"Acquisition" of Troup County, Georgia
The State of Georgia was formerly inhabited by two distinct
Indian groups, one of which was the Cherokee Nation, mountaineers or
uplanders as their name signifies in their own language; the other group was
a federation of several tribes, who retained their own tribal names. Among
the latter were found the Coosa, Kasita (Cusseta), Kawita (Coweta),
Alibamu,
Yamasi (Yemassee),
Shawano (Shawnee),
Seminoles and some other small tribes. This confederation was called
by the northern Indians in the Algonquin tongue: "Muscogi," the English
translation of which name came into common use and was adopted by the
confederation as their official name of "Creeks."
The attitude of the Creeks towards the colonists was friendly and cordial.
In the first treaty of October, 1733, the settlers were invited "to make use
and possess all those lands, which the Nation hath not occasion to use. Six
years later in 1739, there was held at Coweta town, an Indian town near
Columbus, a council of Creeks, Cherokees and Chehaws, which confirmed the
treaty of 1733: and fixed the bounds of the cession as between the Savannah
and Ogeechee rivers as far north as Little River, which is north of Augusta.
At the same council the boundary of the Creek Nation was set forth as "from
the St. Johns River westward to Apalachee bay and northwards to the
mountains," and the council recognized these as bounds of the Creek
territory, and the mountains were recognized as Cherokee territory. The next
convention was held at Augusta in 1763. It was attended by the chief
executives of four colonies: Governor Dobbs of North Carolina, Governor
Boone of South Carolina, Governor Wright of Georgia, Lt. Governor Fauquier
of Virginia, and seven hundred tribesmen representing all southern tribes.
This convention merely confirmed the original cession of territory.
In 1773, forty years after the first treaty, the Cherokees ceded twenty
miles further north, which cession is the present Wilkes County, and the
Creeks ceded the coast between the Ogeechee and Altamaha rivers. Both of
these cessions were financial transactions. During the War of Independence,
in 1778, inasmuch as the Creeks fought with the Tories and English, the
coastal plain was widened by seizure, which marked the beginning of the end
of cordial relations.
The following purchases were made in addition to those mentioned above:
In 1790, the territory between the Ogeechee and Oconee rivers; in 1802 and
1804, from the Oconee to the Ocmulgee River; in 1814, the southern part of
the state as far west as the Chattahoochee River and as far north as Fort
Gaines, Georgia.
In the eighty years after the first cession in 1733, the Creeks had made
wonderful progress in agriculture and government. Near the towns there were
patches of corn, yams, beans, melons, gourds and tobacco, which were tended
by the squaws and their negro slaves, who were acquired at an early date in
the slave trade. For it must be remembered that the importation of slaves
was prohibited by the Constitution of Georgia, which was adopted in 1798.
The Creek houses, consisting of two or four rooms separated by an open
hallway, were of their own design and later were imitated by the pioneers.
The central hallway was used by the Indians as a council gathering place,
but was called by the pioneers the "Dog-Trot." The early roads were little
more than trails or bridal paths, and were usually located across the crests
of hills in order that the distant landmarks might be easily seen.
The capital city of the Creek Nation was Indian Springs (near Flovilla,
Georgia) and the government consisted of representatives from every town to
constitute its assembly or legislature. As early as 1763, there were fifty
towns and the Indian population was as much as forty to fifty thousand, for
the warriors or soldiers numbered 5,860 exclusive of old men, squaws and
children.
The head chief and president of the assembly had built a capitol and a
presidential residence at Indian Springs and the Creek Assembly had
conferred on the president the rank of General of the Creek Armies. The
commissioning of colonels, captains and other military officers followed
soon thereafter. The passing visitor was introduced to Gen. William
McIntosh, President of the Creek Nation, whose home was at McIntosh Reserve
in Carroll County, and whose residence as president was at Indian Springs,
capital of the Creek Nation.
The question of taxation or raising funds for the central government was a
difficult problem for the Creek legislature: the agricultural products were
cultivated on a scale commensurate with the family needs; and the trade in
baskets, pottery, moccasins, fur caps and coats was generally in the form of
barter; hence, there seemed to be no feasible or practical form of taxation.
The Assembly finally concluded that the cession and sale of territory was
the simplest method of securing means for the purchase of arms and tools for
their military and agricultural equipment. These repeated cessions of
territory for such equipment were complicated by the increasing number of
tribesmen from year to year and the constantly decreasing area of hunting
grounds. The consequence was an increasing dissatisfaction among the
tribesmen with the course of events. The clashes between the conflicting
interests of the pioneers and the Indian trappers and hunters emphasized the
growing dissatisfaction.
Most of the legislation of the Creek Assembly was of a military character
and the most important issue was a method of equipping the army for which a
large sum was necessary for arms and uniforms. In 1821 an Assembly was
called to consider this momentous question, and there followed the largest
sale and cession of territory in the national Creek history. This sale
included the central part of Georgia southeast of the Thronateeska River,
which is now called the Flint. While the desire for money and arms finally
overcame the hesitation to surrender this territory, yet the Assembly also
passed an enactment that no further cessions of territory should be made
except by unanimous consent, pledging their lives as forfeit for the
violation of the edict.
The next cession of territory, which gave the state of Georgia that part in
which Troup County is situated, was made by a council or assembly summoned
to Indian Springs on
February 12, 1825. This transaction was of little credit to either of
contracting parties, for it is easy to read between the lines the
persuasion, bribery and promises of protection on one side and the treachery
and violation of the law on the other. The price paid to the Creeks for the
cession was $400,000.00 in cash, an equivalent area beyond the Mississippi
River, and the expense of moving.
Creek Treaty of 1825.
Troup County
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