Ar-pi-uck-i, also known as Abiaka or Sam Jones, (c. 1760 – c. 1860) was a powerful spiritual ''alektca'' (
medicine chief) and war chief of the
Miccosukee
The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida is a federally recognized Native American tribe in the U.S. state of Florida. They were part of the Seminole nation until the mid-20th century, when they organized as an independent tribe, receiving fed ...
, a
Seminole
The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, an ...
–
Muscogee Creek
The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands[Indian Territory
The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...]
west of the
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
and his influential leadership in the
Second Seminole War
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans and ...
(1835–1842) resulted in the permanent
Native American presence in
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
.
Name
The phonetic spelling of his name varies to include: Aripeka, Aripeika, Opoica, Arpeika, Abiaka, Apiaka,
[Read, 1934] Apeiaka,
Appiaca,
Appiacca, Apayaka Hadjo (Crazy Rattlesnake).
The name is derivative of the
Muscogee
The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands[Coosa River
The Coosa River is a tributary of the Alabama River in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia. The river is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 27, 2011
...]
, meaning "pile at the base" or "heap at the root." The name was conferred on the town because "in the contest for supremacy its warriors heaped up a pile of scalps, covering the base of the war-pole."
Early life
He was born in Georgia.
Treaties
The
treaties
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...
with the U.S. to which Ar-pi-uck-i was a
signatory
A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...
were
Treaty of Payne's Landing
The Treaty of Payne's Landing (Treaty with the Seminole, 1832) was an agreement signed on 9 May 1832 between the government of the United States and several chiefs of the Seminole Indians in the Territory of Florida, before it acquired statehood.
...
(Treaty with the Seminole, 1832), May 9, 1832, and
Treaty of Fort Gibson, On The Arkansas River With The Seminole (Treaty with the Seminole, 1833) March 28, 1833 signed by proxy through
Tokose Mathla (aka John Hicks), the representative of Ar-pi-uck-i, who traveled to view the proposed relocation lands in the Indian Territory. Signatures were coerced by force of threat. Ar-pi-uck-i was opposed to the relocation.
Second Seminole War, 1835–1842
Battle of Lake Okeechobee
The Battle of Lake Okeechobee was one of the major battles of the Second Seminole War. It was fought between 800 troops of the 1st, 4th, and 6th Infantry Regiments and 132 Missouri Volunteers (under the command of Colonel Zachary Taylor), and b ...
–
Col. Zachary Taylor led 1032 troops against the Creek and Miccosukee, December 25, 1837, near the mouth of Taylor Creek and
Lake Okeechobee
Lake Okeechobee (), also known as Florida's Inland Sea, is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the tenth largest natural freshwater lake among the 50 states of the United States and the second-largest natural freshwat ...
and suffered a defeat. Taylor lost 26 killed and 112 wounded. Ar-pi-uck-i was the leading war chief for the Miccosukee and he carefully formulated and executed his battle plan wisely—entrenched on dry, treed ground, pressing the attack, and losing only 8 (11) and 14 wounded. Then he and his men retired into the swamp. Taylor chose to charge across open water. After the battle Col. Zachary Taylor and the U.S. claimed victory and then fell back a considerable distance towards Tampa. The Battle of Lake Okeechobee was Florida's most significant and bloody battle of the Second Seminole war and a major victory for the Seminoles.
The battlefield was listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in the 1960s, later became a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
, and is recognized by the
National Trust for Historic Preservation
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...
as one of the top endangered historical sites in the U.S.
Battle of Jupiter Inlet
The Battles of the Loxahatchee occurred west of what is now Jupiter, Florida in January 1838 between the United States military and the Seminole Indians (including Black Seminoles). The First Battle of the Loxahatchee (Powell's Battle) occurred ...
– On January 15, 1838, Lt.
Levin M. Powell of the U. S. Navy was sent by
General Jesup to explore the southwest fork of the Loxahatchee River. Powell's force of fifty-five sailors and twenty-five soldiers engaged Ar-pi-uck-i and his band at
Jupiter Inlet
Jupiter is the northernmost town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the town had a population of 61,047 as of April 1, 2020. It is 84 miles north of Miami, and the northernmost community in the Miami met ...
. Powell lost five men killed and twenty-two wounded.
Battle of Pine Island Ridge
The Battle of Pine Island Ridge was a battle during the Second Seminole War fought on March 22, 1838, at the site of what is now Pine Island Ridge, Florida. According to US Army accounts, Major William Lauderdale
William Lauderdale (c. 1782 ...
– During the Second Seminole War (1835–1842) in the Battle of Pine Island Ridge, March 22, 1838, Ar-pi-uck-i led an unknown number of Seminoles against 223
Tennessee Volunteer Militia
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...
and 38 U.S. regular troops led by Major
William Lauderdale
William Lauderdale (c. 1782-1838) was an American planter-soldier from a prominent Virginia family. He served in both the War of 1812 and the Seminole Wars.
Early life
William Lauderdale was born around 1782, the third son of Sarah and James ...
. The Battle of Pine Island Ridge, in which the soldiers were forced to attack the Pine Island Ridge hammock through waist deep water while being fired upon from the cover of the island, was a victory for the Seminoles. This battle was U.S. retaliation for the
Cooley Massacre of January 6, 1836, in which approximately twenty Seminoles attacked the home of
William Cooley
William Cooley (1783–1863) was one of the first American settlers, and a regional leader, in what is now known as Broward County in the state of Florida. His family was killed by Seminoles in 1836, during the Second Seminole War. The attack, ...
in the trading settlement on the New River, which was eight miles distant from the Pine Island Ridge hammock, killing Mrs. Cooley, the Cooley children, and another New River resident Joseph Flinton, the children's tutor. The Seminoles then looted and burned the Cooley farm, but did not attack other New River residents.
In 1841, the year before the close of the Seminole War, Aripeka occupied the region near the mouth of the Kissimmee River and the eastern border of
Lake Okeechobee
Lake Okeechobee (), also known as Florida's Inland Sea, is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the tenth largest natural freshwater lake among the 50 states of the United States and the second-largest natural freshwat ...
.
Personal life
Arpiucki moved into the area of
Big Cypress Swamp
Big Cypress National Preserve is a United States National Preserve located in South Florida, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of Miami on the Atlantic coastal plain. The Big Cypress, along with Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas, becam ...
after the
Third Seminole War
The Seminole Wars (also known as the Florida Wars) were three related military conflicts in Florida between the United States and the Seminole, citizens of a Native American nation which formed in the region during the early 1700s. Hostilities ...
of 1855–1858. His band included an estimated 17 warriors and a large number of women and children. He was less effective as a war leader in the Third Seminole War because of advanced age and possible senility.
Ar-pi-uck-i and his half
Choctaw
The Choctaw (in the Choctaw language, Chahta) are a Native American people originally based in the Southeastern Woodlands, in what is now Alabama and Mississippi. Their Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choctaw people are ...
, half
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
wife Itee had at least one child: a daughter, Rebecca Jones, born on January 1, 1817.
He died in Florida.
[Barrett and Markowitz, pdf/Acrobat Adobe format, page 16](_blank)
Statues, memorials, and placenames
* A sculpture depicting Ar-pi-uck-i leading the women and children to safety and an exhibit dedicated to Ar-pi-uck-i (Sam Jones, "Abiaka"), on Pine Island Ridge, Tree Tops Park. A copy of this sculpture is also at the
Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum at
Big Cypress Reservation
The Big Cypress Indian Reservation is one of the six Indian reservation, reservations of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. It is located in southeastern Hendry County, Florida, Hendry County and northwestern Broward County, Florida, Broward County, ...
* Aripeka,
Pasco County, Florida
Pasco County is located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2020 census, the population was 561,691. Its county seat is Dade City, and its largest city is Zephyrhills. The county is named after Samuel Pasco ...
– City named in honor of Ar-pi-uck-i (Sam Jones)
* In a poem published in 1859 he is referred to as Arpeik
* The Ah-Tha-Thi-Ki ("to learn") Museum on the Seminole Big Cypress Reservation is located near to where Abiaca is believed to be buried.
* A bronze Sam Jones group statue which includes Sam Jones, a bear (Bear Clan), panther (Panther Clan), eagle (Bird Clan), rattlesnake (Snake Clan), otter (Otter Clan), toad (Toad Clan), deer (Deer Clan), and Wind Clan is located at the Seminole Big Cypress Reservation. This group statue monument, 1.5 lifesize, is one of the largest bronze in the southeastern U.S.
* A rock outcrop area on Mars called "Seminole". The two targets on this outcrop named "Abiaka" and "Osceola" were probed and studied during the Thanksgiving weekend, 2005, by the
Mars Exploration Rover
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission was a robotic space mission involving two Mars rovers, ''Spirit (rover), Spirit'' and ''Opportunity (rover), Opportunity'', exploring the planet Mars. It began in 2003 with the launch of the two rover ...
, Spirit
Mars Exploration Rovers Update, Spirit Descends Husband Hill as Opportunity Works at a Standstill on Olympia, By A.J.S. Rayl, December 30, 2005, Planetary News: Mars (2005), The Planetary Society website
/ref>
References
External links
Tree Tops Park
Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ar-Pi-Uck-I
1760 births
1860 deaths
Native American leaders
Native Americans of the Seminole Wars
Muscogee people
Seminole people
18th-century Native Americans
19th-century Native Americans
People from Georgia (U.S. state)