The Alabama–Coushatta Tribe of Texas (

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

: ''Albaamaha–Kosaatihaha'',

Coushatta The Coushatta () are a Muskogean-speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native American people now living primarily in the United States, U.S. states of Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas. When the Coushatta first encountered Europeans, the ...

: ''Albaamoha–Kowassaatiha'') is a

federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...

and Koasati in Polk County, Texas, United States. These peoples are descended from members of the historic

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Here they waged war again ...

or Creek Confederacy of numerous tribes in the Southeastern U.S., particularly Georgia and Alabama. They are one of three

federally recognized This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States. There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes. , 574 Indian tribes are legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the United States.

tribes in Texas. As of 2022, the tribe has over 1,200 citizens with 589 residing on the Texas reservation.

History

They are one of eight federally recognized tribes whose citizens are descended from the Muscogee Confederacy of the Southeast. Four tribes are located in Oklahoma, where most of the Muscogee were forcibly removed from the Indigenous Muscogee homeland in Alabama and western Georgia in the 1830s during the

Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was the forced displacement of about 60,000 people of the " Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850, and the additional thousands of Native Americans and their black slaves within that were ethnically cleansed by the U ...

under Indian Removal. One tribe is in Louisiana, where another band of Muscogee fled European encroachment in two waves in the late 18th century and the early 19th century. Another tribe comprises the Poarch Band of Creeks, which remained in Alabama. The Seminole Indian Nation in Florida also includes many descendants of the Creek Confederacy who relocated there and merged with another tribe. Under pressure from European American settlement, the ancestors of this tribe were Alabama and Coushatta peoples who migrated from Alabama and the Southeast into Louisiana and finally East Texas when it was under Spanish rule in the late 18th century. They settled in an area known as Big Thicket and adapted their culture to the environment of forests and waters.Howard N. Martin, "Alabama–Coushatta Indians."
''Handbook of Texas Online'', uploaded 9 June 2010, retrieved 26 May 2013. When the area began to be settled by European Americans from the United States, the tribes established friendly relations and traded with the new settlers.

Sam Houston Samuel Houston (, ; March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863) was an American general and statesman who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and was one of the first two indi ...

helped protect them during years of conflicts with other Native Americans in the area. After the annexation of Texas by the United States, settlements increased and the tribes were under pressure again. They appealed to the state to set aside land for their exclusive use.

Termination efforts

As part of the

Indian termination policy Indian termination describes United States policies relating to Native Americans from the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s. It was shaped by a series of laws and practices with the intent of assimilating Native Americans into mainstream American soci ...

followed by the US government between the 1940s and 1960s, the Alabama Coushatta Tribe was targeted. On 23 August 1954, the United States Congress passed laws to terminate the federal relationship with the tribe. Public Law ch. 831, §1, 68 Stat. 768 provided that the Secretary of the Interior was to transfer to the State of Texas the tribal lands for the benefit of the tribe. In addition, it terminated the federal trust relationship with the tribe and the individual citiznes of the tribe and canceled any federal debts. In 1965, under House Bill 1096, 59th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, the newly formed Texas Indian Commission took over state administration and supervision for the Alabama–Coushatta Indian Reservation. On 22 March 1983, Texas Attorney General

Jim Mattox James Albon Mattox (August 29, 1943 – November 20, 2008) was an American lawyer and politician from Texas who served three terms in the United States House of Representatives and two four-year terms as Texas Attorney General, but lost high-pr ...

released an opinion (JM-17) stating that the state's assumption of power over the property of the Alabama–Coushatta violated the Texas Constitution. He stated that as the federal government's withdrawal of its recognition, the tribe was "merely an unincorporated association under Texas law, with the same legal status as other private associations ... the 3,071-acre tract is entirely free from any legally meaningful designation as an 'Indian Reservation.'" In response to concerns by the tribe, Representative Ronald D. Coleman of Texas introduced a federal bill on 28 February 1985 to restore federal jurisdiction for the tribe. Because the initial bill, HR 1344, allowed gambling, amendments were made and the '' Yselta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama and Coushatta Indian Tribes of Texas Restoration Act'' was reintroduced as HR 318. Public Law 100–89, 101 STAT. 666 was enacted on 18 August 1987 and restored the federal relationship with the tribe. Section 207 (25 U.S.C. § 737

specifically prohibits all gaming activities prohibited by the laws of the state of Texas. Both the

and

Koasati language Koasati (also Coushatta) is a Native American language of Muskogean origin. The language is spoken by the Coushatta people, most of whom live in Allen Parish north of the town of Elton, Louisiana, though a smaller number share a reservation ...

s are

Muskogean languages Muskogean ( ; also Muskhogean) is a language family spoken in the Southeastern United States. Members of the family are Indigenous Languages of the Americas. Typologically, Muskogean languages are highly synthetic and agglutinative. One documen ...

Reservation

The Alabama–Coushatta Reservation was established in 1854,Pritzker, Barry M. ''A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. pp. 363–4 when the state bought of land for the Alabama Indian reservation. About 500 tribe members settled on this land during the winter of 1854–55. In 1855, the Texas legislature appropriated funds to purchase for the Coushattas, but never followed through. The Coushatta began to live with the Alabama on their reservation. They acquired more land, so the reservation is now , located east of

Livingston, Texas Livingston is a town in and the county seat of Polk County, Texas, United States. With a population of 5,640 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, it is the largest city in Polk County. It is located approximately south of Lufk ...

, in the Big Thicket area.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census, the reservation comprises a total population of 679 individuals. Of those individuals, 86.7% (589) are American Indian, 8.2% (56) are Hispanic or Latino, 6.4% (44) identify as two or more races, 5.5% (38) are White, 0.88% identify as some other race, and 0.14% (1) are African American or Black. The reservation has a young population, with 42.3% under the age of 18 in contrast to 4.5% over the age of 65. Economically, 65.9% of the population is employed. The average household earning is $49,219, which is over $10,000 less than the national average, and 17.2% live in poverty, 8.6% higher than the national average. Additionally, 11.4% of the population has a bachelor's degree or higher, and 36.5% has only a high school degree or equivalent. Of the total population, 38.5% do not have at-home internet, which is 11.5% higher than the national average of 14.5%. The homeownership rate on the reservation is 76.3%, which is 10.9% higher than the national average of 65.4%.

Environment

The tribe has its own wildland fire department and land management program that uses

fire suppression Fire suppression may refer to: * Firefighting * Fire suppression systems * Wildfire suppression Wildfire suppression is a range of firefighting tactics used to suppress wildfires. Firefighting efforts depend on many factors such as the availabl ...

tactics to manage the woodlands on their tribal land. This is particularly important for the

longleaf pine The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...

trees that have been used by the tribe and their ancestors for basketry and homebuilding for centuries. According to

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, United States. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in ...

, 95% of the region's longleaf pine forests have been lost. Longleaf pines are dependent on fire to seed and grow. The Nature Conservancy funded the tribe to buy equipment and participate in training for wildland management. As a result, they manage the over of pine trees they planted in 2012 and the additional of older growth trees.

Government

The Alabama–Coushatta Tribe of Texas is headquartered in Livingston, Texas. They operate as a

tribal council A tribal council is an association of First Nations bands in Canada, generally along regional, ethnic or linguistic lines. An Indian band, usually consisting of one main community, is the fundamental unit of government for First Nations in Can ...

, with a principal chief and chief serving as advisors to an elected tribal council comprising a chair, vice chair, and five additional members. The tribe's constitution and by-laws were adopted on June 16, 1971. As of May 2024, the tribal chiefs and council members are: *Principal chief: Donnis B. Battise *Second chief: Millie Thompson Williams *Council member: Rick Sylestine, tribal council chairman *Council member: Nita Battise, vice chair *Council member: Crystal Stephenson, treasurer *Council member: Melanie Batisse, secretary *Council member: Tina Battise, member *Council member: Yolanda Poncho, member Principal Chief Donnis B. Batisse was inaugurated as ''Mikko Choba'' or principal chief on January 1, 2023. Millie Thompson Williams was inaugurated as ''Mikko Istimatokla,'' or second chief/vice chief, on January 1, 2023. She is the first female to serve as second chief for the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe.

Economy

The Alabama and Coushatta people of Polk County struggled after the Civil War, as few spoke English and they had difficulty finding jobs. Today, the tribe operates two primary economic enterprises: Naskila Casino, a

casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

, and A.C.T. Holdings, an investment and economic development

LLC A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...

. The tribe also has a 26-acre campground open to the public located on Lake Tombigbee. The reservation also includes a

truck stop A truck stop (known as a service station in the United Kingdom, a travel center by major chains in the United States and a roadhouse in rural Australia) is a commercial facility which provides refueling, rest (parking), and often ready-made f ...

, a smoke shop, and a souvenir shop.

Naskila Casino

The casino comprises over 790 bingo games in an over 30,000-square-foot facility. The tribe has engaged in two lawsuits against the State of Texas regarding the casino. In 2001, the tribe filed a complaint against the state for officials obstructing the tribe's legal right to operate a casino on tribal land. That resulted in a ruling in favor of the state, prohibiting the tribe from operating their casino. In 2016, Texas filed a complaint against the tribe to stop the tribe from operating a bingo hall. The judge ruled in favor of the tribe because bingo is not prohibited in Texas. In December 2021, the tribe joined Ysleta del Sur Pueblo to file an

amicus brief An amicus curiae (; ) is an individual or organization that is not a party to a legal case, but that is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. Whether an ''amic ...

with the United States Supreme Court to ensure their rights to operate bingo halls on their reservations. The Supreme Court agreed to review the case on its docket in 2022. On June 15, 2022, the court sided with both tribes in a 5-4 ruling. The judgment was vacated, and the case was remanded to the lower court.

Culture

In 1994, ground was broken for the now-open Alabama–Coushatta Cultural Center. In April 2022, the tribe broke ground on the 49,000-square-foot Aati Imaabachi Imiisa Education Center to house the education department, library, a gym, play areas, and youth education programs. The reservation has two churches: Christian First Assembly of God Church and a First Indian Presbyterian Church. Each June, the reservation hosts a

powwow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native Americans in the United States, Native American and First Nations in Canada, First Nations communities. Inaugurated in 1923, powwows today are an opportunity fo ...

References

External links

* https://pin.it/5spsiuMgc Current Alabama Coushatta Clans *
"Native American Heritage Month Collection Spotlight: James Ludwell Davis Sylestine and the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas"
from the Texas State Library and Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Alabama-Coushatta Tribe Of Texas Koasati Federally recognized tribes in the United States Native American tribes in Texas American Indian reservations in Texas Polk County, Texas