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The Kialegee Tribal Town is a federally recognized Native American tribe in
Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
, as well as a traditional township within the former
Muscogee Creek Confederacy 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 WoodlandsMuscogee language The Muscogee language (Muskogee, ''Mvskoke'' in Muscogee), also known as Creek, is a Muskogean languages, Muskogean language spoken by Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole people, primarily in the US states of Oklahoma and Florida. Along with Mikasuki ...
. The name "Kialegee" comes from the Muscogee word, ''eka-lache'', meaning "head left."


Government

The Kialegee Tribal Town is headquartered in
Wetumka, Oklahoma Wetumka is a city in northern Hughes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,282 at the 2010 census, a decline of 11.7 percent from the figure of 1,451 recorded in 2000. First settled by the Muscogee Creek after removal in the 1830s ...
. Of 700 enrolled tribal members, 629 live within the state of Oklahoma. Its tribal jurisdictional area falls in Creek County, Muskogee County, Tulsa County, County, Okmulgee County,
Hughes Hughes may refer to: People * Hughes (surname) * Hughes (given name) Places Antarctica * Hughes Range (Antarctica), Ross Dependency * Mount Hughes, Oates Land * Hughes Basin, Oates Land * Hughes Bay, Graham Land * Hughes Bluff, Victoria La ...
,
McIntosh McIntosh, Macintosh, or Mackintosh (Gaelic: ') may refer to: Products and brands * Mackintosh, a form of waterproof raincoat * Mackintosh's or John Mackintosh and Co., later Rowntree Mackintosh, former UK confectionery company now part of Nestlà ...
,
Okfuskee Okfuskee are a Muscogee tribe. Alternative spellings include the traditional Mvskoke spelling "Akfvske", referring to the tribal town in Alabama, and the comparable spelling Oakfuskee. They formed part of the former Creek (Muscogee) Confederacy in ...
counties.2011 Oklahoma Indian Nations Pocket Pictorial Directory.
''Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commission.'' 2011: 17. Retrieved 4 Jan 2012.
The tribe's elected M''ekko'' or Chief is Brian Givens. He succeeded Jeremiah Hobia, who succeeded Tiger Hobia. The mekko's term is for two years. Tiger Hobia succeeded Jennie Lillard. The tribe's citizenship or membership rules requires individuals to be a full-blood Native American: half to full-blood Muscogee Creek and up to one-half Indian of any other tribe. Documentation for enrollment follows
matrilineal Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's Lineage (anthropology), lineage â€“ and which can in ...
descent, as this was their traditional kinship system. Children were considered born to the mother's family and clan, and property or hereditary roles passed through her people. Today, any descendant of a female Kialegee tribal member is automatically eligible for tribal membership. Spouses of Kialegee tribal members may petition for membership. In special circumstances, any full-blood Indian may petition the tribe for enrollment as an "Adopted Member." The Kialegee Tribal Town operates its own tribal courts. It has an environmental educational program for youth, the Kialegee Tribal Town's Environmental "Kub" Program.


Culture

Town members and visitors celebrate the annual Kialegee ''Nettv'' (Day), a gathering that celebrates the town's history and culture.


History

Kialegee emerged as an independent town from a larger Creek town, ''Tuckabatche'',Moore, John H. "Kialegee Tribal Town.
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture''
/ref> located along rivers in what is now
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
. Kialegee in return produced two daughter towns, Hutchechuppa and Achinahutchee. Before removal, the Muscogee Confederacy included about 50 towns. As with the remainder of the Creek people, the Kialegee had a
matrilineal Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's Lineage (anthropology), lineage â€“ and which can in ...
kinship In anthropology, kinship is the web of social relationships that form an important part of the lives of all humans in all societies, although its exact meanings even within this discipline are often debated. Anthropologist Robin Fox says that ...
system, with descent figured through the mother's line. Children are considered to be born into the mother's clan and receive their status from her and her people. It was an agrarian community. Women and children grew and processed a variety of crops, in addition to gathering roots, berries and nuts, while men hunted for game or harvested fish. On June 29, 1796 leaders from Kialegee signed a peace treaty with the new United States. But, within a decade the townspeople joined the Red Stick Upper Creeks in the
Creek Civil War The Creek War (1813–1814), also known as the Red Stick War and the Creek Civil War, was a regional war between opposing Indigenous American Creek factions, European empires and the United States, taking place largely in modern-day Alabama ...
, in which traditionalists (Red Sticks) fought against the Lower Towns, which tended to have members who were more assimilated to European-American culture, as they had far more interaction with them. In 1813, US troops burned Kialegee. In 1814, 1818, 1825, and 1826, Kialegee representatives signed treaties with the United States ceding some of their lands. Finally 166 families of Kialegee were forced to relocate to
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 ...
in 1835 after Congress passed the
Indian Removal Act The Indian Removal Act was signed into law on May 28, 1830, by United States President Andrew Jackson. The law, as described by Congress, provided "for an exchange of lands with the Indians residing in any of the states or territories, and for ...
. The tribe settled south of what would become
Henryetta, Oklahoma Henryetta is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 5,927 at the 2010 census, down 9.6 percent from the figure of 6,096 recorded in 2000. History Hugh Henry established a ranch on Creek Nation land in 1885. He soo ...
. They maintained a ceremonial ground and played stick ball against Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town. By 1912, their ground had been put to sleep, as
ethnologist Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology) ...
John R. Swanton John Reed Swanton (February 19, 1873 – May 2, 1958) was an American anthropologist, folklorist, and linguist who worked with Native American peoples throughout the United States. Swanton achieved recognition in the fields of ethnology and et ...
noted when he visited the town. He recorded that Kialegee was a Red Town, or community of warriors. After the passage of the
Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act The Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936 (also known as the Thomas-Rogers Act) is a United States federal law that extended the 1934 Wheeler-Howard or Indian Reorganization Act to include those tribes within the boundaries of the state of Oklahoma. ...
in 1936, which provided for revival of self-government among the Native American tribes, the US federal government offered each of the Muscogee Creek tribal towns the opportunity to enroll as an individual tribe and establish their own government. Of more than 40 towns, only three accepted: Kialegee, Thlopthlocco, and the Alabama-Quassarte. The tribe ratified its constitution and by-laws on June 12, 1941.United States Department of the Interior Office of Indian Affairs. ''Constitution and By-Laws of the Kialegee Tribal Town, Oklahoma.'' Washington DC, 1942. The tribe is governed by a ''mekko'' or town king. Additional officers are the First Warrior, Second Warrior, Secretary, and Treasurer. The first tribal headquarters was the home of Martin Givens.


Tribal flag

The flag of the tribe contains a sky blue circle, featuring a pair of stickball sticks, used in the traditional game still played at ceremonial grounds today. The black cross at the top represents the Christian religion. To the left is a hollowed log and beater, which women used to grind corn meal, central to Muscogee diets. At the bottom is a ceremonial lodge with a rounded bark roof, built on an earthwork mound. This lodge was the center of the tribal town for religious and civic gatherings and also a shelter for the needy. The earthwork mound refers to the
Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern United States, Midwestern, Eastern United States, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from appr ...
heritage of modern Muscogee people and the complex mounds that still exist of that culture. The bald eagle at the right is a sacred animal, featured in many tribal stories.


Economic development

The Kialegee Etvlwv Business Committee operates a daycare, gas station, and smoke shop. Kialegee Tribal Town also operates its own housing division. In 2008, its annual tribal economic impact was $1,017,684. In 2011 Kialegee Tribal Town was preparing land for development of a Red Clay Casino in
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma Broken Arrow is a city located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma, primarily in Tulsa County, with a portion in western Wagoner County. It is the largest suburb of Tulsa. According to the 2010 census, Broken Arrow has a popul ...
. The
National Indian Gaming Commission The National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC; ) is a United States federal regulatory agency within the Department of the Interior. Congress established the agency pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988. The commission is the only f ...
was reviewing the project closely, as local residents and businesses strongly opposed it. The Red Clay Casino plan was halted by a legal injunction in 2012, and despite subsequent progress by the Kialegee in court, was not continued.Paighten Harkins
"Creek Nation police raid potential casino site on tribal land in Broken Arrow, arrest property owner"
"Tulsa World," August 16, 2017.
In 2017 controversy arose regarding proposed Kialegee development of a different tract of land in Broken Arrow, owned by Steve Bruner (Creek), for an Embers Grille restaurant and possible Red Creek Casino. The
Muscogee (Creek) Nation The Muscogee Nation, or Muscogee (Creek) Nation, is a federally recognized Native American tribe based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The nation descends from the historic Muscogee Confederacy, a large group of indigenous peoples of the South ...
Attorney General warned Bruner about legal consequences for illegal gaming at the site, saying the tribe did not control that land and so lacked authority for gaming there. An attorney for the Kialegee said Muscogee Nation interference with the project would be resisted.Paighten Harkins
"Kialegee Tribal Town will resist Muscogee (Creek) Nation interference in possible Broken Arrow casino"
''Tulsa World,'' August 8, 2017.
On August 16, 2017, the site was raided by Muscogee Lighthorse police prior to the facility's opening, and they seized gambling equipment, which they alleged was illegal.


Notes


References

*Clark, C. Blue. ''Indian Tribes of Oklahoma: A Guide''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2009. .


External links


Kialegee Tribal Town
Oklahoma Historical Society

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kialegee Tribal Town Native American tribes in Oklahoma Muscogee tribal towns Federally recognized tribes in the United States Native American history of Alabama