ABSTRACT Both Native South and Deep South: The Native Transformation of the of the Gulf South Borderlands, 1770–1835 by James Eyre Wainwright How did the Native South become the Deep South within the span of a single generation? This dissertation argues that these ostensibly separate societies were in fact one and the same for several decades. It significantly revises the history of the origins of antebellum America’s slave-based economy and shows that the emergence of a plantation society in Alabama and Mississippi was in large part a grassroots phenomenon forged by Indians and other native inhabitants as much as by Anglo-American migrants. This native transformation occurred because of a combination of weak European colonial regimes; the rise of cattle, cotton, and chattel slavery in the region; and the increasingly complex ethnic and racial geography of the Gulf South. Inhabitants of the Gulf South between the American Revolution and Indian removal occupied a racial and social milieu that was not distinctly Indian, African, or European. Nor can it be adequately defined by hybridity. Instead, Gulf southerners constructed something unique. Indians and native non-Indians—white and black—owned ranches and plantations, employed slave labor, and pioneered the infrastructure for cotton production and transportation. Scotsmen and Spaniards married Indians and embraced their matrilineal traditions. Anglo- and Afro-American migrants integrated into an emergent native cotton culture in which racial and cultural identities remained permeable and flexible. Thus, colonial and borderland-style interactions persisted well into the nineteenth century, even as the region grew ever more tightly bound to an expansionist United States. The history of the Gulf South offers a perfect opportunity to bridge the imagined divide between the colonial and early republic eras. Based on research in multiple archives across five states, my work alters our understanding of the history and people of an American region before the Civil War and reshapes our framework for interpreting the nature of racial and cultural formation over the long course of American history. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Writing this dissertation was a project of self-discovery as much as historical inquiry, and now that I am trying for the first time to put into words how grateful I am for the innumerable people who have helped me get to this point, I am overwhelmed. As I sit here today, I am cognizant of the fact that any goals I have ever reached in my life were never accomplished alone, and I am forever thankful for all those—family, friends, teachers, and mentors—who have helped push me to this point. Dissertation projects are only possible because of the help and support authors receive from others, and this one is no exception. Rice University is good people (as a southerner might say), and the institution has been an especially supportive and welcoming place to begin my career. I was fortunate to receive financial and academic support from the History Department and the School of Humanities over my six years in the graduate program. My journeys to archives and academic conferences across eight different states were the foundation for this project, and those trips were only possible because of Rice’s financial and professional commitment to me as a scholar. I am grateful to the administrative staff in the History Department for all their help over the years, including Anita Smith, Lisa Tate, Rachel Zepeda, and, more recently, Beverly Konzem and Chris Tennison. I would specifically like to single out Paula Platt, who through her care and support always managed to make the History Department feel like a home. Numerous historians and archivists helped make my research trips productive. The special collections staffs at the University of Florida, the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina, Louisiana State University, the University of Alabama, and the University of West Florida were efficient and welcoming. I would especially like to express my thanks for the personal attention I received from Dean DeBolt at the University of West Florida, in Pensacola, and from Karen J. Horton at the archives of the Catholic Archdiocese of Mobile, Alabama. Both individuals went out of their way for an entire week to aid me in my research and to express interest in my project. I have of course incurred unquantifiable academic debts, most especially to John B. Boles. Dr. Boles is an exemplary scholar and one of the finest human beings I have ever known. For six years he has always been encouraging, welcoming, available, and an uncommonly efficient and incisive reader and mentor. His commitment to and enthusiasm for his students’ success, almost always at the expense of his own work and research interests, is truly awesome, and I was extremely fortunate to have him for my doctoral advisor. Rebecca A. Goetz has been an equally important example to me as a historian. Her skill in the classroom and her talent for asking penetrating, difficult questions pushed me to become a more thoughtful person and a better writer. Both she and Dr. Boles devoted numerous hours to writing and reading on my behalf. I was tremendously privileged to engage in conversations and coursework with multiple fine scholars and people at Rice, including Alexander Byrd, Carl Caldwell, Daniel Cohen, Edward Cox, Allen Matusow, Caleb McDaniel, and Lora Wildenthal. Each of these individuals spent extra time offering feedback, advice, and support, which have meant more to me than they perhaps realize. I would also like to thank Jenifer Bratter for graciously agreeing to serve on my committee. Stephanie Camp deserves a special gesture of thanks. We first met nearly a decade ago, when I was an introverted and unsure undergraduate at the University of Washington, and ever since then she has ceaselessly fostered my curiosity and encouraged me in moments of self-doubt. She was instrumental in my undergraduate career and in helping me reach graduate school. Due to a bit of serendipity, her sojourn at Rice allowed me to benefit from her wisdom during my time in graduate coursework as well. She was one of the first people who believed in my potential as a scholar, and I have absolutely no doubt that I would not have reached this point without her mentorship, generosity, and efforts on my behalf. I firmly believe this dissertation is the cumulative product of all my educational experiences, and I would be remiss not to recognize the vital role that Battle Ground High School and the University of Washington have had in my growth as a historian and as a person. I think teachers often forget how much influence they can have on a developing young person. Certainly the teachers in my life gave me tools and stores of encouragement that have fueled me throughout my life. On that note, I would like to thank Jonas Fridriksson, Gordon Alexander, Kevin Baker, Kathy Ferrier, Kathryn Lamoreaux, and Paula Niemi at BGHS and Betsy Crouch, Tracy McKenzie, and Nikhil Pal Singh at the UW, each of whom expressed personal interest in me and my potential and who generously devoted time to nurturing my abilities. Though I spent a relatively small amount of time as their students, their impact on my evolution as a scholar and as a person has been significant. Rice graduate students have historically benefited immensely, both professionally and personally, from the opportunity to work at the Journal of Southern History. I am certainly not an exception to that rule and I have probably reset the bar for debts owed to the JSH and its staff. I spent time working as an intern at “the Journal” each and every year during my time at Rice, and the lessons I learned from a place of such professional integrity and high standards will stay with me throughout my life. John Boles, Patricia Burgess, Randal Hall, and Bethany Johnson have been instrumental in any successes I have achieved at Rice. I am extremely grateful for their time, their company, their professional advice, and their friendship. My colleagues in graduate school supplied me with constructive feedback and challenging scholarly interactions, but I am most grateful for the camaraderie they unfailingly provided over the years. Sam Abramson, Andrew Baker, Zach Dresser, David Getman, Katie Knowles, John Marks, and Angela Prattas each imparted humor and support to my years at Rice. My intrepid officemates in Fondren 537, Allison Madar and Uzma Quraishi, gave me countless hours of good cheer, encouragement, and sorely needed distraction. I would also specifically mention Andrew Lang, Drew Bledsoe, Joe Locke, Shani Roper, and Ben Wright. Whether as golfing partners, collaborators, or poker buddies, each helped make graduate school a much less lonely endeavor than it otherwise might have been. Rusty Hawkins and Wes Phelps have my thanks for their advice and guidance. Andrew Canady has been an especially positive influence on me, and I value his friendship as well. He merits special recognition for putting me up at his house in Ruffin, North Carolina, for an entire week during my research trip to UNC. His home and his company were a welcome respite from the lonely archives. I have been fortunate enough to come out of my graduate experience with several individuals who I have no doubt will be lifelong friends. Allison Madar is a devoted friend, whose willingness to sacrifice of herself and to watch bad reality television afforded me vital moments of levity and happiness, especially during the many difficult times graduate school creates. I feel incredibly fortunate and honored to count Luke and Amber Harlow as my friends as well. Luke, especially, is a tireless and enthusiastic ally. I am certain he will never fully understand how much his thoughts, advice, and generosity have kept me going over the years.