Category: Alabama Native American Tribes

Alabama Native American Tribes

Native American research is extremely difficult and time consuming. Many records do not exist and careless record keeping is evident in many documents. This is not to place blame on others because there were many factors which may have made the process of record keeping near impossible. The most obvious problem is the lack of a written language for most tribes and of course the difficulty of spoken language translations.

Our  list of Native American Tribes who have lived in Alabama has been compiled from Hodge’s Handbook of American Indians, Swanton’s The Indian Tribes of North America,  and research of family and public documents. Some tribes listed may simply be variant spellings for the same tribe.

Begin your research at the Alabama Native American Tribes Index.

a watercolor self portrait of Hillis Hadjo from 1815 - SIGNIFICANCE: Creek Religious Leader PLACE OF BIRTH: Near Montgomery, Alabama DATE OF BIRTH: c. 1770 PLACE OF DEATH: Fort San Marcos de Apalache, Florida DATE OF DEATH: April 8, 1818

Hillis Hadjo or  Hilis Hadsho: Creek Indian Chief

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His native name has been written with a variety of spellings in English: Hilis, Hildis, and Hidlis. His last name is found as Hadgo, Hadsho, and Haya. There are also combined forms found, such as Hillishago and Hillishager. “The English always referred to him as Hidlis Hadjo.” In a letter, Andrew Jackson called him “Hillishageer”.

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Illustration of the Tabu

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From this example it must be sufficiently evident that the tabu as to visitors is not a hygienic precaution for securing greater quiet to the patient, or to prevent the spread of contagion, but that it is simply a religious observance of the tribe, exactly parallel to many of the regulations among the ancient Jews, as laid down in the book of Leviticus.

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SACRED FORMULAS OF THE CHEROKEES TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Ethnographic description of Cherokee shamanistic practice. Based on several manuscripts written by Cherokee shamans of the 19th Century, this includes the actual text of the rituals to treat various diseases, information on herbs used, love spells, hunting rituals, weather spells, as well as a spell for victory in the Ball game.

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Theory of Disease–Animals, Ghosts, Witches

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Such is the belief upon which their medical practice is based, and whatever we may think of the theory it must be admitted that the practice is consistent in all its details with the views set forth in the myth. Like most primitive people the Cherokees believe that disease and death are not natural, but are due to the evil influence of animal spirits, ghosts, or witches. Haywood, writing in 1823, states on the authority of two intelligent residents of the Cherokee nation:

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