The Treaty of Tuscaloosa was signed in October 1818, and

ratified Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...

by congress in January 1819. endorsed by President

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...

. It was one of a series of treaties made between the Chickasaw Indians and the United States that year. The Treaty of Tuscaloosa was represented by Senator

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

and ex-governor

Isaac Shelby Isaac Shelby (December 11, 1750 – July 18, 1826) was the first and fifth Governor of Kentucky and served in the state legislatures of Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic an ...

to the Chickasaw. It resulted in the acquisition of the

Jackson Purchase The Jackson Purchase, also known as the Purchase Region or simply the Purchase, is a region in the U.S. state of Kentucky bounded by the Mississippi River to the west, the Ohio River to the north, and the Tennessee River to the east. Jackson's ...

(which included extreme western

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

and most of the West Tennessee division).

Treaty

On October 19, 1818, state senator Jackson and former Kentucky governor Shelby, as

plenipotentiaries A ''plenipotentiary'' (from the Latin ''plenus'' "full" and ''potens'' "powerful") is a diplomat who has full powers—authorization to sign a treaty or convention on behalf of his or her sovereign. When used as a noun more generally, the word ' ...

for the state of Kentucky, completed negotiations with the Chickasaw on what was to become known as the ''Treaty of Tuscaloosa'', one of several treaties consummated in 1818 which resulted in the Jackson Purchase. The treaty targeted land that had been recognized as Chickasaw territory by the 1786

Treaty of Hopewell Three agreements, each known as the Treaty of Hopewell, were signed between representatives of the Congress of the United States and the Cherokee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw peoples, were negotiated and signed at the Hopewell plantation in South Caro ...

; that is, the lands in Tennessee and Kentucky that were west of the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names, ...

, an uninhabited woodland area of about 10,700 square miles of territory that the tribe controlled. TENNESSEE map - Indian land cessions in the United States

TENNESSEE map - Indian land cessions in the United States

Prior to the signing of the treaty,

Levi Colbert Levi Colbert (1759–1834), also known as ''Itawamba'' in Chickasaw, was a leader and chief of the Chickasaw nation. Colbert was called ''Itte-wamba Mingo'', meaning ''bench chief''. He and his brother George Colbert were prominent interpreter ...

(''Itawamba Mingo''), who along with his brother

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(''Tootesmastube''), had inherited the leadership of the Chickasaw tribe, had agreed to this transfer of the tribe's hunting grounds. This was purportedly due to the acceptance of a bribe by the Colberts. The expanse of land between the Mississippi River and the western valley of the Tennessee River was traded for $300,000, to be paid in twenty annual installments. Other Chickasaw leaders party to the treaties were Chinubby and Tishomingo.

Results

The Treaty of Tuscaloosa was ratified by the Congress and Senate of the United States, and confirmed by President

on January 7, 1819. With the acquisition, the state of Kentucky gained about 2,000 square miles, and Tennessee was enlarged by about 6,000 square miles.

Aftermath

There was an immediate rush of settlement to the area. Jackson, along with

John Overton John Overton may refer to: People *John Overton (printseller) (1640–1713), seller of prints and maps who succeeded Peter Stent *John Overton (priest) (1763–1838), English clergyman *John Overton (judge) (1766–1833), judge at the Superior Cour ...

and

James Winchester James Winchester may refer to: * James Winchester (general) (1752–1826), an American Revolutionary War officer and brigadier general during the War of 1812 * James Winchester (Maryland judge) (1772–1806), Maryland politician and judge * James ...

, founded

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soon after. By 1824, there were sixteen counties established in the acquired region.

Treaty

Results

Aftermath

References

Further reading