Baptist minister. This chronicle of Chilly McIntosh is the ultimate story of triumph in the face of adversity, one to be cherished and savored by those who admire the strength of the human spirit.