Militia
A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
and the
Creek Indians
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 WoodlandsSecond Creek War, in the vicinity of the present-day
Pike County, Alabama
Pike County is located in the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census the population was 33,009. Its county seat is Troy. Its name is in honor of General Zebulon Pike, of New Jersey, an explorer who led an expedition to southern Colorado a ...
, roughly 17 miles east of
Troy, Alabama
Troy is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Alabama, United States. It was formally incorporated on February 4, 1843.
Between 1763 and 1783, the area where Troy sits was part of the colony of British West Florida.The Economy of Bri ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
were being forced off their lands that were guaranteed to them by the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The Creeks, angry that the land that had been promised to them was being taken from them by local settlers by violent force. A band of about 400 Creeks responded by burning local homes and plantations along the Pea River swamp as they moved south. Even the Three Notch Trail that traversed through Troy was considered dangerous at this point, as other local Creek Indians around the area were turning violent and burning and looting houses along the stretch of road.
In response to the threat by the Creeks, a force of over 250 combined Alabama and Georgia militiamen led under U.S. General William Wellborn tracked the band of 400 Creeks that included men, women, and children. The path of the Creeks had become easy to find due to the several looted and burned plantations they had left behind them as they moved south.
Battle
The battle occurred on March 27, 1837, roughly 17 miles to the east of Troy, where the
Pea River
The Pea River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 15, 2011 tributary of the Choctawhatchee River near Geneva, Alabama, United States. It is a popular destination ...
and Pea Creek converge near Hobdy's Bridge. After General Wellborn found the temporary camp that the Creeks had set up in a nearby swamp, he divided his command into two wings to encircle the Creeks. He personally commanded one wing, and placed the other under U.S. Colonel Jefferson Buford. The Creeks detected the approach, however, and attacked and scattered Colonel Buford's wing.
When Wellborn's command neared the camp, trudging through waist-high water, they could hear gunfire erupting further down the river. Wellborn immediately ordered his men through the mud and water at a full run. Upon encountering the Creeks downstream, a fierce four-hour battle began on opposite sides of a nearby lagoon. The Creek warriors, many of whom were later found to have been using bullets made of melted pewter plates, made several unsuccessful charges on the militia's line before being overrun. Records from some of the participants in the battle reported that some of the Creek women and children also took up arms to fight, raining showers of rifle balls and arrows on the militiamen. In one case, two of the Creek women attacked a member of the militia with knives. Unable to defeat the desperate Creeks with gunfire alone, Wellborn finally ordered a direct charge on their lines. The tactic worked as many of the Creeks fled to their encampment to carry off their children, some even swimming the river in order to flee. As the fighting was drawing to an end and many of the Creeks began to flee, the scene then devolved into a massacre among the Creek Indians.
Aftermath
Reports show that at least fifty Creek men, women and children were killed and an unknown number captured. The Creek survivors continued their flight south in small groups. According to some reports, some of the captured Creeks were enslaved by local planters. Only five Americans were killed, among them General Wellborn's teenage son, James H. Wellborn.
In winning the Battle of Pea River & Pea Creek, Wellborn had defeated the refugee Creeks but had failed to surround and capture all of them as he had hoped. Instead they fled south down the Pea River to its confluence with the
Choctawhatchee River
The Choctawhatchee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map , accessed 15 April 2011 river in the southern United States, flowing through southeast Alabama and the Panhandle o ...
and continued across the line into Florida. Furious at their treatment, they continued to battle the local populace for years to come.
The Battle of Pea River is the last recorded battle of Second Creek War, as the war with the Creeks shifted south to
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 ...