Chronology by Bob Ferguson

Before 1700

"When Christopher Columbus struck this country he seen wasn't nothin' in this country. He walked over this country a little piece. He said, 'This is my home town.' He thought he discovered the place but the Indian was here. We was here - wasn't no white people here at all. We had a big time here. Had plenty deer, plenty turkey....had a plenty of everything."

-An elderly Mississippi Choctaw, speaking in 1957 and recorded on tape.

The Choctaw Indians of Mississippi bear a rich and lively culture.It is evident in their living language and daily activities. They celebrate high days and holidays with favorite foods and festivals. They cherish and perform their tribal dances. They fashion blowguns and baskets of native cane, and they play the old game kabocha toli - stickball, with its handmade hickory sticks and balls.

The Choctaws were reckoned to be the most numerous of the Muskhogean linguistic family having once numbered, perhaps, a quarter of a million before reduction by repeated ravages of imported epidemic disease. Other Muskhogean tribes include Creeks, Chickasaws, Seminoles, Apalachi and some smaller groupings. The Cherokees,another major southern tribe speak an Iroquois dialect.

Of the Muskhogean languages, Chickasaw is most closely related to Choctaw. On a lexico-statistical analysis of the two languages which I performed 30 years ago only one word in a one hundred word test differed: For the generic term "bird", the Choctaws use "hushi", the Chickasaws "fushi". An early English trader, James Adair, who spent nearly 20 years in the land of the two tribes commented on their similarity. There was some commerce between not only the Muskhogean Indians, but northern and western tribes as well. Chickasaw hunters swapped hides to Choctaw farmers for corn. There were trade routes (some of which became "roads" later) throughout the south; A part of the Warriors Path, a major north-south link, is preserved as a State Park in Northeast Tennessee. The trade language was "mobilian" - which one author called a kind of pidgin Choctaw.

Choctaw and Chickasaw traditions indicate a close relationship. One legend holds that Choctaw and Chickasaw were the names of two brothers who like Abraham and Lot, moved their followers into separate lands. As mentioned, the languages are almost identical. (A present-day Choctaw told me that he can understand Chickasaw, but not Creek.) Chickasaw phrases as recorded by Adair shortly after 1700 are easily understood by today's Choctaw. It has been conjectured that Chickasaws and Choctaws were one tribe just before the coming of the white man. There was no "northern" province of the Choctaw nation - just southern, central, eastern and western. The Chickasaws inhabited the area which would have reasonably constituted a northern Choctaw district. Further there is the consideration of Nanih Waiya.

The fortified mound group clustered around the high mound Nanih Waiya (Sloping Hill) stood between Choctaw and Chickasaw country. The Choctaws considered it a holy place. Their origin myths, of which there are several always include it in some degree. One version holds that the Choctaws emerged from the ground at a nearby cave. Another holds that it was the site on which a sacred "guiding pole" stood erect - a sign that they had arrived in the promised land. Even the isolated Choctaws of Bayou Lacomb in Louisiana, visited by Bushnell in 1909 and by myself in 1962, seemed to know of the holy status of Nanih Waiya. (They referred to it as Nanih Chaha - high hill.) When the Chickasaws were part of the main body, the location of Nanih Waiya would have been centered in the nation where it would be safest. Nanih Waiya is in Winston County, about ten miles southeast of Noxapater. As a State Park it is now in the protection of the State of Mississippi.

Early writers mention enmity between Choctaws and Chickasaws as "hereditary". It is very likely, however, that the enmity was stirred to fever pitch by the Europeans themselves as they vied for trade with the two tribes, pitting one against the other. Before that time there may have been little more than a rivalry between the two groups.

In the literature, we have a lot of "one-liner" descriptions, a few of which I will include here. It is written that the Choctaws were active people, peacefully inclined, who loved games and were eager to make friends. Adair said the Chickasaws were amazed at the rhetorical skill of the Choctaws. The Choctaws were said to be the fastest runners of all southern Indians - able to out distance an enemy either in pursuit or in flight. They were excellent defensive fighters and for this reason their homeland was seldom disturbed. They were reluctant to go warring in distant territory -- stating that they would probably have to be satisfied with killing only women or children. While if they waited at home for an all-male enemy party to attack them, they would be assured of more worthy adversaries and, therefore, more worthy trophies. Not only did a man's status within the nation depend upon his ability as a warrior, but his name as well.

Adair described the "war names" as follows:

"They crown a warrior, who has killed a distinguished enemy... and Abi is their constant war-period, signifying by their rhetorical figure "one who kills another". It signifies also to murder a person or beat him severely...The following is a specimen: One initiating in war-titles, is called "Tannap Abi, 'a killer of the enemy'; - he who kills a person carrying a kettle, is crowned Asonak Ai Tushka; the first word signifies a kettle, and the last a warrior. Shulush Humma Asht Abi, the name of the late Choktah great war- leader, our firm friend Red Shoes, is compounded of Shulush....deer skin shoes, Humma, red Ash....T....

"They give their children names, expressive of their tempers, outward appearances, and other various circumstances; a male child they will call Chula, the fox; and a female, Pakanle, the blossom, or flower. The father and mother of the former are called Chula Inki, and Chula Ishke, the father and mother of the fox; in like manner, those of the latter, Pakahnli Inki and Pakahnli Ishke; for Inki signifies the father, and Ishke the mother."

The words and usage as recorded by Adair in the early seventeen hundreds are the same today. In the latter part of the 19th century, Halbert noted the following use of the word Abi: Onakma, abi hoke! Tomorrow we will win! Also: Towa itonla achukma, abi hoke! The ball lies good. We will win. Abi is preserved in modern Choctaw names as "Tubby". The following excerpt from Swanton illustrates how the change took place:

"The chief also had a pipe. It was given by Simpson Tubby's great-grandfather, Mashulatubbi to his grandfather, Aliktubbi, and then passed to his (father) Lewis Tubby."

Simpson later loaned the pipe to a museum and it is said to have been lost.

The Acts of the Choctaw nation state that on December 8, 1891, James Carlubbee and his family of seven, newly arrived in Indian Territory from Mississippi, were made citizens. There are other instances of the word abi being made part of a family name. Each preserves a memory of the time when a warrior was known by his deeds.

The Choctaws are said to have practiced head-flattening for a while although we have only ethnographic data for this assumption. Archaeological studies underway now by the tribal archaeologist may shed some light on this. Some have conjectured that the word Chahta, the tribal name, may have come into the language from the Spanish word chata meaning flattened. The tribal members refer to themselves as Okla.

The Choctaw "scaffold burial" for their dead is mentioned often by early writers. The following account by Bossu, a Frenchman, is a fair summary:

"After a Chacta has died, his body is put into a bier made of cypress bark expressly for the purpose and placed on four forked sticks about fifteen feet high. After the worms have consumed the flesh, the entire family assembles. The bone-picker comes and dismembers the skeleton. He tears off the muscles, nerves and tendons which may be left. Then they bury the latter and deposit the bones in a chest after having painted the head with vermillion."

"Bone pickers" may also be rendered "bone gatherers". Cushman records their title as Hatak Fullih Nipi Foni; in other places they are called Iksa Anumpali and Na Foni Aiowa.

Hernando Desoto, leading his well-equipped Spanish fortune hunters, made contact with the Choctaws in the year 1540. He had been one of a triumverate which wrecked and plundered the Inca empire and, as a result, was one of the wealthiest men of his time. His invading army lacked nothing in equipage. In true conquistador style, he took as hostage a chief named Tuscaloosa (Black Warrior), demanding of him carriers and women. The carriers he got at once. The women, Tuscaloosa said, would be waiting in Mabila (Mobile). The chief neglected to mention that he had also summoned his warriors to be waiting in Mabila. On October 18, 1540, DeSoto entered the town and received a gracious welcome. The Choctaws feasted with him, danced for him, then attacked him. In the course of battle, the city was burned before the Spaniards were routed. In November, when his wounded were able to travel, DeSoto burned some more of the Choctaw domain, seized corn for his supply, and departed into Chickasaw country. Across the Mississippi, Desoto vanished from history.

Since DeSoto found no gold and the fur trade was not developed, the Choctaws were not seriously threatened by Na Hollo (white man) until about 1700.

Back to Top

1700 - 1800

"We don't know what you Christians, English and French together, intend; we are so hemmed-in by both, that we have hardly a hunting place left. We are so perplexed that we hardly know what to say or think."

-An Iroquois spokesman, speaking in the 1750's.

Early in the century the French built trading posts along the Mississippi and its tributaries. One such was French Lick, now Nashville, Tennessee. French governors solicited Choctaw favor by distributing gifts and by honoring chiefs. English traders wooed and won the Chickasaw. French and English agents set the two tribes against each other in an intermittent war that continued until the French left the south.

1702 Choctaws and Chickasaws make peace.

1704 Choctaw-Chickasaw war resume.

1705 Choctaw nation invaded by a combined Creek-Chickasaw force.

1708 Choctaws make peace with Chickasaws.

1711 Choctaw-Chickasaw war resume.

1715 Pro-British, Comchak Emike "most distinguished man of the Choctaws", murdered at the instigation of French governor Bienville.

1723 Choctaws and Chickasaws make peace.

Since 1690 about five hundred Choctaws had been sold as slaves.

1726 A Catholic mission established in the Six Towns district.

1727 Father Mathurin le Petit established a Catholic mission at Yazoo. Neither of the missions prospered. One native "convert" returned to the mission to be debaptized. He said the white man's magic was ruining his deer hunting skill. He was promptly debaptized and is said to have regained his good aim.

1729 Regis du Roullet, a Frenchman, visited the Choctaws in company with two Chickasaw chiefs. Mats were spread for them. The Choctaw chief approached "singing the calumet" or peace song. An honored man brought a peace pipe and a torch. After smoking to peace, three honored men carried du Roullet to the council grounds for a feast.

Michael Beaudouin succeeded Le Petit and established a mission near the southern village of Chickasawhay.

1730 De Lusser visited the Choctaws to incite them to fight the Natchez (and hereby touched off another Chickasaw-Choctaw war). He describes a dance which followed the speaking and feasting: "The dance of the men having come to an end, that of the women began. They (the men) were all armed and daubed with paint, with headdresses of eagle feathers. They danced the dance of the Amediches (Nabedache, a Caddo tribe) who are Indians in the direction of Mexico, which a slave of that nation who is at the house of the great chief taught this nation. This is the finest of all the Indian dances. They performed it very well. Moreover, they are the best dressed and the neatest of all the Choctaw women I have seen."

1736 Choctaw-Chickasaw war raging furiously. In a battle that took place this year, it is said that the Chickasaws fought under an English flag, and that Indian allies of the French came from as far north as Canada to assist the Choctaws and established Fort Tombecbe on the Tombigbee River.

1739 Matters compounded as English incite Creeks to join in the battle against the Choctaws.

1741 End of Creek-Choctaw war.

1744 Attempts by Chief Shulush Homma (Red Shoes) to settle Choctaw-Chickasaw difficulties thwarted by French governor, Vaudreuil.

1746 Englishman James Adair began to trade in the Eastern district of Choctaw territory.

1748 Beginning of a Choctaw civil war. It started when a division of the tribe, encouraged by Adair and other English traders, sided with the English. In an effort to end the internecine struggle, the tribe killed Shulush Homma. But his brother renewed the war.

1750 End of the Choctaw civil war. The French party defeated the British party in September. A new treaty was executed which bound the Choctaws and French. The Chickasaws endeavored to make peace at this time also, but Vaudreuil, adamant in his demand that the Chickasaws be exterminated, refused.

1752 The Chickasaws renewed their attacks on French settlements.

1753 Kerleric replaced Vaudreuil as French governor. He wrote of the Choctaws: "It seems to me that they are true to their plighted faith. They are men who reflect, and who have more logic and precision in their reasoning than it is commonly thought."

1754 Start of French and Indian war. Kerleric, unable to supply the Choctaws with sufficient trade goods, revised his opinion of them: "I am sufficiently acquainted with the Choctaws to know that they are covetous, lying, and treacherous. So that I keep on my guard without showing it."

1755 An anonymous Frenchman, traveling in Choctaw country, recorded his observations which may be found in Volume V, Part 2, of the Memoirs of the American Anthropological Association.

1763 End of French and Indian war. The Peace of Paris. Without their knowledge or consent, the Choctaws became a part of the British Empire. Several Choctaw chiefs attended a conference in Augusta, Georgia, called by British officials. Creeks, Cherokees and Chickasaws also attended. The Six Towns Choctaws transferred their loyalty from France to Spain - largely because the Spanish could supply them better than could the English.

1765 March 26, Mobile. The British governor, Johnstone, made a treaty with the Choctaws - defining their eastern boundary. At the treaty meeting, the Choctaws were attacked by Creeks. Ten Choctaws were killed and several captured. A Creek-Choctaw war ensued which lasted for six years.

1770 Bernard Romans trekked through Choctaw country. He published a narrative of the trip in 1775.

1774 About this time, Adair, the English trader, left the Chickasaws. He published a book which contained the following discussion of why the Choctaws were called "long hairs": "Because the Choktah did not till lately trim their hair, the other tribes through contempt of their custom, called them Pansh Falaiah, 'long hair', and they in return gave them the contemptuous name, Skoobale shto, very naked, or 'bare heads'....the same word, or Waksishto, with Hassi prefixed, expresses the penem proeputio detecto....and Panshi Falaia abi is the proper name of a warrior who killed an enemy wearing long hair. It is a triple compound from Panshi, 'the hair of one's head', Falaia 'long', and Abi, 'killing', which they crowd together.

1775 The American Revolution began a period of new alignments for the Choctaws and other southern Indians. Choctaw scouts served under Washington, Morgan, Wayne and Sullivan.

1777 A conference in Mobile with Stuart, British Indian agent, was attended by Choctaws and Chickasaws. Both allied with England.

The Choctaws sold a part of their territory along the Mississippi River to the English.

1783 End of American Revolution. Franchimastabe, Choctaw head chief, went to Savannah, Georgia to secure American trade. While he was absent the Choctaws at home met and signed a treaty with the Spanish at Mobile.

1785 Choctaws, dissatisfied with Spanish trade goods, were sent by Franchimastabe to meet Americans at Hopewell, on the Keowee. At the meeting the Choctaws acknowledged American sovereignty and trade control.

1786 March 25. Joseph Martin wrote the Virginia governor that Spanish influence was increasing among the Choctaws.

The Choctaw leaders signed the treaty of Hopewell with the new United States government placing themselves under its protection.

1787 Colonel Arthur Campbell, Virginia's agent to the Indians, endorsed a Choctaw request for a trading post near Muscle Shoals.

1792 One hundred and ten Choctaws and many Chickasaws journeyed to Nashville, Tennessee for a conference with American officials.

1793 The Spanish influence was at its zenith among southern Indians. Choctaws, Cherokees, Creeks and Chickasaws met the Spaniards at Los Nogales on October 28. Franchimastabe led the Choctaw delegation. The four nations signed the Treaty of Fort Nogales, a defensive and offensive treaty with Spain.

May 10: A treaty was signed at Boucfouca that ceded several Choctaw areas on the Tombigbee River where the Spanish built Fort Confederation and established a trading post.

1794 A contingent of Choctaws scouted for General Anthony Wayne against the Northwest Indians at Fallen Timbers.

1796 Start of the American government factory system. It was an attempt to displace English and Spanish traders, by bringing to the Indians trade goods at cost.

1797 The Spaniards still held the Choctaw trade.

1798 April 7: Congress created the Territory of Mississippi.

1800 - 1830

"I wish you to understand that I am Andrew Jackson and, by the Eternal, you shall sign that treaty......" "I know very well who you are, but I wish you to understand that I am Pushmataha, head Chief of the Choctaws; and, by the Eternal, I will not sign that treaty."

-At the Treaty of Doak's Stand.

This thirty-year period was a time of dramatic change for the Choctaws. They were hard-pressed by white settlers who coveted their land. The government, divided in its purpose, set up funds to civilize the Indians and at the same time pressed for their removal west. If the government was confused, the Choctaws were more so. Striving to indicate their desire to stay at home and become "civilized", the Choctaws exchanged ancient customs for the "new way". They started a school system which quickly rooted and grew strong. But their desparate actions could no stem the white tide. A series of treaties stripped away their domain. Missionaries, who honestly believed the Choctaws would be better off away from white contact, joined in removal efforts with states that simply wanted the Indians out of the way. Bitter debated raged in Congress over Andrew Jackson's removal bill. At a little creek called "Dancing Rabbit" the Choctaw Nation East was signed out of existence.

1800 Earth burial replaced scaffold burial. The new rites were described as follows in the Missionary Herald, December 1828: "When a Choctaw dies, his friends set up a number of poles around the grave, on which they hang hoops, wreaths, etc.....Around these poles the survivors of the family gather each day at sunrise, noon and sunset, and there prostrating themselves and uttering convulsive cries, mourn for the deceased. This is continued during 30 or 40 days: Then all the neighboring people assemble, the poles are pulled up and the mourning is ended with feasting, drinking and great disorder."

1801 Fort Adams Treaty. The Choctaws ceded the southwestern corner of their land. The U.S. secured the right to construct a road through Choctaw country from Natchez to Nashville, Tennessee. Said the Chiefs to the Commissioners: "We came here (to the council) sober. We wish to go away so -- we, therefore, request that the strong drink, which we understand our brothers have brought here, may not be disturbed."

1802 Fort Confederation Treaty. The Choctaw eastern boundary was marked and the Choctaws ceded a tract north of Mobile.

The United States government established a Choctaw trading house at St. Stephens on the site of the old French fort Tombecbe.

1803 Louisiana Territory was transferred to the United States, ending rivalry of foreign powers within the Choctaw nation. President Thomas Jefferson suggested to Congress that Indians be moved west of the Mississippi.

1804 An act organizing the Louisiana Territory was passed. It included a provision for giving western lands to Indians for their eastern domains.

1805 Mount Dexter Treaty. The Choctaws ceded the remaining strip of their southern territory. The tribe received and annuity of $3,000. Forty-eight thousand dollars was appropriated for paying debts owed by the Indians to white traders. Chiefs Apukshunnubbee, Pushmataha and Moshulatubbee were granted salaries of $150 per year plus $500 for their service to the nation. George Gaines of Gallatin, Tennessee arrived to become the United States factor at St. Stephens.

1811 Tecumseh visited the Choctaws, urging Indian Confederation. Pushmataha persuaded his people not to arouse the enmity of a stronger and more numerous people. Unsuccessful, Tecumseh left for the Creek nation.

1812 Further affirming his allegiance to the United States, Pushmataha led several hundred warriors with Jackson at the Battles of New Orleans and Horseshoe Bend. This year the Choctaws abolished the law of "blood" revenge (by which a relative of a murdered person could exact vengeance on any member of the murderer's family) in favor of punishing only the guilty party.

1813 December: Pushmataha, Mushlatubbee, Edmund Folsom, and John Pitchlynn led a contingent of 131 Choctaw warriors at the Battle of Holy Ground, a disastrous defeat for the Creeks.

1816 The Choctaw lands east of the Tombigbee (itombi ikbi - box maker) were ceded to the United States.

1817 Choctaw and Creek land cessions paved the way for Mississippi to become a state.

1818 Cyrus Kingsbury, at Choctaw request, established a mission at Eliot, on the Yalobusha River for the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions.

1819 Kingsbury asked the Choctaw council for assistance. He received the $3,000 tribal annuities plus $1,800 and some livestock.

March 26: The missionaries organized themselves into the first church in the Choctaw Nation.

April 19: The first Choctaw school at Eliot Mission officially commenced.

1820 Seven more missionaries arrived, including Calvin Cushman (whose son wrote an important book on the Choctaws), and Cyrus Byington who later prepared grammars, dictionaries and portions of the Bible in Choctaw.

1821 Kingsbury opened new missions at Mayhew and Pidgeon Roost.

1822 Chief Aboha Kullo Humma announced that his district had a law by which all liquor brought into the country was to be destroyed. The Chief also said that parents who should murder their infants, cattle and hog thieves, and parents who should abandon their homes, would be punished with thirty-nine lashes.

November: Another mission was established at Bethel.

1824 Several Chiefs journeyed to Washington to try to rectify problems in the 1820 treaty. Apukshunnubbee fell from a cliff in Kentucky. The others went onto Washington. Pushmataha, mortally ill with a throat infection said, on December 24: "I shall die, but you will return to our brethren. As you go along the paths, you will see the flowers and hear the birds sing; but Pushmataha will see them and hear them no more. When you shall come to your home, they will ask you, 'Where is Pushmataha?' And you will tell them, 'He is no more'. Pushmataha was buried on Christmas Day in Washington, D.C. A grand procession of 2,000 people followed his casket down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Congressional Cemetery. The big guns were fired. Dr. Gideon Lincecum, an old neighbor to "Push" said: "I always looked upon him as possessing the strongest and best balanced intellect of any man I ever heard speak."

1825 The Choctaws arranged with Colonel Richard Johnson to open an academy for boys in Kentucky. It was supported enthusiastically until 1841 when it was abolished in favor of a school in the Choctaw Nation in what is now Oklahoma.

A school opened in the Aikhummah community.

1826 A code of written laws was adopted by the Choctaws. Among other things, liquor was outlawed for the entire nation, and Chiefs were to be selected.

1827 Choctaws again refused to move: "It always gives us pain to disagree to a friend's talk."

1828 In a great revival movement many Choctaws joined the church.

1829 A Choctaw national law was passed giving a person accused of witchcraft the benefit of a trial. A school opened in the Yoknolechaya community.

1830 A school opened at Hikashubaha.

Eleven schools, 29 teachers, 260 students in the Choctaw nation. Eighty-nine boys in the Kentucky Choctaw Academy.

1831 - 1918

"Amid the gloom and horrors of the present separation, we are cheered with a hope that ere long we shall reach our destined home, and that nothing short of the basest acts of treachery will ever be able to wrest it from us, and that we may live free."

-Statement made by a Choctaw during removal.

Through swamps, canebrakes, forests and across swollen rivers, the Choctaws set out for their new land. Cholera, exposure and malnutrition claimed many lives. The Choctaws grieved the loss of the homeland - the resting place of their beloved dead. But they turned their hearts and hands to the building of a nation which thrived until the turn of the century. A remnant stayed behind in Mississippi and Louisiana. Notes pertaining to the Mississippi Choctaw in this section will be prefixed: MISS. The balance of the notes concern the new Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory, now Oklahoma.

1831 Pre-removal census in Mississippi: 19,200 Choctaws.

By the end of 1831, 360 people belonged to the churches at Elliot, Mayhew, Bethel, Goshen, and Emmaus. 244 children had been baptized.

1832 Office of Commissioner of Indian Affairs created.

1833 Elbert Herring, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, stated that the Choctaws are "as they were in 1801 and in 1820, almost unanimously opposed to the introduction and sale of ardent spirits in their country."

1834 The Choctaws drafted a new Constitution.

1835 Death of Chief Moshulatubbee. He had been leader of the anti-Christian faction.

1836 It was made lawful to marry within the Iksa. Previous to this act, the Choctaws were divided into two great clans. Choctaws could only marry someone from the opposite Iksa. The word Iksa is now used to denote church denominations, i.e.: Kiahlic Iksa, Catholic Church.

1837 Thirty-thousand and five hundred religious tracts were printed in Choctaw.

1838 The first meeting was held in the new log Council House named Nanih Waiya for the sacred old hill.

1839 The death penalty was prescribed for any Chief who should cede Choctaw lands.

1843 Byington's Choctaw Almanac gave the Choctaw population as 12,690.

1845 Chief Nitakechi, nephew of Pushmataha died, while on a trip to Mississippi to urge the remnant to move to Indian Territory.

1846 One-thousand more Mississippi Choctaws removed to Indian Territory.

1847 A collection was taken in Skullyville (Choctaw Nation) where a total of $710 was raised to aid victims of the potato famine in Ireland.

1848 A newspaper, the "Choctaw Telegraph", was founded by David Folsom (Choctaw).

1849 The Office of Indian Affairs was transferred to the Interior Department.

1853 Three-hundred and eighty-eight more Mississippi Choctaws moved to the Nation.

1854 Three-hundred more Mississippi Choctaw moved to the Nation.

1859 The American Board of Commissioners withdrew its support from the Choctaw missions due to anti-slavery issues.

1860 A new Constitution was drafted at Skullyville. The Choctaws reported 900 children in their schools.

1861 The Choctaws indicated they would join the South in the war.

1865 The Choctaws laid down their arms. (June 19)

1866 The Choctaws negotiated a new treaty with the United States.

1867 The Choctaw schools re-opened.

1871 The United States abandoned the treaty process.

1872 The Union Pacific put a railroad through the Nation. Others followed.

1876 MISS: The last Achahpih (Chungkee) game: "Some ten years ago there lived in Neshoba County an aged Choctaw named Mehubbee, who had often seen the Achahpih game played in his youth, and who still had an Achahpih stone (tali chanaha) in his possession. One day in the summer of 1876 this aged Indian prepared an Achahpih yard, in an old field of Talasha Creek and instructed some young Choctaws how to play this almost forgotten game of their forefathers. This was undoubtedly the last time this ancient Indian game was ever played in the State of Mississippi." (See Halbert of Swanton for an account of the game.)

1879 Carlisle Indian school was founded.

1882 MISS: Henry S. Halbert studied the Mississippi Choctaw and published his findings. He continued his observations until 1901.

1883 The Choctaws granted limited citizenship to freed Negroes. (The Mississippi Choctaw often call Negroes "yukat issa".)

1884 The Catholic Church was established at Tucker, about seven miles southeast of Philadelphia, Mississippi.

1885 The last buffalo herd in the U.S. was exterminated. The Choctaws had conducted annual expeditions in the West Texas plains expressly for hunting buffalo.

1886 The Commissioner of Indian Affairs declared that treaties should be disregarded if necessary.

1887 Output of coal mines in the Choctaw Nation estimated at over 500,000 tons.

1890 During this decade another effort was made to bring the remaining Mississippi Choctaws to the Nation.

1892 Total Choctaw students in their schools: 4,349.

1893 The Dawes Severalty Act was introduced to the Five Civilized Tribes. The President was authorized to negotiate with the Choctaws for the purpose of terminating their nation.

1894 The Choctaws resisted early efforts to change their government or land, saying "We cannot bring ourselves to believe that such a great, grand and Christian Nation, as the U.S. Government would so stultify itself in the eyes of the civilized world, by disregarding treaties heretofore solemnly entered into, with a weak and dependent people, regardless of justice and equity,--Simply, because she is numerically able to do so."

1896 Indians of the Territory countered the proposals of the Dawes Commission by requesting that the Indian Territory be made a State with no union with Oklahoma. But the Dawes Commission, reflecting current sentiment, went ahead with plans to "acculturate" the Indians, and with severalty efforts.

1897 A party of Choctaws visited Mexico with an eye to removal thereto.

1899 The United States assumed responsibility for the well-developed Choctaw school system - changing their curricula from cultural to vocational.

1903 MISS: Three-hundred Mississippi Choctaws were persuaded to remove to the Nation.

1906 March 4: End of the tribal government as county and district officials ceased to function.

1907 End of Choctaw judicial system.

1908 From December 1908 to April 1909, David I. Bushnell, Jr., visited a Choctaw remnant living on the North shore of Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana. A report of his findings is in Bulletin 48, Bureau of American Ethnology, 1909. He recorded many myths, folkways, and pursued some archaeological investigations. Horn spoons (Wak lapish isht impa) were still in use, as were mortars and pestles, scrapers, drums, ball clubs, blowguns, darts and canoes. Baskets were being woven of palmetto (tala) but were crude.

1910 MISS: One-thousand, two-hundred, and fifty-three Choctaws still lived in Mississippi.

1916 MISS: An outside investigation of Mississippi Choctaws initiated by the United States Government revealed a deplorable state.

1918 Choctaw was used as a code in World War I (Byington's Dictionary).

MISS: The Bureau of Indian Affairs established an agency in Philadelphia, Mississippi, to establish schools and assist the Choctaws who had stayed.

1918 - 1962

"We believe in the future of a greater America, an America which we were first to live, where life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness will be a reality. In such a future, with Indians and all other Americans cooperating, a cultural climate will be created in which the Indian people will grow and develop as members of a free society."

-Portion of the "Creed" printed in the "Declaration of Indian Purpose" 1961.

Recognized at last by the federal government, the Mississippi band of Choctaws began to receive assistance in their struggle with poverty. Lands were purchased by the United States Government for the tribe and literacy attained. But mistrust at the local level, caused at least in part by the proximity of two divergent cultures, has continued to be the source of disappointment.

1919 Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Francis E. Leuppp, boldly concluded that "The Indian problem has now reached a stage where its solution is almost wholly a matter of administration."

1920 The education program became a major operation among the Choctaws with the opening of Pearl River School, Tucker School, and Standing Pine School.

The Choctaw land Acquisition Program was begun.

1921 Dr. Frank J. McKinley began serving a five year term on November 8 as the first superintendent of the Choctaw Agency in Philadelphia, Mississippi.

1922 The Indian Bureau doubled its efforts to destroy native religions, holding that they were the great obstacle to acculturation.

Bogue Homa School was opened in Jones County near Hattiesburg.

1923 The committee of One Hundred surveyed the Indian situation.

1924 Citizenship granted by Congress to all Indians.

July 21: Agricultural Extension Program established.

1925 The Indian death rate continued to exceed the birth rate and the overall Indian economy was worsening.

Red Water School was opened as the second Choctaw school in Leake County.

1926 A thirty-five bed hospital was established for the Mississippi Choctaws at Philadelphia.

Dr. Robert J. Enochs served as superintendent to the Choctaw Agency from May 18, 1926 until June 1932.

1928 Publication of The Problem of Indian Administration by the Brookings Institution and a subsequent investigation by the Senate disclosed publicly the anti-Indian bias of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Conehatta School opened.

1929 Under the administration of Herbert Hoover, Secretary of the Interior Ray Lyman Wilbur and Indian Commissioner Charles J. Rhoades called for tribal corporate organization under statute.

1930 The Indian death rate began to decline.

Bogue Chitto School opened in the Bogue Chitto community.

1931 Tribes increased pressure on the federal government to "Enfranchise our societies". Policy statements were issued which went far to rectify decades of mistreatment of the Indians, but it would not be until the next administration before suggestions would become legislation.

1932 Mr. A.C. Hector served as superintendent to the Choctaw Agency from October 1932 until April 1938.

1933 March: Franklin Delano Roosevelt entered into office as President of the United States. John Collier became Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

1934 Indian Reorganization Act. These were its dominant features: (1) The Indian societies would be reorganized, (2) Provision was made for an Indian Civil Service, (3) Land allotment was stopped and the revestment of Indians with land was started, (4) A credit fund was established. This act was a complete reversal of acculturation and severalty efforts of nearly 50 years duration.
Public Health Nursing Program began.
January: First notation of an active 17-member Choctaw Business Committee holding an election. A detailed roster of the Temporary Tribal Council was complied as follows:

Bob Henry, 36, Route 2, Philadelphia
Houston Steve, 56, Route 4, Philadelphia
Anthen Johnson, 26, Conehatta
Pat Chitto, 67, Carthage
Joe Chitto, 44, Walnut Grove
Billy Nickey, 60, Heidelberg
Dempsey Morris, 43, Route 2, Philadelphia
Willie Solomon, 60, Conehatta
Nicholas Bell, Route 7, Philadelphia
Baxter York, Route 7, Philadelphia

September 27: In Union the 104th anniversary of the Dancing Rabbit Creek Treaty in Mississippi representatives of the Choctaws met to complete the organization of the Mississippi Choctaw Indian Federation. On this date Reverend Ed Willis was installed as the first recognized chief since the Dancing Rabbit Creek Treaty.

1935 March 30: The Choctaws of Mississippi voted to accept the provisions of the Indian Reorganization Act. Of 736 eligible voters, 218 voted to accept and 21 voted to reject.

1938 Mr. Lewis W. Page served as superintendent to the Choctaw Agency for one month until he was replaced by Mr. Harvy K. Meyer. Mr. Meyer remained superintendent until August 1940.

1939 June 21: An act authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to declare the lands in trust for the benefit of the Mississippi Choctaws.

1940 Mr. Archie McMullen served as superintendent to the Choctaw Agency from September until August 1951.

1942 As of February 11 seven Mississippi Choctaws had volunteered for service and six had been drafted to fight in World War II. One hundred and thirty-four were registered in the most recent registration.

1944 August: The proposed Choctaw Constitution was in Washington where minor legal details were being worked out in correspondence with the tribe.

December: A Proclamation issued by the Secretary of the Interior declaring the Choctaw lands to be in trust as an Indian Reservation.

In a proclamation dated December 4, 1944, 15,150 acres were declared to be an Indian Reservation for the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

The Revolving Credit Program began.

1945 Mississippi Choctaw Tribal Council organized under the act of 1934.

April 20: Qualified voters, who were twenty-one year old residents of Mississippi of one-half or more Choctaw Indian blood, held an election to vote on the adoption of a Constitution and By-Laws. Voting polls in the Bogue Chitto, Bogue Homa, Conehatta, Pearl River, Red Water, Tucker, and Standing Pine precincts were open from 8:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.

May 22: The Constitution and By-Laws of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians was approved by the Secretary of the Interior.

June 16: The Temporary Choctaw Council in accordance with the Constitution called an election for the purpose of electing a sixteen member council to serve two years.

July 10: First regular meeting of the Choctaw Tribal Council. Joe Chitto of the Standing Pine Community was elected as Chairman.

1946 Congress created the Indian Claims Commission.

1947 August 20: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians held their second tribal council election. Emmett York was elected to his first term as Pearl River Councilman.

1949 Emmett York was elected Chairman of the Choctaw Tribal Council.

Hoover Commission recommended transfer to state government of social programs for Indians. Tribal termination was suggested.

October 29: The first Choctaw Indian Fair was held. Exhibits were displayed from the homes and farms of all the Choctaw communities in Mississippi. The five government schools from Carthage, Standing Pine, Tucker, Pearl River and Jones came together and held the fair at Pearl River School.

1950 The federal termination policy was given impetus with the statutory termination of several tribes by Congress.

Cleddie Bell became the first woman to serve on the Choctaw Tribal Council.

1952 May 5: The Social Services Program began. A home extension agent was assigned to word with the Mississippi Choctaw women. A full time dentist was assigned to the agency.

1955 The public health service assumed responsibility for the Indian health program. (Public Health Service Indian Hospital)

1956 The ardor for termination was subsiding. A home sanitation aid was assigned to the health staff of the Mississippi Choctaws.

June: Mr. Paul Vance was appointed as superintendent of the Choctaw Agency. He remained until 1962.

The first Choctaw Indian Princess, Patsy Sam Buffington, was selected at the Choctaw Indian Fair.

1957 July 1: Adult Education Program began.

1958 Secretary of Interior Seaton modified the federal termination policy.

1959 Pamela Coe did a research paper on the Mississippi Choctaws.

1960 July 1: Forestry Program began.

A film was produced by the Tennessee Conservation Commission entitled: "Chucalissa Indian Crafts", 16mm, sound/color which depicts step-by-step construction of a basket, pot, and blow gun by Mississippi Choctaws. (Tennessee later assigned all rights to the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.)

1961 Mississippi Choctaw Tribal Chairman Phillip Martin, Emmett York and Tinsley John participated in the all-Indian meeting, June 13-20, for the purpose of drafting a "Declaration of Indian Purpose". Called the "American Indian Chicago Conference", it drew some 450 Indians from 90 tribes. The declaration was later presented to President John F. Kennedy.

1962 Choctaw communities in Mississippi: Bok Chito, Tucker, Red Water, Standing Pine, Conehatta, and Bok Homa. Rate of increase about 100 per year. Choctaws in Tennessee: 2 families in residence at Chucalissa Indian Village, Memphis; There was also small group at Ripley which had a Choctaw Preacher.

LOOKING BACK over this chronology, it becomes apparent that the "Indian Program" at almost any given point in history reflects the social outlook of non-Indians at the same time and place. Thus, when foreign powers were splitting continent, the psychology was extended to set Indian against Indian. Later, a religious fervor sought to "save the savage". Then dog-eat-dog individualism begat a long period of efforts to de-tribe the Indians. In the 1930's an appreciation of variant cultures, bolstered by a depression-built dependancy, sent welfare to the tribes with a new emphasis on salvaging the native culture. Twelve years ago the field was again reversed and tribal "termination" began. At the present, with atomic power punctuating the smallness of the earth, with new nations blossoming in Africa and elsewhere, there is a growing feeling that Indians should have more voice in their own affairs. The Mississippi Choctaws, forgotten for a century, are emerging into the mainstream of the major culture at this precise time. They are balanced between past and future. That they are aware of their conditions and needs is evident in the following report which was drafted by the Mississippi Choctaws on May 15, 1961, as background for the previously cited "American Indian Chicago Conference". It was prepared in secret by the council and chairman and taken directly to the conference by Emmett York and Phillip Martin. It is presented here in full as a summary of tribal conditions and needs in 1961.

EDUCATION

Present Conditions

Present educational facilities and equipment are excellent. The seven day schools that are located adjacent to Indian reservations provide courses in elementary, junior high, and two years of high school, music drama, physical education, vocational training, and adult education. Library services are offered.

Most of those who complete the 10th grade are enrolled in federal boarding schools in Oklahoma and Kansas. Four or five of the graduating students are enrolled in the Meridian Municipal Junior College at Meridian each year. They should be commended for coming out of a total segregated situation and going into an integrated situation and adjusting themselves and doing outstanding work.

Indian students are accepted in most of the leading junior colleges, senior colleges and universities of the state. Schools located in an area where there is a concentration of Indian population will not accept Indian students.

Needs

The present educational program needs to be enlarged to include kindergarten school, last two years of high school, and standardized curriculum. More facilities are needed for an enlarged educational program. Competent and qualified instructors are needed who are not prejudiced race fanatics and segregationalists.

A well-equipped physical education department with a full-time instructor are needed. A well-equipped vocational training department and mote trades training opportunities are needed.

An enlarged adult educational program to include courses on family life, home management, citizenship training a cultivation, thrift and economy, savings and investments, farm management, farm accounting, farm marketing, stock raising, poultry, propagation of fruits for family use, landscaping and beautification of the home, preservation and conservation of wildlife, plant life and natural resources.

HOUSING

Most reservation housing is inadequate and unsuited for rearing families. Overcrowded conditions exist. Unsightly slum conditions prevail. Better and adequate housing is needed. Every possible assistance should be extended to the Indians for housing purposes. Long-term loans from some source should be considered.

HEALTH AND SANITATION

Present health facilities and services include clinical service, medical, and hospital care. Those needing surgery are cared for at the University Hospital located eighty miles away. A staff of four doctors, twelve nurses, and eight nurses' aides are employed to take care of the sick.

There is a field nurse and a doctor on duty. A full-time dentist and a technician are employed to take care of the Indians' dental needs. Those needing visual corrections are cared for. A laboratory technician is employed. Pharmaceutical services are provided. Better sanitary conditions are needed. Present sanitation program should be stepped up. Elimination of health hazards and eradication of and protection from insect pests and other germ-carrying insects and animals. Proper disposal of garbage and boy waste materials is needed. Standard drinking facilities meeting state health standards should be observed at all public places.

The present 35 bed hospital should be increased to 50 bed capacity. Permanent and resident physician is preferred.

SOCIAL PROBLEMS

Present Problems

Family life on the reservations is in a deplorable state. Excessive drinking and drunkenness, common-law marriages, illegitimacy, and gross sex immoralities prevail.

General state of unrest and discontent prevail. Jealousies, distrust, bitterness, and resentments are common. Delinquencies of every kind and prevalent. Most Choctaw are critical of the present policies of the administration of their affairs at the local level. The leasing program is the source of much of the misunderstanding a indifference.

Many of the aged Indian citizens are not properly cared for. Many of them are forgotten and left to spend the remainder of their days on earth in hovels of filth and squalid conditions. Physically and mentally handicapped children are neglected.

Children with visual difficulties and minor physical deformities are grossly neglected and mistreated by normal-bodied children.

School authorities and some teachers are neglectful of their duties of seeing that children are properly cared for.

Suggestions of solutions

Family studies and programs should be conducted. Parents of children should be invited to participate in the community program designed for the families. Alcohol studies and an effective rehabilitation program should be conducted for all alcoholics.

Such state of unrest and discontent and tension are attributed to a general lack of formal education, moral training and spiritual enlightenment. Mental and emotional immaturities may be attributed mostly to lack of education and moral principles. The lack of enlightened and effective native leadership and possibly maladministration of the agency administrative personnel may share the blame for this situation in human relations.

Some united and concerted effort must be made to bring all the factions to mutual understanding and goodwill and all rally together in a common bond of peace and unity and cooperation for the welfare and happiness of every Choctaw. The car of the aged, homeless orphans, and helpless persons should have priority considerations.

Every federal employee and Choctaw citizen should be made aware of these physically handicapped persons and see that they are treated kindly and loved.

LAND PROGRAM

Present Problems

There is definitely an unsatisfactory land leasing program. Many of the Indians are delinquent in their payment on their leases. This is due primarily to ineffective native leadership, misunderstanding, etc.

More than half, possibly two-thirds, of the total Choctaw population live off and away from the seven reservations. Inadequate acreage of tillable and producible lands on the reservations accounts for majority of them engaging in share-cropping.

Suggestions of solutions

If present land program has been proven unsatisfactory, then a more satisfactory one should be instituted. Every Indian lessor should be helped to understand that he has very little to lose and much to gain and that they are expected to help conduct and orderly land program.

Greater use and care of the land should be emphasized.

More land is needed. Those who need financial aid for farming purposes or stock-raising should be extended this help. They should be given every available information on farm management.

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS

Present Problems

The Choctaws probably occupy the lowest rung of the economic ladder than all other racial groups in the area. They live on low subsistence basis due to lack of equal opportunities for employment other racial groups in the area. They live on low subsistence basis due to lack of equal opportunities for employment other groups enjoy. The income of an average family is approximately $600.00 yearly while only a few enjoy a yearly income of approximately $2,000.00.

The Choctaws inability in understanding and following work instructions are probably the main reasons.

Only a few Choctaws are skilled workers. A few are heavy road equipment operators.

Possible Solutions

Most Choctaws are farm laborers. The average wage for a farm-laborer is approximately $2.50 per day which is ordinarily from sun-up to sun-down or twelve hours. There are two farm work seasons: namely, cotton-chopping and cotton-picking. If a farm-laborer can get eighty working days from each season, he can earn $400.00 in wages for the entire summer's work. Unless he engages in some other type of farm work, he is confronted with hunger and want of the necessities of life during the worst seasons of the year.

Steady employment, better economic opportunities, and opportunities for promotions are needed to improve economic situation of the Choctaw family.

INDUSTRIES

Present Conditions

Farming, stock raising, poultry, and pulpwood and lumber industries are the only sources of income. Choctaws are not considered for employment.

Possible Solutions

It is the consensus that there is a need for an industrial development in areas convenient for the employment of Choctaws. More Choctaws should be considered for jobs in the local industries.

ADMINISTRATION

Present Conditions

The administrative policies are strongly opposed by Indian leaders. The most commonly known objections are as follows:

(1) Solicitation, employment, and termination. Only local Whites are considered for employment at the agency and in the schools. Practically all Whites are race fanatics and segregationists, i.e., all local Whites. Those who are employed are not fully qualified for the positions they have been appointed. The services of those who are sympathetic to the Indians' general welfare are not desired and are terminated.

(2) Partiality and favoritism are shown to Indians. Some Indians are puppets of certain agency personnel.

(3) Racial segregation policies are practiced in the federal government operated and supported institutions.

Possible Solutions

Before any appointment is completed, each should be made subject to study and approval of the Choctaw Tribal Council, especially, in the appointment of the superintendent.

When a superintendent, any agency personnel, or any Indian Service employee is charged with maladministration, habitual neglect or indifference toward the general welfare of the Indians, or any violations of the Constitution of the United States with respect to civil rights this should be reported formally by the Choctaw Tribal Council and recommendation made that an investigation be made of the person or persons so accused. Upon being found guilty as charged, he/she to be given the option of transferring to another location or resign upon request.

Racial segregation should not be permitted in federal institutions.

The New Testament. (Pin Chitokaka Pi Okchalinchi Chisas Klaist in Testament Himona, Chahta Anumpa Atoshowa Hoke.) American Bible Society, Instituted in the year 1816, New York. (P)

DURANT, A.R. Nanalhpisa Noshkobo. (Laws of the Choctaw Nation in Choctaw, with the treaties of 1837, 1855, 1865, and 1866). John F. Worley, printer, Dallas, Texas, 1894. (P)

PILLING, JAMES CONSTANTINE. Bibliography of the Muskhogean Languages. Bureau of Ethnology. Bulletin 9, 1889. (Indicates that more tracts, etc... were printed in Choctaw than in any other Muskhogean language.) (V)

BOAZ, FRANZ. Handbook of American Indian Languages. Bureau of Ethnology. Bulletin 40, part 1, 1911. (Introduction to linguistic method. Imparts perspective to study of unwritten languages.) (V)

* * * * * *

(V) Indicates copy seen at Vanderbilt University Library, Nashville.
(T)Indicates copy seen at Tennessee State Library, Nashville.
(P) Indicates copy in author's possession.

Following are the sources of the quotations used at each chapter heading:

Part 1: An elderly Mississippi Choctaw, speaking in 1957 and recorded on tape.
Part 2: An Iroquois spokesman, speaking in the 1750's.
Part 3: At the treaty of Doak's Stand.
Part 4: Statement made by a Choctaw during removal.
Part 5: Portion of the "Creed" printed in the "Declaration of Indian Purpose" 1961.

Social and Ceramonial SWANTON, JOHN R. Soutce Material for the Social and Ceremonial Life of the Choctaw Indians. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 103, 1931. (V)

BUSHNELL, DAVID I., JR. The Choctaw of Bayou Lacomb St. Tammany Parish Louisiana. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 48, 1909. (V)

WILLIAMS, SAMUEL COLE. Adair's History of the American Indians. The Watauga Press, Johnson City, Tennessee, 1903. (V) (T)

(See bibliography in Bulletin 103, BAE, for a comprehensive list.)

History PEITHMANN, IRVIN M. The Choctaw Indians of Mississippi. Southern Illinois University, 1961. (P)

HAGAN, WILLIAM T. American Indians. The University of Chicago Press, 1961. (P)

SERRANO Y SANZ, MANUEL. Espana y los Indios Cherokis y Chactas en la Sequanda mitad del siglo XVIII. (V)

COTTERILL, R.S. The Southern Indians. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, 1954. (P)

FOREMAN, GRANT. Indian Removal. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, 1956. (P)

DEBO, ANGIE. The Rise and Fall of the Choctaw Republic. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, 1961. (P)

NASH, CHARLES H. and OSOINACH, KIRKLAND. Pasfalaya. Chucalissa Indian Town, Memphis, Tennessee, Undated. (P)

AMERICAN INDIAN CHICAGO CONFERENCE. Declaration of Indian Purpose. The University of Chicago, 1961. (P)

(See also the Tennessee State Library for much reference material.)

Language BYINGTON, CYRUS. A Dictionary of the Choctaw Language. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 46, 1915. (P)

WATKINS, BEN. Complete Choctaw Definer. J.W. Baldwin Printer & Publisher, Van Buren, Arkansas, 1892. (P)

1963 Choctaw Central High School opened on the Pearl River reservation.

1964 Ninety percent of the Choctaw population lived in poverty with average family income below $1,000 a year.

The Choctaw Community Action Agency was formed to plan construction of houses, offices, and utilities. Through the Economic Opportunity Act, a grant of $15,000 and assistance from university management experts, the agency was effective.

1965 Choctaw Housing Authority organized to provide new houses, renovate older houses, and replace houses lost for Choctaw families on the reservation.

October: James D. Hale became superintendent of the Choctaw Agency in Philadelphia.

1966 Phillip Martin was elected president of the Choctaw Community Action Agency.

1968 Four Southeastern Indian tribes, the Seminole and Miccosukee from Florida, Cherokees of North Carolina and Choctaws of Mississippi, met in North Carolina for the signing of a Declaration of Unity. The United Southern Tribes organized to work "to promote our common welfare and benefit" in the areas of health, education, economics and relations with other Americans. Chairman Emmett York signed the declaration for the Mississippi Choctaws.

Construction of the Standing Pine Watershed began. Included are three flood water retarding structures that protects 6,000 acres in Leake and Neshoba Counties and will extend from the head of Standing Pine Creek to Pearl River.

Noblin Research, consulting economists, proposed an $11.4 million recreation- tourist complex on the Ross Barnett Reservoir to be established by the Choctaw Indians.

The Law and Order Program was established by the Secretary of the Interior on the Pearl River Reservation. The Branch of Law and Order was officially opened on September 24, when Neshoba County Circuit Judge O.H. Barnett ruled that the state of Mississippi did not have jurisdiction on the Choctaw reservation.

November: John F. Gordon took over as superintendent of the Choctaw Agency.

1969 Chahta Development Company was organized on the Pearl River Reservation to provide training and employment to members of the Choctaw tribe and to contract with governmental entities and private organizations in the area to carry out construction projects.

With a $564,000 grant from the Economic Development Administration (EDA), an initial 30 acre industrial park was laid out on the Pearl River reservation.

August 11: The United Southeastern Tribes Board of Directors met at Choctaw Central at Pearl River.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians gave $500 to the Mississippi Coast Relief Effort "We Care".

1970 Plans to develop "Nanih Waiya" mound and cave into major tourist attractions got under way.

The Dancing Rabbit Creek Treaty Site was submitted for nomination to the "National Register of Historic Places".

July: Mrs. Phillip Martin (Bonnie Kate) represented the Choctaw Indian Tribe at the first National Seminar for Indian Women held in the United States.

August: An exclusively Indian staffed and administered Choctaw Youth Rehabilitation Center opened in the Tribal Council's Pearl River Community office complex.

Tribal Chairman Emmett York received the Indian Leadership Award of the Bureau of Indian Affairs for his outstanding leadership and invaluable contributions to the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians during his past 22 years of service.

1971 The tribe completed what would become an 80 acre industrial park.

1972 The BIA, after first protesting "conflict of interest", finally agreed to appoint a full-blooded enrolled member of the Choctaw tribe, Robert Benn, as superintendent of the Choctaw Agency in Philadelphia.

1973 Law Enforcement Facility was built with a 21 person capacity, Bureau of Indian Affairs offices, and a court established under the Code of Federal Regulations.

November 7: The Dancing Rabbit Creek Treaty Site, which is located in Noxubee County, Mississippi, was declared a national historic landmark.

1974 December: The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a ruling that the 1918 Act and subsequent acts and court decisions have declared that the Mississippi Choctaw Indians were not a Tribe and the Choctaw Reservation is not a Reservation over which the Federal Government has exclusive jurisdiction. The foundation was the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek that "deliberately terminated the guardian/ward relationship with the Choctaw Indians who chose to remain in Mississippi and since such Indians accepted the termination they are no longer subject to Federal-Criminal Jurisdiction under the Major Crimes Act". This ruling was later reversed by the Supreme Court.

1975 Calvin Isaac was elected Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

The Choctaw Health Center was opened at Pearl River.

Congress enacted the Indian Self Determination and Educational Assistance Act, which allowed tribes to receive all federal welfare programs and encouraged them to develop their own delivery systems for these funds.

A Tribal Referendum was held to amend the constitution of 1945.

1977 Phillip Martin returned to tribal government when he was elected once again as councilman.

1979 Chata Enterprise was established as a supplier for Packard Electric to assemble automotive wire harnesses for General Motors.

Phillip Martin re-elected Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

1980 September 27: The 150th Anniversary of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek was celebrated on the Treaty Ground in Noxubee County, Mississippi.

1981 March 27: The Headstart/Parent Child Development Program Building was destroyed by fire.

Choctaw Tribal Chief Phillip Martin was elected president of the National Tribal Chairmen's Association.

The Choctaw Heritage Council was formed to educate the public of the Choctaw history and their contributions.

The Choctaw Museum of the Southern Indian opened its doors in the Community Building at Pearl River.

1983 Phillip Martin traveled to Los Angeles, Chicago, and Cleveland to encourage the loose communities of Mississippi Choctaws to return to the reservation. He promised them jobs and economic opportunities.

May: The Choctaw Greetings Enterprise, which operates on a lease agreement with American Greetings Corporation formally opened in the Pearl River Industrial Park.

Father Bob Goodyear, S.T. offered the first mass in the Choctaw language at the St. Catherine Catholic Church in Conehatta, Mississippi.

June: Phillip Martin was reelected.

October: Plant 2 of Chahta Enterprises opened in the Pearl River Community in the Pearl River Industrial Park.

December: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians took over all management of the Choctaw Health Center in the Pearl River Community.

1984 Choctaw unemployment was down to 28 percent and falling.

1985 May 13: Ground breaking ceremonies for the Early Childhood Education Center at Pearl River were held. The new center will serve as a step in meeting the educational need of the Choctaw children.

Choctaw Electronics Enterprise opened in the Pearl River Industrial Park. The plant manufactured speakers for use in Chrysler automobiles.

Choctaw Tribe gains control of the total Law Enforcement Function from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

1986 The average, annual Choctaw family income was up to $11,000.

February: The 16-member Tribal Council accepted a proposal for Choctaw Reservoir, a 10,000 acre reservoir on the Pearl River to be located close to the Pearl River Reservation.

The Choctaw Indian Fair was officially recognized by the Southeastern Tourism Society as one of the top 20 attractions in the Southeast.

September: Chahta Enterprises opened its third plant in DeKalb, Mississippi. The major function of the plant would be the assembly of automotive and non- automotive wiring harnesses.

October: Choctaw Manufacturing Enterprise, which produces a variety of electronic devices and circuit boards for the automotive and other industries, opened. It is located in the Leake County Industrial Park.

1987 June: Phillip Martin was elected to a third consecutive four-year term as chief.

November: The Choctaw Residential Center Enterprise, a 120-bed nursing facility was opened in the Pearl River Community.

1988 Congress enacted the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).

Choctaw Agency Superintendent Robert Benn was assigned Eastern Area Administrative Officer in Washington, D.C.

June: The Green House was opened on the Choctaw Reservation at Pearl River.

August: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians were recognized for their support of the National Guard Reserve programs at the annual "Salute to Business and Industry" Banquet in Jackson, Mississippi.

1989 The average educational level among Mississippi Choctaws rose from the sixth grade in 1975 to the eleventh grade.

Choctaw Shopping Enterprise on Highway 16 about six miles west of downtown Philadelphia opened. The 28,545 square feet shopping center included Sunflower food store, The Citizens Bank, Two Bits Laundry and Arcade, Sun Rentals Video and Appliance, Arrowhead Petroleum, Choctaw Revolving Credit, Choctaw Federal Credit Union, a restaurant, Dollar General Store, a branch of United States Post Office, and Choctaw Office Supply.

April: Work began on a $4.7 Million Pearl River Elementary School on the Choctaw Reservation.

July: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw assumed local control of its schools, which were run by the U.S. Department of the Interior since the 1920's.

The site of the signing of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek in Noxubee County was deeded to the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. The Choctaw tribe is now responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the site and is now used for Choctaw burial.

1990 As a result of rapid economic growth, tribal unemployment fell below 20 percent. The tribe also experienced a 201 percent increase in annual per capita income since 1976.

July: WHTV, Choctaw Video signed on the air as an affiliate of The Learning Channel, Local Originated Programming, and Nostalgia to provide local cable access to the tribe.

Choctaw Pallet Company, a service of the Choctaw Development Company, opened to manufacture pallets for Dupont.

Chata Enterprise received the Q1 Award from Ford Motor Company. The Q1 Award recognizes commitment to quality and outstanding performance.

Robert Benn returned from Washington, D.C. to resume his duties as Choctaw Agency Superintendent.

1991 June: Phillip Martin was elected to a fourth term as Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

July: Kidney Care Inc., a non-profit organization providing treatment for kidney disease, opened in Choctaw Shopping Center.

A new water treatment plant was dedicated by the Choctaw Utility Commission to ensure compliance with EPA requirements.

1992 January: First American Printing and Direct Mail of Ocean Springs, was acquired by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians as a 73,000 square-foot facility which provides printing, data management, direct mail, and telemarketing for a national-based clientele.

February: Choctaw 2000 Educational Strategy Kick Off

March: Water Treatment Plant Opening

June: Choctaw Manufacturing Enterprise earns their first Q-1 Award.

September: The Choctaw Tribe provided hurricane relief to the Chitimachas, Houmas, Miccosukees and the Seminoles.

October: The Choctaws and Creeks hosted a USET meeting in Biloxi.

November 9: The Community/School Education Center, located behind Pearl River Day Care Center, opened to provide extensive innovative resource materials in reading, math, language arts, and spelling.

December: Meridian Naval Air Station held American Indian Heritage Day.

1993 October 5: Plans for a casino and resort complex on the Choctaw Indian Reservation at Pearl River were cleared in a tribal referendum 68% of the voters favored construction.

December: Ground was broken on the Choctaw Indian Reservation for the Silver Star Resort and Casino. The casino, to be located across Highway 16 from the Choctaw Shopping Center, will be under a management contract with Boyd Gaming Corporation of Las Vegas.

1994 Existing tribal enterprises employed 2,800 workers and projected annual sales in excess of $90 million.

Silver Star Resort and Casino opened on July 1, and the official grand opening was held on August 19. The Las Vegas-style resort included 100-room deluxe hotel, 40,000 square foot casino, three restaurants, 125-seat entertainment lounge, gift shop, and 1,200-space parking lot.

After the opening of the Silver Star Hotel and Casino the tribal government, enterprises and the casino combined employed over 4,200 people. The tribe is among the ten largest employers in the state of Mississippi.

June: First American Plastics, a tribal joint venture project, opened in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. The plant manufactures plastic injection molding used for cutlery purchased by Perseco, a non-food purchasing agent for McDonalds.

August: A new elementary school was opened in the Tucker Community.

December: Just six months after opening the Silver Star Hotel and Casino announced a 25,000 square-foot expansion.

1995 The tribe started construction on a 55,000 square-foot entertainment center to be located at the Silver Star Hotel and Casino.

The Choctaw Tribal Council allotted $13 million from the first-year casino profits to be placed in a general fund to be used for improved housing, medical facilities and schools.

Silver Star Hotel and Casino's fine dining restaurant, Phillip M's was inducted into the Chaine des Rotisseurs, the oldest and largest gastronomic organization in the world.

A new day care center was constructed in the Conehatta community.

April 19: The tribe broke ground for a new manufacturing plant in Carthage. The new plant, part of the Choctaw Manufacturing Enterprise operation at the Leake County Industrial Park near the tribe's Red Water and Standing Pine communities, will include 45,000 square feet of additional manufacturing space.

April 20-22: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians celebrated the 50th anniversary of its constitution an by-laws and the 1945 re-establishment of tribal government with three days of historical exhibits, symposia, visiting dignitaries (including Gov. Kirk Fordice, U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran and Rep. Sonny Montgomery) and a variety of entertainment on the Pearl River Reservation.

May 4: The tribe signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA at the John C. Stennis Space Center, which was designed to enhance the tribe's education system.

There are now 866 houses developed by the Choctaw Housing Authority, with an added 135 under construction. This will brought the total to 991 houses built by the CHA since 1966.

June 13: Phillip Martin won a fifth consecutive term as Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

June 29: Silver Star Hotel and Casino held an open house for their new convention center. Included in the convention center is a state-of-the-art kitchen that can prepare food for 1,500 people seated in the 19,738 square foot ballroom. The room features a 960 square foot stage, a 12 by 12 video wall, high ceilings, crystal chandeliers and plush carpet.

September: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians received a grant of over $1.57 million for housing improvements from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The tribe signed a pact with the American Red Cross forging a working bond between them.

November 10 & 11: The First Annual Veteran's Day PowWow was presented by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and the Silver Star Resort & Casino.

Chief Phillip Martin and a delegation of tribal officials attended the launching of Space Shuttle Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Choctaw Central Warriors Football Team made to the Class 2A state playoffs for the first time in the school's history. They were defeated in a second round match up against Newton.

December: The U.S. Department of Education awarded the Choctaw Tribal School System a federal grant of $235,785 to operate a Professional Development Program on the reservation.

1996 January: Silver Star Resort & Casino instituted a management training program for Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians tribal members.

February: Choctaw Central Warriors Boy's Basketball Team won the Division 5-2A State Championship.

March: Chief Phillip Martin announced construction of a new subdivision in the Pearl River community to be known as River Oaks Place Part One, a turnkey contract with Jim Walter Homes, Inc.

Choctaw Central Lady Warriors Basketball Team won the Class 2A State Championship. The Choctaw Central Warriors Boys Basketball Team came in second.

Choctaw Manufacturing Enterprises, Inc. Opened the doors on a 45,000 square foot expansion at the Carthage firm which manufactures electrical harnesses.

April: NASA dedicated a Teacher Enhancement Center to be located at Choctaw Central High School.

May: Chief Phillip Martin was inducted into the State of Mississippi Business Hall of Fame.

July 18: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, in partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's John C. Stennis Space Center Education Office, received the prestigious Hammer Award from the office of Vice President Al Gore's National Performance Review for their work in education reform.

Silver Star Resort & Casino, while working on a $60 million expansion, unveiled plans for a $16 million Choctaw Trails Golf Club.

August 2: The concert chorus of the University of the Phillippines presented a program honoring Chief Phillip Martin of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

October: Choctaw Tribal Schools joined GLOBE or Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment, a federal government program headed by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association, NASA, and the National Science Foundation. GLOBE program is found in almost 3,000 schools, including eight Choctaw Tribal schools, and 39 countries. The students are taking measurements and reporting their findings via the Internet. Silver Star Casino received the Employer of the Year Award from Chief Phillip Martin and Choctaw Vocational Rehabilitation, a service of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. Silver Star was presented the award for its participation in supporting a changing work force and providing opportunities to those individuals with disabilities.

Choctaw Central Middle School received the Sportsmanship Award from Mississippi High School Activities Association and the Mississippi Farm Bureau Insurance for their conduct on the field of play.

1997 January: Farmer's Market Nutrition Program began to supply WIC clients and elderly members of the tribe with additional coupons to buy fresh fruits and vegetables from authorized farmers or farmers' markets.

February: Choctaw Central Lady Warriors won the Division 5-2A South State Championship for the second year in a row. The Warriors advanced as runner-up. Both teams advanced to the state championship.

March 6: Choctaw Central Lady Warriors beat Nettleton in the Mississippi Coliseum for their second consecutive Class 2A state championship. The warriors lose in the State Championship Semifinals.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians hosted its second annual Nutrition Health Fair in the Pearl River Community Center.

The National Tribal Environmental Council, a non-profit, tribal environmental organization, held its fourth national conference, "Healing Mother Earth, Our Sacred Duty," on the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians Reservation.

The Choctaw Indian Fair was selected as one of the Southeast Tourism Society's "Top 20 Events" for July and August.

Bok Chitto Elementary School was selected out of hundreds of schools to be one of 48 finalists world-wide in the International Schools CyberFair '97.

July 1: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians became the states newest "county," as identified by the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

July 11: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians' Dancing Rabbit Golf Club, a multi-million dollar eighteen hole golf course designed by Tom Fazio and Jerry Pate, opened to members and Silver Star Hotel guests in the Pearl River Community.

Silver Star Resort and Casino added The Spa, a new health spa and exercise facility, St. Marks Hair Salon, The Villa Restaurant, an ice cream parlor, three new retail shops, a video arcade, 404 hotel rooms, and 90,000 square feet of gaming area to the facility just in time for celebration of the resort's third anniversary.

September 26: Ground was broken for a new Bogue Chitto Elementary School to replace the overcrowded structure which was built in the 1920s.

Choctaw Tribal Schools' facilities program received a level-1 Quality Interest Award during the Mississippi Quality Awards ceremony.

November 24: A historic accord was signed by Chief Phillip Martin and Mississippi Governor Kirk Fordice pledging mutual respect and recognition and a spirit of cooperation. The accord was signed in the House Chamber of the Old Capitol in Jackson. The compact solidifies the government-to-government relationship that the Choctaw Indians and the state have shared for years. The executive branches including the employees, officers, departments and agencies are pledged to work with each other cooperatively for mutual benefit.

1998 February 19: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians hosted an Authors' symposium focusing on "American Indian Economic Success and Survival of Indian Culture in the 21st Century." Noted authors serving as panelists included John Edgerton, Will Campbell, Rob White, Peter Ferara, Lois Dubin, Mary Ann Wells, Fergus Bordewich and Bob Ferguson.

May 21: Silver Star Resort and Casino opened a new restaurant, the Chef's Pavilion featuring Mexican, Italian, Oriental, Country and Western and Seafood buffets.

July: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, along with the help of Senator Thad Cochran, were declared "self- regulated" by the United States Congress resulting in exemption from a new casino regulating tax.

September 23: Dancing Rabbit Golf Club was recognized as the Rehabilitation Association of Mississippi's Employer of the year.

October: Choctaw Housing Authority was awarded a grant by the United States Housing and Urban Development to fight drug abuse and other crimes. The $251,000 grant will be used to operate a comprehensive drug program on the reservation.

November 30: The Choctaw Environmental Education Nature Trail was opened off Black Jack Road on the Pearl River reservation. The focus of the 1.25 mile trail will be to enhance wetlands and restore habitats for deer, turkey, rabbit, black bear, and other wetland wildlife.

1999 March 12: Choctaw Central Warriors and Lady Warriors basketball teams won the Class 2A State Championship Titles.

June 8: Chief Phillip Martin was elected to a sixth consecutive term.

June 25: Bogue Chitto Elementary School opened its new state-of-the-art 57 room facility in the Bogue Chitto community in north-eastern Neshoba county.

June 26: The Dancing Rabbit Golf Club expanded with the opening of a second golf course, The Oaks. Along with the first course, The Azaleas, Dancing Rabbit operates 36 holes all designed by Jerry Pate and Tom Fazio. The second course is rated slightly tougher than the original.

July: The Choctaw Indian Fair celebrated its Fiftieth Anniversary.

2000 February 9: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians announced plans for a second casino to be a companion to the Silver Star and a new shopping center. Plans were also unveiled for renaming Pearl River Choctaw Community in order to establish a post office on the reservation

March 7: A tribal wide referendum was held for voters to decide on the fate of the second casino. The referendum was passed.

May 3: Choctaw Manufacturing Enterprise in Carthage was expanded.

An economic study of the effects of tribal industries and businesses on the state of Mississippi showed: Tribal businesses employ over 6700 and have and annual payroll of $123.7 million. Tribal businesses have been responsible for creating over 12,000 jobs statewide and spending over $95 million with Mississippi businesses.

May 22: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians hosted the fifth annual Consortia of Administrators for Native American Rehabilitation Conference. The conference is designed to bring together those who serve Native Americans with disabilities.

October 23: Representatives from the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, the Spanish government, and the City of Vicksburg converged on what was formerly Choctaw and Spanish territory to commemorate the Treaty of Nogales, which was signed by representatives of the Choctaw Nation and the King of Spain on October 28, 1793.

November: Dancing Rabbit Golf Club was ranked number 20 on Golf and Travel magazine's list of America's best 40 resort courses.

November 16: The grad opening and ribbon cutting ceremony for the Choctaw Town Center, a newly constructed retail area took place along with groundbreaking ceremonies for The Golden Moon. The ceremonies included the temporary interactive exhibit, Choctaw Vision: Weaving our Past through the Future, as well as pyrotechnic water and laser show hosted by astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

December 4: Groundbreaking ceremonies were held for the new Choctaw Elderly Activity Center.

A newly created Supreme Court was organized within the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians to make legal appeals more efficient. Three judges were appointed to serve on the court, Rae Nell Vaughn, who will serve as Chief Justice, Carey Vicenti, and Frank Pommershiem.

2001 January: The Mississippi band of Choctaw Indians was selected amongst six tribal communities nationwide to share nearly $1 million in grants for juvenile crime prevention and mental health improvements.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians began petitioning the United States Postal Service for its own ZIP code in an attempt to secure the designation of Choctaw, Mississippi and bring a federal Post Office to the reservation.

An interactive classroom that will allow Tribal students and adults to take video courses from learning institutions across the nation was dedicated at Choctaw Central High School.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians donated $50,000 to the National Center for Responsible Gaming, a group established to fund research and education of pathological and youth gambling.

Choctaw Central High School Lady Warriors' basketball team won the Division 5-3A regular championship.

January 31: The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians signed a construction contract with W.G. Yates and Sons Construction Company for the construction of The Golden Moon. The building contract totals $147 million. The anticipated completion of construction is mid 2002.

2007 Beasley Denson takes the oath of office to become Miko (Choctaw for Leader) Beasley Denson, the third Chief of the Tribe since adoption of their modern Constitution.

Back to Top