'Indian Wars' and the Struggle for Eastern North America, 1763-1842

by Robert M. Owens

Overview

‘Indian Wars’ and the Struggle for Eastern North America, 1763–1842 examines the contest between Native Americans and Anglo-Americans for control of the lands east of the Mississippi River, through the lens of native attempts to form pan-Indian unions, and Anglo-Americans’ attempts to thwart them.

The story begins in the wake of the Seven Years’ War and ends with the period of Indian Removal and the conclusion of the Second Seminole War in 1842. Anglo-Americans had feared multi-tribal coalitions since the 1670s and would continue to do so into the early nineteenth century, long after there was a credible threat, due to the fear of slave rebels joining the Indians. By focusing on the military and diplomatic history of the topic, the work allows for a broad understanding of American Indians and frontier history, serving as a gateway to the study of Native American history.

This concise and accessible text will appeal to a broad intersection of students in ethnic studies, history, and anthropology.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780367492052
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	11/18/2020
Series:	Seminar Studies
Pages:	194
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Robert M. Owens is Professor of History at Wichita State University, USA. He is the author of Red Dreams, White Nightmares: Pan-Indian Alliances in the Anglo-American Mind, 1763–1815 (2015).

Table of Contents

List of Figures ix

Chronology x

Who's Who xvii

Glossary xxx

Map xxxiv

Part I Analysis and Assessment 1

Introduction: Clashing Cultures 3

Competition and Conquest: How Europeans Saw America 3

For the Love of God 4

Gender and Colonization 4

To be "Civilized" 5

Forming an Imperfect Union 9

The Tyranny of Terminology 10

1 Britain's Tenuous Empire 12

The European Contest for North America 12

Penny-wise and Pound-foolish: Pontiac's War 14

Efforts in Diplomacy 19

Bleeding Pennsylvania 21

War's End? 23

Murder and Real Estate: Lord Dunmore's War 26

2 Revolting Americans 29

Many Problems and Few Solutions 29

Factionalism among the Cherokees 30

The British-Indian Alliance Stumbles in the North 33

Southern Discomfort 35

Violence Surges in the West 42

3 Confederations 46

Patriotic Paternalism 48

Creeks, Cherokees, and Southerners 53

Elusive Peace on the Frontier 58

4 Dueling Unions 63

Harmar's Campaign 63

The St, Clair Disaster 65

Wayne Takes Command 70

The Treaty of Greenville 76

Bowles Bows Out 78

5 Jeffersonians and Indians 81

Jefferson's Indian Land Policy 81

Tecumseh: The Greatest Pan-Indianist 84

A Civil War Among the Creeks 91

Americans Take Aim at Canada 92

Red Sticks and Old Hickory 95

6 Man Wars in the Age of Jackson 100

The Question of Florida 100

The First Seminole War 102

The Black Hawk War 106

The Second Seminole War 109

Conclusion: Making Sense of History 116

Indian Wars in Memory 116

"Heroes" Need "Villains" 117

Professors and Producers 118

Part II Documents 121

1 George Croghan at Fort Pitt to Sir William Johnson, 31 March 1762 123

2 Sir William Johnson at Johnson Hall, 18 March 1763, to Gen. Jeffery Amherst 124

3 Speech of Pontiac, 27 April 1763 124

4 Proclamation of Gov. Josiah Martin, North Carolina, 18 May 1774 125

5 Virginia Gazette, 17 August 1776 125

6 Virginia Gazette, 14 September 1776 126

7 Virginia Gazette, 30 May 1777 126

8 Extract of a letter from Silver Bluff, 28 October 1779 126

9 The Royal South Carolina Gazette, 9 May 1782 127

10 Alexander McGillivray at Little Tallassee, 15 September 1788, to Richard Winn, Andrew Pickens, and George Mathews, Commissioners for treating with the Southern Nations of Indians 127

11 Richard Winn, Andrew Pickens, George Mathews, to Alexander McGillivray, Esq. and the head men and warriors of the Creek nation. Hopewell on Keowee, 28 November 1788 128

12 Kentucky Gazette, 12 April 1788 130

13 General Joseph Martin, Agent to Cherokees, to Sec. War Knox, 2 February 1789 130

14 "For the Indian Department," Boston Gazette, 2 January 1792 132

15 Sec. of War Knox to Gov. William Blount, Southwest Territory, 31 January 1792 133

16 Hanging Maw's Talk, Kentucky Gazette, 17 November 1792 135

17 Memorial from the Widow of a Cherokee Chief, submitted to Congress, 17 January 1797 136

18 Piomingo in the Chickasaw Nation to General James Robertson, 17 June 1793 137

19 Kentucky Gazette, 1 September 1800, story from Savannah, Georgia 139

20 Pres. Jefferson to Gov. Harrison, 27 February 1803 139

21 Tecumseh's speech to Gov. Harrison, 20 August 1810 141

22 Lydia Bacon's journal, 30 November 1811 143

23 Indian Removal Act of 1830 144

24 Baltimore Patriot, 21 July 1831, "The Indian Disturbances" 146

25 Pittsfield Sun (MA), 4 August 1831, from the St. Louis Beacon 146

26 New Hampshire Sentinel, 11 February 1836, "A second Tecumseh" 147

27 The Floridian, 21 May 1836 147

Guide to Further Reading 148

References 153

Index 158