9911865.PDF (13.24Mb)
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely afreet reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6” x 9” black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor MI 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE YUCm SOCIAL HISTORY SINCE WORLD WAR II: POLITICAL SYMBOLISM IN ETHNIC IDENTITY A Dissertation SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By PAMELA S. WALLACE Norman, Oklahoma 1998 UMI Number: 9911865 UMI Microform 9911865 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 © Copyright by Pamela S. Wallace 1998 All Rights Reserved YUCHI SOCIAL HISTORY SINCE WORLD WAR U: POLITICAL SYMBOLISM IN ETHNIC IDENTITY A Dissertation APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY BY Acknowledgments The Euchee (Yuchi) community must be acknowledged first and foremost. Without their assistance this project would not exist in its current form. With over six years of continuous field research it is not possible to name all the Yuchi people who affected this research project. They invited me into their community as they sought scholarly assistance with their petition for acknowledgment. I have stayed to work on other projects including this one. In the process, I have worked with, laughed with, cooked with, danced with, and cried with many people as we traveled the through the years. Homes have been opened to me, friendships created, and much work accomplished on both sides. I do wish to publicly recognize those elders who are now gone, but who aided my research and in no small way touched my life; Chief James D. Brown, Chief Felix Brown, Speaker Jimmie Skeeter, Luanna Barnett, William (Bill) Cahwee, Jerri Kinsey, and Dimmie Washburn. Many elders remain and continue to enrich my research and life as do their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Jaimie Skeeter was only two years old when we first met, she prepared the way for my own grandchild. Thank you Jaimie, you will remain special to me through all time. 1 thank the entire Euchee community and cherish the fiiendships made. Dr. Foster was instrumental long before he became my advisor by asking if 1 would be interested in working with the Yuchi community. His continuous support including financial assistance on a National Institute of Health grant made this project possible. Thanks also: to Ross Hassig for his continuous and unrelenting request for the data that supports my arguments; to Loretta Fowler who suggested Action Theory as a iv possible means to solve a complex problem: to Cameron Wesson for his support and encouragement through the final year of writing and Gary Anderson fi'om the History Department for his willingness to serve on my committee. Some faculty have left the University of Oklahoma who originally served on this committee. Thank you to Stephen Thompson for his work with me on social structures and for being willing to serve through exams and until Dr. Fowler arrived at OU. Thanks to Tim Paukautat who insisted that politics can be a central, if not the main, driving force behind community action. Several granting %encies made it possible to collect the necessary data for the completion of this project. They include the grant received by Dr Foster fi'om the National Institute of Health (1995-97); American Philosophical Society grants in 1992 and 1993; Grant-in-Aid of Research from Sigma Xi 1994; University of Oklahoma Graduate Student Senate Research Grant 1995; University of Oklahoma Graduate College Dissertation/Thesis Research Grant 1995. All too often forgotten in acknowledgments are those people who work in archives and who assist the researcher along the way. A special thanks to John Lovett and the staff of the Western History Collection at the University of Oklahoma. To Joe, Roger, Carolyn and the staff Oklahoma Historical Society many thanks for assistance over the years. The staff of several other archival institutions have been key players including those at : the Fort Worth branch of the National Archives, the Georgia Kstorical Society in Savannah, the Gilcrease Museum, and the American Philosophical Society. A special collegial relationship with Jason Jackson, a fellow graduate student, fostered an atmosphere for sharing ideas, concepts, and insights as well as frustrations. Jason and I share the same commitment of good scholarship while believing it is imperative that the anthropologist bring to the community as much or more than we take from it. Jason's integrity, kindness, and insatiable need to understand formed a working relationship that quickly developed into a friendship that I perceived will be life long. Thank you to the entire staff of Sam Nobel Oklahoma Museum o f Natural History. Your moral support during the last year has been wonderful. My job with you provided a place to use my expertise and to make new contacts in the museum field and many Native American communities in Oklahoma. There is no way to adequately thank my family. They have each taken up the slack in family responsibilities created by my long years of research, study, and writing. My children have grown and gone during this process, a grandchild was bom,. My husband Lester has provided his strong support through all the difficult times while rejoicing in my accomplishments during the good times. Lester is the rock on which I stand, we are one, I thank you. When tired and discouraged my daughters Sara and Katherine assured me I could accomplish this task. I could not stop, they placed their trust in me. My heartfelt thanks and love for my son-in-law Bryan for his never ceasing support and encouragement since we first met. My granddaughter Alexa runs to my open arms and lets me know what is truly important in this life. With her unconditional love, this youngest member provides the balance necessary to sustain long hours of work. Thank you my sunshine. VI Table of Contents Page Acknowledgments .................................................................................................. iv List of Tables .......................................................................................................... viii List of Figures ......................................................................................................... ix Abstract................................................................................................................... xi Chapters: Chapter 1................................................................................................................ 1 Introduction: "It would be better for all if they did not mix up" Chapter 2 ................................................................................................................. 39 Identity Today: "I am not Creek, I am Yuchi." Chapter 3 ................................................................................................................ 67 Indian Claims Commission: "This is Yuchi Land, not Creek." Chapter 4 ................................................................................................................ 134 Title IV - Indian Education Act: "You have to work together to accomplish anything. So that's what we must do." Chapter 5................................................................................................................ 208 Petition for Acknowledgment. "We are nothing more than step-children." Chapter 6 ................................................................................................................ 268 Cultural Retention. "I've heard the elders say: If the Yuchi language is no longer spoken, there will be no more Yuchi.'" Chapter 7................................................................................................................ 390 Conclusion - Encapsulation and Identity: "I am Just Proud to be Yuchi." Bibliography ............................................................................................................ 464 Appendix ................................................................................................................ 485 vu List of Tables Tables Page 3.1 Euroamerican/Non-Euroamerican