“You Have Guns and So Have We…” an Ethnohistoric Analysis of Creek and Seminole Combat Behaviors
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“YOU HAVE GUNS AND SO HAVE WE…” AN ETHNOHISTORIC ANALYSIS OF CREEK AND SEMINOLE COMBAT BEHAVIORS by NATHAN R. LAWRES B.A. University of Central Florida, 2008 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Anthropology in the College of Sciences at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Spring Term 2011 © 2012 Nathan R. Lawres ii ABSTRACT Resistance to oppression is a globally recognized cultural phenomenon that displays a remarkable amount of variation in its manifestations over both time and space. This cultural phenomenon is particularly evident among the Native American cultural groups of the Southeastern United States. Throughout the sixteenth through nineteenth centuries the European and American states employed tactics and implemented laws aimed at expanding the geographic boundaries of their respective states into the Tribal Zone of the Southeast. None of these groups, however, sat passively during this process; they employed resistive tactics and strategies aimed at maintaining their freedoms, their lives, and their traditional sociocultural structures. However, the resistive tactics and strategies, primarily manifested in the medium of warfare, have gone relatively unnoticed by scholars of the disciplines of history and anthropology, typically regarded simply as guerrilla in nature. This research presents a new analytical model that is useful in qualitatively and quantitatively analyzing the behaviors employed in combat scenarios. Using the combat behaviors of Muskhogean speaking cultural groups as a case study, such as the Creeks and Seminoles and their Protohistoric predecessors, this model has shown that indigenous warfare in this region was complex, dynamic, and adaptive. This research has further implications in that it has documented the evolution of Seminole combat behaviors into the complex and dynamic behaviors that were displayed during the infamous Second iii Seminole War. Furthermore, the model used in this research provides a fluid and adaptive base for the analysis of the combat behaviors of other cultural groups world- wide. iv This work is dedicated to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Creek Nation, and the Poarch Band of Creeks as their histories and cultures are what have brought life to this study… Shonabish! v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many people are due acknowledgement for their help and support throughout the course of this research. First, and foremost, I would like to extend my gratitude to my committee members, especially Dr. Rosalyn Howard, a mentor and close friend, who spent tireless hours helping to guide my thoughts and edit this document. I am deeply indebted to her for her patience, understanding, and anthropological guidance. Second, I would like to extend my appreciation to the Seminole Tribe of Florida for the opportunity they have provided me in my employment within their Tribal Historic Preservation Office. Third, I would like to thank all of my colleagues at the Tribal Historic Preservation Office for their support and understanding throughout the course of this research, especially Dr. Paul Backhouse for his insight and support. Fourth, my appreciation is extended to my friends and family, who have provided unconditional love and support throughout the course of my education and, more importantly, my life. I would also like to thank Vanessa Poling, the love of my life, for all of her love and support throughout this project. Lastly (but certainly not least), I would like to extend my thanks and gratitude to Dr. David S. B. Butler, a mentor and friend, for his continual support and insight throughout my archaeological career. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ ix LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................... x CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................ 12 CHAPTER TWO: CREEKS, SEMINOLES, AND WARFARE .................................................. 19 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................... 33 CHAPTER FOUR: ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT ................................................................. 46 The Coastal Plain Province ........................................................................................................ 47 The Piedmont and Valley and Ridge Provinces ......................................................................... 54 CHAPTER FIVE: RESISTING EXPANSION OF THE EUROPEAN STATE ........................... 58 Characteristics of Mississippianism ........................................................................................... 62 The Coosa Chiefdom ................................................................................................................. 69 The Tascalusa Chiefdom ............................................................................................................ 73 The Apalachee Chiefdom .......................................................................................................... 76 Sixteenth Century Spanish Military ........................................................................................... 79 Resisting European Expansionism ............................................................................................. 81 The Decline of the Mississippian Chiefdoms ............................................................................ 93 CHAPTER SIX: RESISTING EXPANSION OF THE AMERICAN STATE ............................. 95 The Historic Creeks ................................................................................................................... 95 Resisting the Westward Expansion .......................................................................................... 104 Resisting the First Wave of Southern Expansion ..................................................................... 120 Resisting the Second Wave of Southern Expansion ................................................................ 133 CHAPTER SEVEN: RESULTS OF ANALYSIS ....................................................................... 173 Protohistoric Period Results ..................................................................................................... 174 vii American Period Results.......................................................................................................... 192 CHAPTER EIGHT: CONCLUSIONS ........................................................................................ 211 Protohistoric Period Warfare ................................................................................................... 211 American Period Warfare ........................................................................................................ 214 Muskhogean Patterns of Combat Behavior ............................................................................. 215 The Evolution of Seminole Combat Behaviors ....................................................................... 217 Strategy .................................................................................................................................... 227 Concluding Remarks and Future Research .............................................................................. 231 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 233 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Mesic temperate hammock surrounded by wet prairie. ................................................. 49 Figure 2. Pine flatwoods ecosystem. ............................................................................................. 51 Figure 3. Locations of Mississippian Chiefdoms considered ancestral to the Creeks and Seminoles. ...................................................................................................................................... 60 Figure 4. Areas of Creek settlements during the Historic Period. ................................................ 97 Figure 5. Diagram showing battle positions at the Dade Ambush. ............................................. 141 Figure 6. Diagram showing battle positions at the First Battle of the Withlacoochee. ............... 143 Figure 7. Diagram showing battle positions at the Battle of Okeechobee. ................................. 161 ix LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Initial proposed model. From Lawres (2008:89). .......................................................... 36 Table 2. Amended model. From Lawres (2009). ......................................................................... 37 Table 3. Proposed model for analyzing combat behaviors. .......................................................... 43 Table 4. Table of sources pertaining to the military entradas. ..................................................... 81 Table 5. Classification of combat behaviors employed against the Narvaez entrada. ................. 85 Table 6. Classification of combat behaviors employed against the de Soto entrada. ................... 90 Table 7. Classification of combat behaviors employed during the march on the Napochies. ...... 93 Table 8. Classification of combat behaviors employed during onset of First Creek War. ........