Historic Indian Towns in Alabama, 1540-1838

262 Pages·2003·4.23 MB·English

by  Amos J. Wright Jr.

Historic Indian Towns
in Alabama
ı o ı8 8
54 - 3
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Amos J.Wright Jr. Fo r eword by
Vernon J.Knight Jr .
Historic Indian Towns in Alabama, 1540–1838

Historic Indian Towns in Alabama,
1540–1838
AMOS J. WRIGHT JR.
FOREWORD BY VERNON J. KNIGHT JR.
THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA PRESS
Tuscaloosa
Copyright © 2003
The University of Alabama Press
Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487–0380
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Typeface is AGaramond
∞
The paper on which this book is printed meets the minimum requirements of American
National Standard for Information Science-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI Z39.48–1984.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wright, Amos J., 1926–
Historic Indian towns in Alabama, 1540–1838 / Amos J. Wright, Jr. ; foreword by
Vernon J. Knight, Jr.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-8173-1251-X (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 0-8173-1252-8 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Indians of North America—Alabama—History. 2. Indians of North America—Urban
residence—Alabama. 3. Alabama—Historical geography. I. Title.
E78.A28 W75 2003
976.1´00497—dc21
2003000201
ISBN 978-0-8173-1252-7 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8173-8387-9 (electronic)
CONTENTS
Preface vii
Foreword xi
Maps Referenced xvii
Abbreviations xix
Historic Indian Towns 1
Appendix 189
References 225

PREFACE
This book has been in progress for many years. I have found reading and
studying the old colonial script to be maddening and yet very rewarding.
Colonial writing is often very clear and legible, but sometimes it is little
more than chicken scratch. The asides and anecdotes can be fascinating,
though some are not related to the subject matter being researched.
An extensive search has been made to identify the Indian towns that
were located in present-day Alabama from de Soto in 1540 to the removal
of the Indians by 1838. Towns came and went; they moved around, they
branched off, and some had the same names as others during the same time
period. Town names were frequently spelled many different ways, and
some spellings are almost unrecognizable. When available, I have preferred
the anglicized version of a town name used by the Carolina and Georgia
traders and government of¤cials.
The towns are listed alphabetically and the text for each entry develops
chronologically. The thrust of the book is the location of each town, which
in many cases may be generalized; however, some history of the town is
offered when such is known. If the location of a town is unclear or con-
fusing, I may offer an opinion, but the location of some towns is unknown
at this time.
Over some 300 years there have been a great number of Indian towns
located in Alabama. This book does not contain them all, but it does have
descriptions of 398 towns. After the name of each town, an alternate name
may be given in parenthesis. Following the name is the general group the
town belonged to (for example, Lower Creek, Choctaw). The terms town
and village are used interchangeably.
viii / preface
Maps of the period were used extensively to obtain locations. Although
some of these maps are not very reliable and contain obvious errors, most
are fairly accurate. Various locations on different maps have been given to
afford the reader maximum understanding of town location, even though
some of these locations are incorrect. I have closely scrutinized some 214
maps with a magnifying glass. A list of the maps used is included herein,
and copies are in my collection.
The grid coordinates given for many towns are probably accurate. They
were probably made by Enoch Parsons, who coauthored the Creek census
of 1832. The two lists used are dated 1832 and 1833 and reside in the Na-
tional Archives in Washington, D.C. Parsons would have noted the loca-
tion as he traveled from town to town recording the census.
For nearly 50 years the town locations established in 1939 by the U.S. de
Soto Commission, chaired by Dr. John R. Swanton of the Smithsonian,
have gone unchallenged. Recently, however, Dr. Charles Hudson and oth-
ers have questioned the commission’s ¤ndings based primarily on archaeo-
logical work accomplished in the past twenty years. The primary focus was
on the town of Coosa, which the commission located between Talladega
and Tallaseehatchee Creeks on the east bank of the Coosa River in Tal-
ladega County. Hudson and others now locate Coosa on the Coosawattee
River in northwest Georgia near Carters. This in turn pulled the other de
Soto towns located below Coosa up the Coosa and Alabama Rivers, caus-
ing Hudson to locate the long-sought Mauvilla on the lower Cahaba River
near its junction with the Alabama. This accounts for some of the wide
disparity in the location of de Soto towns in 1540. However, none of the
de Soto town locations are de¤nitive.
Reference is frequently made to “the Point” on the Chattahoochee
River. This is a sharp bend in the river a few miles south of Phenix City in
Russell County. Reference is also made to the “Big Bend” on the Tal-
lapoosa, which is located where the river ®owing south turns west.
During research I became indebted to several people who have gener-
ously assisted me over many years. Their professional help and patience are
greatly appreciated. I want to especially thank the following for their assis-
tance: Edwin Bridges and his staff at the Alabama Department of Archives
and History, Montgomery; Yvonne Crumpler and her staff at the Linn
Henley Research Library, Birmingham; Elizabeth Wells and her staff at the
Samford University Library, Special Collections, Birmingham; Marion
preface / ix
Hemperley and his staff at the Archives of the Georgia Surveyor General,
Atlanta; and the staff of the Georgia Department of Archives and History,
Atlanta.
I also want to thank my dear wife, Carolyn Shores Wright, for her en-
couragement and patience over these many years. Also, thanks to my two
sons, Amos J. Wright III, of Birmingham, and Richard A. Wright, of Mo-
bile, for their encouragement and support. My deepest appreciation goes
to Nan Hall of Huntsville for her patience and advice. I especially want to
thank Vernon J. Knight Jr. and Marvin T. Smith for their helpful review
and suggestions.