Tishomingo (from cic, Tishu Minco, lit=warrior chief); c. 1837), also known as Tishominko, was chief of the

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classif ...

nation until his death, c. 1837.

Early life and military service

Tishomingo was born c. 1735 in

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 ...

. He served with

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

Major-General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mil ...

against the

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

in Northwest Territory and received a silver medal from President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

. He led by example and was respected for his honesty and high moral standards, serving with distinction at

Fallen Timbers The Battle of Fallen Timbers (20 August 1794) was the final battle of the Northwest Indian War, a struggle between Native American tribes affiliated with the Northwestern Confederacy and their British allies, against the nascent United States ...

, in the

Red Stick 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 ...

with the Creeks, and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. During the War of 1812, Tishomingo served under future president

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 ...

Later life and "Trail of Tears"

After the War of 1812, Tishomingo retired to his farm until white settlers came onto his land. He traveled to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and was a principal signatory of the treaties of 1816 and 1818 as well as the 1832 Treaty of Pontotoc. In 1837, a final treaty forced him and his family 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 United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

. Another account states, according to Tishomingo's son Richard, Tishomingo died c. 1838 on Brushy Creek, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory on the same day his wife named "U Kuth Le Ya" died. This was during the time both Chickasaw and Choctaw tribes resided together in Indian Territory. Both Tishomingo and his wife's burial was witnessed by two Chickasaw Warriors who served with Tishomingo in the War of 1812 and gave their testimony attesting to this fact to the Indian Agent Douglas H. Cooper on September 27, 1859 in accordance with the requirements of a Bounty Land Application of Tishomingo's son Richard. Chief Tishomingo was reported to have had a Lithotomy or kidney stone operation March 25, 1821 in Columbus, Mississippi performed by Dr. Henderson and Dr. Barry. The article stated, "The patient is supposed to be in his 63d year." This would place his birth approximately in the year 1758. "Interesting Operation" The National Advocate, New York, NY, August 9, 1821. Page 3.

Legacy

The county of Tishomingo, town of Tishomingo, and Tishomingo park in

; and the capital of Tishomingo in the

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in the United States. They are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, original ...

are named for him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tishomingo 1730s births 1830s deaths 18th-century Native Americans American people of the Northwest Indian War American people of the War of 1812 Chickasaw people Infectious disease deaths in Arkansas Native American leaders Native Americans in the War of 1812 People of the Creek War People from Mississippi Trail of Tears