Atchinalgi : Creek Indian Village
Atchinalgi : Creek Indian Village
On the east bank of the Tallapoosa River, in Randolph County, Alabama, near the mouth of Cedar Creek. Atchinalgi was destroyed on November 13, 1813 by General James White and his troops from Tennessee.
Wikipedia contributors, “James White (general),” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_White_(general)&oldid=827827679 (accessed March 20, 2018).
Following the Fort Mims massacre of August 1813, Andrew Jackson and John Coffee led the Tennessee militia into northern Alabama in October of that year to engage a contingent of hostile “Red Stick” Creeks. The militiamen scored victories at the Battle of Tallushatchee (November 3) and at the Battle of Talladega (November 9). In the aftermath of the latter, one of the hostile groups, the Hillabee, made peace arrangements with Jackson. However, the Tennessee militia’s East Tennessee contingent, led by John Cocke, had arrived around the same time, and was unaware of the peace negotiations.
On November 11, Cocke ordered James White, leader of the Hamilton District militia, to destroy the Hillabee towns. Over the next several days, White attacked the villages of Little Oakfusky and Genalga, burning 123 houses and capturing several Hillabees. On November 18, White dispatched a force of allied Cherokee under Gideon Morgan to surround the main Hillabee town. The Hillabee, believing they had made peace, were unprepared for an attack, and were unable to resist Morgan’s assault. The town was destroyed, 64 Hillabees were killed, and several hundred were captured.
The destruction of the Hillabee towns, sometimes called the “Hillabee Massacre,” greatly agitated Jackson, who believed the withdrawal of the Hillabee would demoralize the remaining Red Sticks. To further complicate matters, the East Tennesseans’ terms of service were about to expire. In December, Jackson ordered Cocke and the East Tennessee militiamen to return home. The enraged Hillabee quickly rejoined the Red Stick Confederacy, and fought until the end of the war.
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