A Study Of How Congress Is Manipulated: Chapter 5

Continuing comments addressing Section 2 of S.514 AND H.R. 2028

Misleading Claim:

Sec. 2 (9) the community of Bruce in Walton County, Florida, has been a governing center for the Nation for more than 150 years;

Comment:

No impartial historical studies or research publications mention the Eastern Creek Nation, by that term or any other term, in Walton County. History of Walton County by John Love McKinnon, 1840- 1911; Published 1911, describes pioneer interaction with Chief Sam Story and the Uchees (Yuchi/Euchee) in several chapters. According to this record, Chief Story had a headquarters on the South bank of Bruce Creek, opposite of what later became Euchee Anna. If the Eastern Creek Nation factually had a historical presence in Walton County and Bruce, it would have been mentioned in the scholarly publications and histories of the county such as written by McKinnon.

While there might be some mixed race descendants of the Uchee remaining in Walton County, they do not equate with any existing tribe or the Eastern Creek Nation. While most modern Uchee are members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation of Oklahoma, many do not consider themselves Creek - but of a separate ethnic group.

The U.S. 1950 census gives the only recorded identifiable Indian descendant group of individuals living in their own communities in Walton and Holmes counties at that time. These are the Dominickers, a pejorative name of given to them around 1860, supposedly from a child custody case. A tri-racial group (White, Black, Indian) of various combinations, there are five different accounts of their origins, one including Euchee Indian ancestors. They are known to have existed in the area of Walton and Holmes counties prior to the Civil War, but have since migrated over the years and become assimilated into the white communities. The 1950 federal census counted only 60 Dominickers remaining in Holmes county.

Since the directive in taking this census was to include all men, women, and children of Indian descent, this census plays an important roll in evaluating the claims of the Muscogee Nation of Florida that they were in existence in the area as a tribe for over 150 years, as Eastern Creek or by any other name.

Pupils and teacher at the Mt. Zion School in the Dominicker settlement of Holmes County, circa 1910. Holmes County is adjacent to Walton County and was included in previous attempts by members of the Muscogee Nation (as the Eastern Creeks) to gain federal recognition.

Misleading Claim:

Sec. 2 (10) in the community of Bruce, the Nation--
(A) beginning in the early 1860s, used and maintained the Antioch Cemetery, which remains in use by members of the Nation as of the date of enactment of this Act;

Comment:

Other than the claim in this Bill, there is no historical documentation that labels this cemetery as originating with, belonging to, or being used by the Eastern Creek Nation as a burial ground. Inquiries about the origin have been unsuccessful. The common opinion is that it was started as a family cemetery.

The earliest identified graves in Antioch Cemetery date to the early 1880’s (Virginia Ward, 1882 -1882, 8c Row 7). Twenty-nine of the cemetery graves belong to the Ward family, which constitutes the largest number belonging to one family. The second largest number of identified graves belonging to one family is of the Bozeman family, with eight.

There are approximately 52 unknown graves in the cemetery. Rather than being in one vicinity or plot, they are scattered throughout the 14 rows of the cemetery among identified graves. This would mean the unlikelihood that they were all the earliest of graves or that they all belonged to older specific American Indian Creek burials.

The cemetery is land parcel number 12-1S-18-14000-001-0020. According to Walton County records, this property was donated to the Muscogee Nation of Florida on 7/10/2006. It is recorded in Sale Book 2727, Page 4198.

Antioch Cemetery, Bruce, Florida

Comments to be continued.