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The Lumbee, also known as People of the Dark Water, are a
mixed-race The term multiracial people refers to people who are mixed with two or more races and the term multi-ethnic people refers to people who are of more than one ethnicities. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mul ...
community primarily located in
Robeson County, North Carolina Robeson County ( )Talk Like a Tarheel
, from the North Carolina C ...
, which claims to be descended from myriad
Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, Southeastern cultures, or Southeast Indians are an ethnographic classification for Native Americans who have traditionally inhabited the area now part of the Southeastern United States and the no ...
who once inhabited the region. The Lumbee have been shown to have connections with other tri-racial isolate groups, such as the
Melungeon Melungeon ( ) (sometimes also spelled Malungean, Melangean, Melungean, Melungin) was a slur historically applied to individuals and families of mixed-race ancestry with roots in colonial Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina who were primarily ...
s, using historical documents. The Lumbee take their name from the
Lumber River The Lumber River, sometimes referred to as the Lumbee River, is a river in south-central North Carolina in the flat Coastal Plain. European settlers first called the river Drowning Creek, which is still used as the name of its headwater. The w ...
, which winds through
Robeson County Robeson County ( )Talk Like a Tarheel
, from the North Carolina C ...
.
Pembroke, North Carolina Pembroke is a town in Robeson County, North Carolina, United States. It is about 90 miles inland and northwest from the Atlantic Coast. The population was 2,823 at the 2020 census. The town is the seat of the state-recognized Lumbee Tribe of ...
, in Robeson County, is their economic, cultural, and political center. According to the 2000 United States census report, 89% of the population of the town of Pembroke identified as Lumbee; 40% of Robeson County's population identified as Lumbee. The Lumbee Tribe was recognized by North Carolina in 1885. In 1956, the U.S. Congress passed the Lumbee Act, which recognized the Lumbees as being American Indians but denied them the benefits of a
federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...
. The three federally recognized Cherokee tribes in the United States have vehemently opposed the federal recognition of the Lumbee as a Native American tribe. In 2025, President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
signed an
executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of the ...
to advance the tribe's recognition.


History

Archaeological evidence reveals that the area now known as Robeson County (central to modern Lumbee territory) has been continuously occupied by Native people for at least 14,000 years. Every named era found elsewhere in pre-European-contact North Carolina is also present in the archaeological record of Robeson County (artifacts from Paleo-Indian, Archaic, Woodland, and Mississippian cultures). All modern vicinities of Lumbee occupation contain numerous archaeological sites as recent as the Late Woodland period (mid-1700s), and oral traditions about the history of some Lumbee families extend back as far in Robeson County as the mid-1700s.


18th century

The earliest European document referring to Indian communities in the area of the
Lumber River The Lumber River, sometimes referred to as the Lumbee River, is a river in south-central North Carolina in the flat Coastal Plain. European settlers first called the river Drowning Creek, which is still used as the name of its headwater. The w ...
is a map prepared in 1725 by John Herbert, the English commissioner of Indian trade for the Wineau Factory on the Black River. Herbert identified the four
Siouan Siouan ( ), also known as Siouan–Catawban ( ), is a language family of North America located primarily in the Great Plains, Ohio and Mississippi valleys and southeastern North America with a few other languages in the east. Name Authors who ...
-speaking communities as the Saraw,
Pee Dee The Pee Dee is a region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of South Carolina. It lies along the lower watershed of the Pee Dee River, which was named after the Pee Dee, an Indigenous tribe historically inhabiting the region. History The ...
, Scavano, and Wacoma. Modern-day Lumbees claim connection to those settlements, but none of the four tribes is located within the boundaries of present-day Robeson County. A 1772 proclamation by the
governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Seventy-five people have held the office since the first state governor, Richard Caswell, took office in 1777. The governor serves a ...
,
Arthur Dobbs Arthur Dobbs (2 April 1689 – 28 March 1765) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of North Carolina from 1754 to 1764. Early life and career Arthur Dobbs was born in Girvan, Ayrshire where his mot ...
— derived from a report by his agent, Colonel
Griffith Rutherford Griffith Rutherford (c. 1721 – August 10, 1805) was an American military officer in the Revolutionary War and the Cherokee-American Wars, a political leader in North Carolina, and an important figure in the early history of the Southwes ...
, head of a Bladen County militia — listed the names of inhabitants who took part in a "Mob Raitously Assembled together," apparently defying the efforts of colonial officials to collect taxes. The proclamation declared the "Above list of Rogus is all living upon the Kings Land without title." A later colonial military survey described "50 families a mixt crew, a lawless People possess the Lands without Patent or paying quit Rents."''Colonial Records: North Carolina 1890''; 768 and ''North Carolina 1887''; 161, respectively
Hamilton McMillan Hamilton McMillan (August 29, 1837 – February 27, 1916) was an American politician who served in the North Carolina General Assembly from 1885 to 1887. He supported the founding of the Croatan Normal School for the Lumbee people. The school later ...
wrote that Lumbee ancestor James Lowrie had received sizable land grants early in the century, and, by 1738, possessed combined estates of more than 2,000 acres (810 ha).
Adolph Dial Adolph Lorenz Dial was an American historian, professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, and a specialist in American Indian Studies. Dial was a member of the Lumbee Tribe and a graduate of Pembroke State College, wh ...
and David Eliades claimed that another Lumbee ancestor, John Brooks, held the title to over 1,000 acres (400 ha) in 1735 and that Robert Lowrie gained possession of almost 700 acres (280 ha). A state
archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...
noted in the late 20th century that no land grants were issued during these years in North Carolina. The first documented land grants made to individuals claimed to be Lumbee ancestors did not take place until the 1750s, more than a decade later. None of the various petitions for federal recognition by the Lumbee people relied on the McMillan, Dial, or Eliades claims. Land records show that in the second half of the 18th century, persons since identified as ancestral Lumbees began to take titles to land near Drowning Creek (Lumber River) and prominent swamps such as Ashpole, Long, and Back. According to James Campisi, an
anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...
retained by the Lumbee tribe to aid their petition for federal recognition, the area "is located in the heart of the so-called old field of the
Cheraw The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura,Sebeok, Thomas Albert''Native Languages of the Americas, Volume 2.''Plenum Press, 1977: 251. were a Siouan-speaking tribe of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands,Swanton''The Indians ...
documented in land records between 1737 and 1739." In 1771, a convicted felon, by the name of Winsler Driggers, captured "near Drowning Creek, in the Charraw settlement," was reported as hanged under the Negro Act. That mention, along with no evidence that a new settlement was established or the old settlement was abandoned, is not sufficient to confirm that the settlement on Drowning Creek in 1754 was a Cheraw settlement. Pension records for veterans of the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
in Robeson County listed men with surnames later associated with Lumbee families, such as Samuel Bell, Jacob Locklear, John Brooks, Berry Hunt, Thomas Jacobs, Thomas Cummings, and Michael Revels. In 1790, other men with surnames since associated with Lumbee-identified descendants, such as Barnes, Braveboy (or Brayboy), Bullard, Chavers (Chavis), Cumbo, Hammonds, Lowrie (Lowry/Lowery), Oxendine, Strickland, and Wilkins, were listed as inhabitants of the Fayetteville District; they were all "Free Persons of Color" in the first federal census.U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1790


Antebellum

Following
Nat Turner's slave rebellion Nat Turner's Rebellion, historically known as the Southampton Insurrection, was a slave rebellion that took place in Southampton County, Virginia, in August 1831. Led by Nat Turner, the rebels, made up of enslaved African Americans, killed b ...
of 1831, the state legislature passed amendments to its original 1776 constitution, abolishing
suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...
for free people of color. This was one of a series of laws passed by North Carolina whites from 1826 to the 1850s which the historian
John Hope Franklin John Hope Franklin (January 2, 1915 – March 25, 2009) was an American historian of the United States and former president of Phi Beta Kappa, the Organization of American Historians, the American Historical Association, the American Studies ...
characterized as the "Free Negro Code", creating restrictions on that class. Free people of color were stripped of various
civil and political rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...
which they had enjoyed for almost two generations. They could no longer vote or serve on juries, bear arms without a license from the state, or serve in the state militia.Paul Heinegg, ''Free African Americans of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware''
1995-2005, accessed 9 Mar 2008
As these were obligations traditionally associated with citizenship, they were made second-class citizens. In 1853, the
North Carolina Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina is the state of North Carolina's highest appellate court. Until the creation of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in the 1960s, it was the state's only appellate court. The Supreme Court consists ...
upheld the constitutionality of the state's restrictions to prevent free people of color from bearing arms without a license. Noel Locklear, identified as a free man of color in ''State v. Locklear'', was convicted of being in illegal possession of firearms. In 1857, William Chavers from Robeson County was arrested and charged as a free person of color for carrying a shotgun without a license. Chavers, like Locklear, was convicted. Chavers promptly appealed, arguing that the law restricted only "free Negroes," not "persons of color from Indian blood." The appeals court reversed the lower court, finding that "free persons of color may be, then, for all we can see, persons colored by Indian blood".


Civil War

A yellow fever epidemic in 1862–1863 killed many
slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
working on the construction of
Fort Fisher Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865. The fort was located on one of Cape Fear Riv ...
near
Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...
, then considered to be the "
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
of the South". As the state's slave owners resisted sending more slaves to Fort Fisher, the Confederate Home Guard intensified efforts to conscript able-bodied free persons of color as laborers. There does not appear to be documentation of conscription among the free people of color in Robeson County. Despite the widespread sympathies among the Indian community for the plight of the participants in this guerilla warfare, nearly 150 Lumbee ancestors voluntarily enlisted in the Confederate Infantry, including the nephew-in-law of Henry Berry Lowry described below.


Lowry War

Early in the Civil War, North Carolina turned to forced labor to construct its defenses. Several Lowrie cousins had been conscripted as laborers to help build
Fort Fisher Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865. The fort was located on one of Cape Fear Riv ...
, near Wilmington. Henry Berry Lowrie and several of his relatives took to the swamps where Indians resorted to "lying out" to avoid being rounded up by the Home Guard and forced to work as impressed laborers. The Lowrie gang, as it became known, resorted to crime and conducting personal feuds, committing robberies and murders against white Robeson County residents and skirmishing with the Confederate Home Guard. They grew bolder as the war turned against the Confederacy. In December 1864, the Lowrie gang killed James P. Barnes after he had drafted workers, including the Lowries, for work on local defenses. Barnes had earlier accused Henry's father, Allen Lowrie, of stealing hogs. Next, the gang killed James Brantley Harris, a Confederate conscription officer who had killed a Lowrie relative. After the Civil War, the Lowrie gang continued their insurgency, committing robberies and murders. The authorities' raids and attempts to capture gang members became known as the Lowry War. Lowrie's gang continued its activities into the Reconstruction Era. Republican governor
William Woods Holden William Woods Holden (November 24, 1818 – March 1, 1892) was an American politician who served as the 38th and 40th governor of North Carolina. He was appointed by President Andrew Johnson in 1865 for a brief term and then elected in 1868. He ...
declared Lowrie and his men outlaws in 1869, and offered a $12,000 reward for their capture: dead or alive. Lowrie responded with more revenge killings. Eluding capture, the Lowrie gang persisted after Reconstruction ended and conservative white Democrats gained control of North Carolina government, imposing
segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of human ...
and
white supremacy White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...
. In February 1872, shortly after a raid in which he robbed the local sheriff's safe of more than $28,000, Henry Berry Lowrie disappeared. It is claimed he accidentally shot himself while cleaning his double-barrel shotgun. As with many folk heroes, the death of Lowrie was disputed. He was reportedly seen at a funeral several years later.


State recognition as Indians

During Reconstruction, the legislature established public education for the first time, providing for white and black schools. All children of color were assigned to black schools, which were dominated by the children of freedmen (freed slaves). The Indian people of Robeson County had always been free and did not socially associate or interact with Blacks. They refused to send their children to school with the free Blacks and demanded for separate Indian schools. In the 1880s, as the Democratic Party was struggling against the biracial Populist movement which combined the strength of poor whites (
Populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...
and Democrats) and blacks (mostly Republicans), Democratic state representative
Hamilton McMillan Hamilton McMillan (August 29, 1837 – February 27, 1916) was an American politician who served in the North Carolina General Assembly from 1885 to 1887. He supported the founding of the Croatan Normal School for the Lumbee people. The school later ...
proposed to have the state recognize these Indian people of Robeson County as the "Croatan Indians" and to create a separate system of Croatan Indian schools. By the end of the 19th century, the "Indians of Robeson County" (as they then identified) established schools in eleven of their principal settlements. Following the
Reconstruction Era The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...
, white-dominated legislatures across the South imposed codified racial segregation into law. In North Carolina, the law effectively recognized only whites and free persons of color regardless of race; therefore people of mixed or Native ancestry had no other option than to attend black schools established for and in which most students were the children of
freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their owners), emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group), or self- ...
. In 1887, Democratic state representative
Hamilton McMillan Hamilton McMillan (August 29, 1837 – February 27, 1916) was an American politician who served in the North Carolina General Assembly from 1885 to 1887. He supported the founding of the Croatan Normal School for the Lumbee people. The school later ...
supported an effort to charter separate schools for Indians.


An Indian school system

In 1887, the Indians of Robeson County petitioned the state legislature to establish a normal school to train Indian teachers for the county's Indian schools. With state permission, they raised the requisite funds, along with some state assistance, which proved inadequate. Several tribal leaders donated money and privately held land for schools. Robeson County's Indian Normal School eventually developed as Pembroke State University and subsequently as the
University of North Carolina at Pembroke The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNC Pembroke or UNCP) is a public university in Pembroke, North Carolina, United States. UNC Pembroke is a master's level degree-granting university and part of the University of North Carolina syste ...
. In 1899, North Carolina Congressman
John D. Bellamy John Dillard Bellamy Jr. (March 24, 1854 – September 25, 1942) was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from North Carolina from 1899 to 1903. He also served as a member of the North Carolina Senate from 1891 to 189 Biography Born in Wilmington, N ...
introduced the first bill in Congress to appropriate federal funds to educate the Indian children of Robeson County. They introduced another bill a decade later, and yet another in 1911. The Commissioner of Indian Affairs, T. J. Morgan, responded to Congress and the Croatan Indians, writing that, "so long as the immediate wards of the Government ndians on reservationsare so insufficiently provided for, I do not see how I can consistently render any assistance to the Croatans or any other civilized tribes." ic, civilized tribes were defined in contrast to Indians on reservations, who were wards of the government. By the first decade of the 20th century, a North Carolina Representative introduced a federal bill to establish "a normal school for the Indians of Robeson County, North Carolina," to be paid for by the federal government. Charles F. Pierce, U.S. Supervisor of Indian Schools in the
Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior. It is responsible for im ...
, opposed the legislation since, " the present time it is the avowed policy of the government to require states having an Indian population to assume the burden and responsibility for their education, so far as is possible."


Ku Klux Klan conflict

During the 1950s, the Lumbee made nationwide news when they came into conflict with the
Knights of the Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian extremist, white supremacist, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction in the devastated South. Various historians hav ...
, a white supremacist terrorist organization, then headed by
Grand Dragon Ku Klux Klan (KKK) nomenclature has evolved over the order's nearly 160 years of existence. The titles and designations were first laid out in the 1920s ''Kloran'', setting out KKK terms and traditions. Like many KKK terms, this is a portmanteau t ...
James W. "Catfish" Cole. Cole began a campaign of harassment against the Lumbee, claiming they were "
mongrel A mongrel, mutt, or mixed-breed dog is a dog that does not belong to one officially recognized breed, including those that result from intentional breeding. Although the term ''mixed-breed dog'' is sometimes preferred, many mongrels have no kn ...
s and
half-breed Half-breed is an obsolete term to offensively describe a person of mixed race. In the United States, it has often historically referred to half Native American and half European/white. Use by governments United States In the 19th century, the ...
s" whose "race mixing" threatened to upset the established order of the segregated
Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced racial segregation, " Jim Crow" being a pejorative term for an African American. The last of the ...
South. After giving a series of speeches denouncing the "loose morals" of Lumbee women, Cole burned a cross in the front yard of a Lumbee woman in St. Pauls, North Carolina, as a "warning" against "race mixing". Emboldened, Cole called for a Klan rally on January 18, 1958, near the town of Maxton. The Lumbee, led by veterans of the Second World War, decided to disrupt the rally. The "
Battle of Hayes Pond The Battle of Hayes Pond, also known as the Battle of Maxton Field or the Maxton Riot, was an armed confrontation between members of a Ku Klux Klan (KKK) organization and Lumbee people at a Klan rally near Maxton, North Carolina, on the night o ...
", also known as "the Klan Rout", made national news. Cole had predicted more than 5,000 Klansmen would show up for the rally, but fewer than 100 and possibly as few as three dozen attended. Approximately 500 Lumbee, armed with guns and sticks, gathered in a nearby swamp, and when they realized they possessed an overwhelming numerical advantage, attacked the Klansmen. The Lumbee encircled the Klansmen, opening fire and wounding four Klansmen in the first volley, none seriously. The remaining Klansmen panicked and fled. Cole was found in the swamps, arrested and tried for inciting a riot. The Lumbee celebrated the victory by burning Klan regalia and dancing around the open flames. The Battle of Hayes Pond, which marked the end of Klan activity in Robeson County, is celebrated as a Lumbee holiday.


Early efforts to gain federal recognition

The people achieved state recognition as "Croatan Indians" in 1885. They first petitioned the federal government for recognition in 1888, but were rejected due to the Bureau of Indian Affairs' lack of funding. In 1911, at the request of the tribe, the North Carolina General Assembly passed legislation changing their name to "Indians of Robeson County." In 1913, future North Carolina Governor Angus McLean supported renaming the tribe to "Cherokee Indians of Robeson County" despite objections from some Lumbee people. The tribe had previously petitioned for federal recognition as "Cherokee" Indians, but it was denied. From 1913 to 1932, North Carolina legislators introduced bills in Congress to change the name of the people to Cherokee and gain federal recognition, but did not succeed. In 1915, the report of Special Indian Agent O.M. McPherson of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, was sent to the North Carolina legislature. He primarily reported on the Cherokee in the state. He noted that the Indians of Robeson County had developed an extensive system of schools and a political organization. He thought that, as state-recognized Indians, they were eligible to attend federal Indian schools. But, as they were highly assimilated, spoke English, and already worked in the common state culture, he doubted that the federal Indian schools could meet their needs. Congress did not provide any additional funding to support education for Indians in North Carolina. In 1924, the Cherokee Indians of North Carolina petitioned for federal recognition as "Siouan Indians"; their request was rejected by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. That same year, representative Homer L. Lyon introduced legislation to federally recognize the Lumbee as the "Cherokee Indians of Robeson and Adjoining Counties," but the bill failed after opposition from Commissioner of Indian Affairs
Charles H. Burke Charles Henry Burke (April 1, 1861 – April 7, 1944) was a Republican Congressman from South Dakota and Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the 1920s. Biography He was born near Batavia, New York, in 1861, and attended the public s ...
. In 1932, senator Josiah W. Bailey introduced a bill to recognize the Lumbee as Cherokee, but it failed after opposition from the
Cherokee Nation The Cherokee Nation ( or ) is the largest of three list of federally recognized tribes, federally recognized tribes of Cherokees in the United States. It includes people descended from members of the Cherokee Nation (1794–1907), Old Cheroke ...
and the
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), (Cherokee language, Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᏱ ᏕᏣᏓᏂᎸᎩ, ''Tsalagiyi Detsadanilvgi'') is a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States, federally recognized Indian Tribe, ...
.


Federally commissioned reports

In 1912, legislation was introduced to the US Senate to establish a school for the Indians of Robeson County. When the bill was sent to committee, it requested information from the
Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relatin ...
. The Indian Office sent Charles F. Pierce, the Supervisor of Indian Schools, to Robeson County to conduct a study of the tribe. Pierce reported that the state and county were providing funds to educate the 1,976 school-age Indian children. He also stated in his report that "one would readily class a large majority f the Lumbeeas being at least three-fourths Indian. On April 28, 1914, the Senate called for an investigation into the status and conditions of the Indians of Robeson and adjoining counties. The Indian Office sent Special Indian Agent O.M. McPherson to the county to obtain information regarding the educational system of the tribe. In his report, submitted to the Senate on January 4, 1915, he wrote:
While these Indians are essentially an agricultural people, I believe them to be as capable of learning the mechanical trades as the average white youth. The foregoing facts suggest the character of the educational institution that should be established for them, in case Congress sees fit to make the necessary appropriation, namely the establishment of an agricultural and mechanical school, in which domestic science shall also be taught.
Anthropologist
John R. Swanton John Reed Swanton (February 19, 1873 – May 2, 1958) was an American anthropologist, folklorist, and linguist who worked with Native American peoples throughout the United States. Swanton achieved recognition in the fields of ethnology and ethn ...
reported on possible origins of the Indians of Robeson County in his work on Southeast Indians. He wrote:
The evidence available thus seems to indicate that the Indians of Robeson County who have been called Croatan and Cherokee are descended mainly from certain Siouan tribes of which the most prominent were the Cheraw and Keyauwee, but they probably included as well remnants of the Eno, and Shakori, and very likely some of the coastal groups such as the Waccamaw and Cape Fears. It is not improbable that a few families or small groups of Algonquian or Iroquoian may have cast their lot with this body of people, but contributions from such sources are relatively insignificant. Although there is some reason to think that the Keyauwee tribe actually contributed more blood to the Robeson County Indians than any other, the name is not widely known, whereas that of the Cheraw has been familiar to historians, geographers and ethnologists in one form or another since the time of De Soto and has a firm position in the cartography of the region. The Cheraws, too, seem to have taken a leading part in opposing the colonists during and immediately after the Yamasee uprising. Therefore, if the name of any tribe is to be used in connection with this body of six or eight thousand people, that of the Cheraw would, in my opinion, be most appropriate.
In 1935, Indian Agent Fred Baker was sent to Robeson County in response to a proposed resettlement project for the Cherokee Indians of Robeson County. At the time, the people were attempting to organize as a tribe under the
Indian Reorganization Act The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of June 18, 1934, or the Wheeler–Howard Act, was U.S. federal legislation that dealt with the status of American Indians in the United States. It was the centerpiece of what has been often called the "Indian ...
of 1934, which largely applied to Indians on reservations to encourage their self-government. Baker reported:
I find that the sense of racial solidarity is growing stronger and that the members of this tribe are cooperating more and more with each other with the object in view of promoting the mutual benefit of all the members. It is clear to my mind that sooner of later government action will have to be taken in the name of justice and humanity to aid them.
D'Arcy McNickle, from the
Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior. It is responsible for im ...
, came to Robeson County in 1936 to collect affidavits and other data from people registering as Indian under the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. McNickle stated, "there are reasons for believing that until comparatively recently some remnant of language still persisted among these people." In the 1960s, Smithsonian ethnologists William Sturtevant and Samuel Stanley described the Lumbee as "larger than any other Indian group in the United States except the Navajo", and estimated their population as 31,380 Lumbee (from North and South Carolina) in 1960.


Indian New Deal

The federal
Indian Reorganization Act The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of June 18, 1934, or the Wheeler–Howard Act, was U.S. federal legislation that dealt with the status of American Indians in the United States. It was the centerpiece of what has been often called the "Indian ...
in 1934 was chiefly directed at Native American tribes on reservations. It encouraged them to re-establish self-government, which had been diminished since the founding of reservations and the supervision by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs. At this time, the Indians of Robeson County renewed their petition for federal recognition as a tribe. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) sent
John R. Swanton John Reed Swanton (February 19, 1873 – May 2, 1958) was an American anthropologist, folklorist, and linguist who worked with Native American peoples throughout the United States. Swanton achieved recognition in the fields of ethnology and ethn ...
, an anthropologist from the
Bureau of American Ethnology The Bureau of American Ethnology (or BAE, originally, Bureau of Ethnology) was established in 1879 by an act of Congress for the purpose of transferring archives, records and materials relating to the Indians of North America from the Departme ...
, and the Indian Agent Fred Baker to evaluate the claim of the Indians of Robeson County to historical continuity as an identified Indian community. In 1934, the future Lumbee revived their claim to Cherokee identity, joining the National Congress of American Indians under the name, "Cherokee Indians of Robeson County." Swanton speculated that the group were more likely descended in part from Cheraw and other eastern Siouan tribes, as these were the predominant Native American peoples historically in that area. The Indians of Robeson County split in terms of how they identified as Native Americans: one group supported the Cheraw theory of ancestry. The other faction believed they were descended from the Cherokee, although the tribe had historically occupied territory in the mountains and western part of the state rather than the area of Robeson County. North Carolina's politicians abandoned support for the federal recognition effort until the tribal factions agreed on their identity. In 1952, under the leadership of D.F. Lowrie, the tribe voted to adopt the name "Lumbee." The North Carolina legislature recognized the tribe's name change to the "Lumbee Indians of North Carolina" in 1953. The tribe petitioned again for federal recognition.


Lumbee Act

In 1955, congressman F. Ertel Carlyle introduced The Lumbee Act to recognize the "Lumbee Indians of North Carolina." It was passed into by Congress as H.R. 4656 () in 1956 and signed by President
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
. The Senate inserted a compromise that withheld full recognition as a
federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...
and prevented the tribe from being federally recognized or receiving federal benefits designated for tribal governments. The Lumbee Act designated the Indians of Robeson, Hoke,
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, and
Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...
counties as the "Lumbee Indians of North Carolina." It provided further, "Nothing in this Act shall make such Indians eligible for any services performed by the United States for Indians because of their status as Indians.'" It also forbids a government-to-government relationship between the federal government and the Lumbee as well as forbidding them from applying through the BARS, the Bureau of Indian Affairs administrative process to gain recognition. This restriction as to eligibility for services was a condition which tribal representatives agreed to at the time in order to achieve status as a recognized tribe and have the Lumbee name recognized. The Lumbee had essentially assimilated into early colonial life prior to the formation of the United States. They lived as individuals, as did any other colonial and U.S. citizens. Lumbee spokesmen repeatedly testified at these hearings that they were not seeking federal financial benefits; they said they only wanted a name designation as Lumbee people.


Petitioning for full federal recognition

In 1987, the Lumbee petitioned the
United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...
for full federal recognition. This is a prerequisite to receive the financial benefits accorded federally recognized Native American tribes. The latter have generally been those tribes who had signed treaties with the federal government and had reservations established, and a history of a tribal relationship with the federal government. The petition was denied in 1989 because of the Lumbee Act. The Lumbee resumed
lobbying Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agency, regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by va ...
Congress, testifying in 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1993 in efforts to gain full federal recognition by congressional action. All of these attempts failed in the face of opposition by the Department of Interior, the recognized
Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...
tribes (including North Carolina's
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), (Cherokee language, Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᏱ ᏕᏣᏓᏂᎸᎩ, ''Tsalagiyi Detsadanilvgi'') is a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States, federally recognized Indian Tribe, ...
), some of the North Carolina Congressional delegation, and some representatives from other states with federally recognized tribes. Some of the North Carolina delegation separately recommended an amendment to the 1956 Act that would enable the Lumbee to apply to the Department of Interior under the regular administrative process for recognition. In 2004 and 2006 the tribe made renewed bids for full recognition, to include financial benefits. In 2007, US Senator
Elizabeth Dole Mary Elizabeth Alexander Dole (née Hanford; born July 29, 1936)Mary Ella Cathey Hanford, "Asbury and Hanford Families: Newly Discovered Genealogical Information" ''The Historical Trail'' 33 (1996), pp. 44–45, 49. is an American attorney, auth ...
from North Carolina introduced the Lumbee Recognition Bill. It was not enacted. Lumbee Tribal Chairman
Jimmy Goins James Ernest Goins (August 31, 1948 – June 7, 2015) was an American politician who served as the chairman of the Lumbee, Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina from 2004 to 2010. As Lumbee Tribal Chairman, Goins led efforts to gain List of federally re ...
appeared before the
United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs is a committee of the United States Senate charged with oversight in matters related to the American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native peoples. A Committee on Indian Affairs existed from 1820 to 1 ...
in September 2007 to lobby for federal recognition of the tribe. In January 2009, US Representative
Mike McIntyre Douglas Carmichael "Mike" McIntyre II (; born August 6, 1956) is an American attorney and politician who was first elected to represent North Carolina's 7th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996. He served for 18 y ...
introduced legislation (H.R. 31) to grant the Lumbee full federal recognition. The bill gained support of more than 180 co-sponsors, including both North Carolina US Senators,
Richard Burr Richard Mauze Burr (born November 30, 1955) is an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from North Carolina from 2005 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Burr was previously a member of the United Stat ...
and
Kay Hagan Janet Kay Hagan (née Ruthven; May 26, 1953 – October 28, 2019) was an American lawyer, banking executive, and politician who served as a United States Senate, United States Senator from North Carolina from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democr ...
. In June 2009, the United States House of Representatives voted 240 to 179 for federal recognition for the Lumbee tribe, acknowledging that they are descendants of the historic Cheraw tribe. The bill went to the United States Senate. In October 2009, the United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs approved a bill for federal recognition of the Lumbee that also included a no-gaming clause. The Senate adjourned for 2010 without taking action on the bill. In 2021, Senator
Brian Schatz Brian Emanuel Schatz ( ; born October 20, 1972) is an American educator and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Hawaii, a seat he has held since 2012. A member ...
of Hawaii sought a hearing on Lumbee federal recognition. In April 2021, US Representative G. K. Butterfield introduced legislation to grant the Lumbee full federal recognition (H.R. 2758). The bill passed the House of Representatives in November 2021. The Senate never acted. Another attempt at federal recognition passed the House but not the Senate. On December 17, 2024
Bruce Westerman Bruce Eugene Westerman (born November 18, 1967) is an American forester and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Arkansas's 4th congressional district. Previously, he served as member and the majority leader of the Arkansas House ...
of Arkansas introduced a bill sponsored by
David Rouzer David Cheston Rouzer ( ; born February 16, 1972) is an American politician who is the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 7th congressional district. Previously he was a Republican member of the North Carolina General Assembly, representi ...
of
Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...
. The House approved 311-96, but the Senate would not be able to take action if Congress adjourned as planned.


2020 presidential election

During the
2020 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and California junior senator Kamala H ...
campaign, then-candidate
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
announced, on October 8, 2020, his support for federal recognition of the Lumbee tribe by pledging his backing to the Lumbee Recognition Act. On October 21, 2020, President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
announced his support for federal recognition of the tribe via the same legislation. The following weekend, Trump held a rally in Robeson County to shore up support among Native Americans. During the rally, Trump stated that " heLumbee Nation is forgotten no more!" Trump's rally was significant in that it was the first official visit to Robeson County by a sitting US President in history. Historically most of Robeson County had trended Democratic, voting for Barack Obama by an 18 point margin in 2012. However, Donald Trump carried the county narrowly in 2016, winning by a 5 point margin over
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
. In 2020, his margin of victory increased dramatically to an 18 point victory over Biden. Many attribute this swing in Trump's favor to his visit and explicit support for recognition of the tribe by the federal government.


Theories of origins


Lost Colony of Roanoke

In 1888,
Hamilton McMillan Hamilton McMillan (August 29, 1837 – February 27, 1916) was an American politician who served in the North Carolina General Assembly from 1885 to 1887. He supported the founding of the Croatan Normal School for the Lumbee people. The school later ...
proposed the Native inhabitants of Robeson County were descendants of England's "
Lost Colony of Roanoke The Roanoke Colony ( ) refers to two attempts by Sir Walter Raleigh to found the first permanent English settlement in North America. The first colony was established at Roanoke Island in 1585 as a military outpost, and was evacuated in 1586. ...
", who intermarried with what he described as the "Croatan Indians." The Roanoke colony disappeared during a difficult winter, but the colonists reportedly left the word "Croatan" carved into a tree, hence the name MacMillan gave to the proto Lumbee. MacMillan's theory may have been part of a cynical effort to woo Lumbee voters to the Democratic Party by creating a segregated Indian school system separate from the school system for
African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
. By the early 1900s, Robeson County whites used "Cro" as a racial epithet to describe their "Indian" neighbors. The Lost Colony theory of origins fell out of favor in the early twentieth century. "Croatan" was dropped from their name and they became known as the "Indians of Robeson County" in 1911. Lumbee historian
Adolph Dial Adolph Lorenz Dial was an American historian, professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, and a specialist in American Indian Studies. Dial was a member of the Lumbee Tribe and a graduate of Pembroke State College, wh ...
continued to advocate for the lost colony theory until his death in the 1990s. Lumbee historian Malinda Mayor Lowery "is highly skeptical" of the theory.


Cherokee descent

The proto Lumbee first began identifying as Cherokee Indians in 1915, when they changed their name to the "Cherokee Indians of Robeson County." Four years earlier, they had changed their name from the "Croatan Indians" to the generic "Indians of Robeson County." But the Cherokee occupied territory much further to the west and in the mountains during the colonial era. In his unpublished 1934 master's thesis, graduate student Clifton Oxendine theorized that the Lumbee descended from
Iroquoian The Iroquoian languages () are a language family of indigenous peoples of North America. They are known for their general lack of labial consonants. The Iroquoian languages are polysynthetic and head-marking. As of 2020, almost all surviving I ...
-speaking
Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...
. Citing "oral traditions," Oxendine suggested that the Lumbee were the descendants of Cherokee warriors who fought with the British under Colonel
John Barnwell John Barnwell (born 24 December 1938) is an English former football player and manager. He was the chief executive of the League Managers Association. Career Arsenal Born in Newcastle, Barnwell first played as an amateur for Whitley Bay and B ...
of South Carolina in the Tuscarora campaign of 1711–1713. He said the Cherokee settled in the swamps of Robeson County when the campaign ended, along with some Tuscarora captives. The Oxendine theory of Cherokee origin has been uniformly rejected by mainstream scholars. First, no Cherokee warriors are listed in the record of Barnwell's company. Second, the Lumbee do not speak Cherokee or any other Indian language. Third, Oxendine's claims of oral traditions are completely unsubstantiated; no such oral traditions survive or are documented by any other scholar. The Lumbee have abandoned this theory in their documentation supporting their effort to obtain federal tribal recognition. The federally recognized
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), (Cherokee language, Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᏱ ᏕᏣᏓᏂᎸᎩ, ''Tsalagiyi Detsadanilvgi'') is a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States, federally recognized Indian Tribe, ...
categorically rejects any connection to the Lumbee, dismissing the Oxendine claims as "absurd" and disputing even that the Lumbee qualify as Native American.


Cheraw descent

Shortly after abandoning the Croatan label and changing their name to the generic "Indians of Robeson County", the proto Lumbee seized on the speculations of Indian agent McPherson that they may be related to the defunct
Cheraw The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura,Sebeok, Thomas Albert''Native Languages of the Americas, Volume 2.''Plenum Press, 1977: 251. were a Siouan-speaking tribe of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands,Swanton''The Indians ...
, a band of Siouan-speaking Indians that had been reduced by war and disease to 50 or 60 individuals by 1768. The 1915 ''McPherson Report'' said in reference to the Cheraw (quoting the ''Handbook of American Indians'', 1906):
Their numbers in 1715, according to Rivers, was 510, but this estimate probably included the Keyauwee. Being still subject to attack by the
Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...
, they finally—between 1726 and 1739—became incorporated with the Catawba ... They are mentioned as with the Catawba but speaking their own distinct dialect as late as 1743 (Adair). The last notice of them in 1768, when their remnant, reduced by war and disease to 50 or 60, were still living with the Catawba.
The Catawba are a federally recognized tribe. The McPherson Report does not explain how or when the remaining four or five dozen Cheraw identified in 1768 separated from the Catawba and became the ancestors of the Lumbee.


Siouan descent

After repeated rejections under the Croatan, Cherokee and Cheraw labels, the proto Lumbee petitioned the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1924 for recognition as "Siouan" Indians. This refers to
Siouan language Siouan ( ), also known as Siouan–Catawban ( ), is a language family of North America located primarily in the Great Plains, Ohio and Mississippi valleys and southeastern North America with a few other languages in the east. Name Authors who ...
-speaking groups, not the
Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...
, an
Indigenous people of the Great Plains Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nations peoples who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of North A ...
. This petition was rejected largely on the grounds that Siouan is a language family, not a tribe. Moreover, there was no record of the Lumbee or their ancestors having ever spoken a Siouan or any other Indian language.


Keyauwee descent

In 1933, John Swanton wrote that the Siouan-speaking Keyauwee and Cheraw of the
Carolina Piedmont The Piedmont ( ) is a plateau region located in the Eastern United States. It is situated between the Atlantic Plain and the Blue Ridge Mountains, stretching from New York in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont Province is ...
were the most likely Indian ancestors of the people known from 1885 to 1912 as Croatan Indians and later as the Indians of Robeson County.Chavis, Dean
"The Lumbee Story"
, Red Hearts website (retrieved 8 Nov 2009)
He suggested that surviving descendants of the
Waccamaw The Waccamaw people were an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, who lived in villages along the Waccamaw and Pee Dee rivers in North and South Carolina in the 18th century.Lerch 328 Name The meaning of the name ''Waccamaw'' is ...
and the Woccon likely lived in the central coastal region of North Carolina. In the 21st century, these tribes are extinct as groups, except for a small band of Waccamaw that live on Lake Waccamaw and have been recognized by the state. Swanton traced the migration of Southeast tribes.Rights, p. 59 In addition to the Keyauwee, Cheraw, Bear River, Waccamaw, and Woccon already mentioned, he noted that the
Eno Eno may refer to: Music * English National Opera, London * ''Eno'', an album by Japanese band Polysics Organisations and businesses * Eno (company), a Chinese clothing and accessories business * Eno Center for Transportation, a non-profit t ...
and Waxhaw migrated from Piedmont South Carolina northeast to the north-central part of North Carolina, then back south again to a point on the
Pee Dee River The Pee Dee River, also known as the Great Pee Dee River, is a river in the Carolinas of the United States. It originates in the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina, where its upper course, above the mouth of the Uwharrie River, is known a ...
just south of the border of the two Carolinas. By the 1770s, remnant Indians from the once distinct tribal communities of the Cheraw, Keyauwee, Hatteras, Waxhaw, Sugaree, Eno and Shakori gathered along the Lumbee River, near the border that now divides North and South Carolina. Some of these Indians moved further southward to join with the few surviving Catawba, but the majority settled near the pines, web of wetlands, and river that bear the name of the Lumbee. Over time in a process of
ethnogenesis Ethnogenesis (; ) is the formation and development of an ethnic group. This can originate by group self-identification or by outside identification. The term ''ethnogenesis'' was originally a mid-19th-century neologism that was later introduce ...
, they identified as a common people.


Multiple tribes theory

Lumbee historian Malinda Mayor Lowery proposed that the Lumbee people were most likely descended from the members of several other tribes who settled in the swamplands around
Robeson County Robeson County ( )Talk Like a Tarheel
, from the North Carolina C ...
. Lowery argues that
Cheraw The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura,Sebeok, Thomas Albert''Native Languages of the Americas, Volume 2.''Plenum Press, 1977: 251. were a Siouan-speaking tribe of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands,Swanton''The Indians ...
,
Saponi The Saponi are a Native American tribe historically based in the Piedmont of North Carolina and Virginia.Raymond D. DeMaillie, "Tutelo and Neighboring Groups," pages 286–87. They spoke a Siouan language, related to the languages of the Tutel ...
, Hatteras,
Tuscarora Tuscarora may refer to the following: First nations and Native American people and culture * Tuscarora people **'' Federal Power Commission v. Tuscarora Indian Nation'' (1960) * Tuscarora language, an Iroquoian language of the Tuscarora people * ...
and Cape Fear Indians settled in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries and adopted English as a
lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, link language or language of wider communication (LWC), is a Natural language, language systematically used to make co ...
. Over time the various refugees merged into the Lumbee.


Authenticity and doubts of origins

Due to their lack of evidence of Native American ancestry and other conventional Indigenous cultural markers such as a unique language, Lumbee people are often confronted with doubts concerning the validity of their claims to Indigenous status. Some white and black residents of Robeson County have expressed doubts about their origins, asserting that the Lumbee are descendants of white and black people who do not want to be viewed as black due to
discrimination based on skin tone Discrimination based on skin tone, also known as colorism or shadeism, is a form of prejudice and discrimination in which individuals of the same race receive benefits or disadvantages based on the color of their skin. More specifcally, coloris ...
. Some federally recognized tribes have endorsed the extension of recognition to the Lumbee, while others have opposed it, accusing the Lumbee of making fraudulent claims to Indigenous ancestry. Several tribes from the Western United States also promulgate the belief that the Lumbee are a mixed, mostly African-descent group. Some Lumbee report that they do not show any Native American ancestry on commercial
genealogical DNA test A genealogical DNA test is a DNA-based Genetic testing, genetic test used in genetic genealogy that looks at specific locations of a person's genome in order to find or verify ancestral genealogical relationships, or (with lower reliability) to ...
s. Historian Malinda Maynor Lowery, a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, criticized the usefulness of such tests, stating that the testing companies lack base samples of the Lumbee's Indigenous ancestors'
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
with which the results can be compared. Some Lumbee report that the doubts about their status have caused emotional and psychological harm in their community.


Culture and traditions


Surnames

Locklear, Oxendine, Lowry, Hunt, Chavis, Brayboy, Freeman and Bullard are common Lumbee surnames.


Language

Lumbee people speak both mainstream varieties of English and a vernacular form, Lumbee English. The latter is not a
Native American language The Indigenous languages of the Americas are the languages that were used by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas before the arrival of non-Indigenous peoples. Over a thousand of these languages are still used today, while many more are now e ...
, but rather a form of
American Indian English American Indian English or Native American English is a diverse collection of English dialects spoken by many American Indians and Alaska Natives, notwithstanding indigenous languages also spoken in the United States, of which only a few are ...
. In 2020, the
ISO 639-3 ISO 639-3:2007, ''Codes for the representation of names of languages – Part 3: Alpha-3 code for comprehensive coverage of languages'', is an international standard for language codes in the ISO 639 series. It defines three-letter codes for ...
language code A language code is a code that assigns letters or numbers as identifiers or classifiers for languages. These codes may be used to organize library collections or presentations of data, to choose the correct localizations and translations in comput ...
''lmz'' was retired from use, as it was determined that no separate Lumbee language has ever existed. Linguists have speculated that the ancestors of the Lumbees had been Native peoples who had originally spoken the
Cheraw The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura,Sebeok, Thomas Albert''Native Languages of the Americas, Volume 2.''Plenum Press, 1977: 251. were a Siouan-speaking tribe of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands,Swanton''The Indians ...
dialect of the Eastern Siouan language prior to adopting English sometime before the early 18th century. Lumbee ancestors encountered English-speaking European settlers and adopted their language much earlier than other Native American groups. The Lumbee Act of 1956 specifically mentioned the dialect as a defining attribute of the people. By 1730, English settlers were surprised at the presence of a large English-speaking Native American tribe. The Lumbees’ lack of a traditional language led to extra difficulty in gaining federal recognition. Lumbee dialectal English descends from the English spoken by the British English,
Highland Scots The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowla ...
, and Scots-Irish. Probably due to this heritage, it shares similarities with the
High Tider High Tider, Hoi Toider, or Hoi Toide English is a family or continuum of American English dialects spoken in very limited communities of the South Atlantic United States, particularly several small islands and coastal townships. The exact areas ...
accent found in the
Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separatin ...
, namely in use of the sound where other English speakers use , the use of the word ' ('to mess up'), and the grammatical use of ''weren't'' (e.g. "she weren't here"). Lumbee dialect also makes use of several unique words and phrases: ''chauld'' ('embarrassed'); ''on the swamp'' ('in the neighborhood'); ' ( sling shot); and ''bog'' (a serving of chicken and rice). Grammatically, Lumbee dialect employs the word ''bes'' as a verb form (e.g. "it bes really crowded"). There is a variation in the use of these elements among Lumbee people; some frequently use most of the vernacular's unique characteristics, while others use few of them but easily understand their meaning. The vernacular has also evolved over time, with older speakers frequently using the sound and ''a''-prefixing verbs, while the grammatical use of ''weren't'' has been retained and strengthened in use among younger speakers.


Lumbee Homecoming

Lumbee Homecoming is a celebration held annually in Pembroke since 1968. Homecoming is important in bringing together members of families, many from great distances, for a weeklong celebration of Lumbee culture. Festivities include a parade, a
pow wow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations communities. Inaugurated in 1923, powwows today are an opportunity for Indigenous people to socialize, dance, sing, and honor their ...
, pageants, and other cultural events. 2018 marked the 50th anniversary of the homecoming and saw crowds of over 20,000 spectators, including the
Governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Seventy-five people have held the office since the first state governor, Richard Caswell, took office in 1777. The governor serves a ...
,
Roy Cooper Roy Asberry Cooper III ( ; born June 13, 1957) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 75th List of governors of North Carolina, governor of North Carolina from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), De ...
.


Communities

Lumbee communities were linked together by their extensive kinship ties, church affiliations, their sense of themselves as Indians, and their control of their educational system, all of which served as a mechanism for defining tribal membership and maintaining tribal boundaries. Communities are basically self-governing. One form of self-governance in the early 20th century was exhibited by a fraternal organization known as the Red Men's Lodge. By 1914, lodges existed in Prospect, Magnolia, Pembroke, Saddletree, Oxendine, and Union Chapel. Lodge members maintained social order, carried out ceremonies, marched in parades, and conducted funerals. The 1987 Lumbee Petition states that, " th so many prominent leaders it is easy to understand how the lodges could maintain order and, at the same time, protect the tribal members from organized violence from whites in the area".


Lumbee patchwork

In the late 19th century, Maggie Lowry Locklear (Lumbee), daughter of
Henry Berry Lowry Henry Berry Lowry ( – unknown after 1872) was an American outlaw of Tuscarora and Scottish descent. He led the Lowry Gang in North Carolina during and after the American Civil War. Many local North Carolinians remember him as a Robin Hood fig ...
, created a unique patchwork quilt inspired by the
longleaf pine The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...
. Her quilt is in the collection of the Museum of the Southeast American Indian at the
University of North Carolina at Pembroke The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNC Pembroke or UNCP) is a public university in Pembroke, North Carolina, United States. UNC Pembroke is a master's level degree-granting university and part of the University of North Carolina syste ...
. In 1993, Hayes Alan Locklear (Lumbee) designed a dress, which was sewn by Kat Littleturtle (Lumbee) for Miss Lumbee Natascha Wagoner, who was chosen as the 8th Miss Indian USA. The dress featured a pinecone patchwork pattern inspired by Maggie Lowry Locklear's quilt. Since then, Lumbee women have adopted this pinecone patchwork dress style as the signature Lumbee dress.


Cuisine

Traditional Lumbee cuisine heavily intersects with
Southern cuisine The cuisine of the Southern United States encompasses diverse food traditions of several subregions, including cuisine of Southeastern Native American tribes, Tidewater, Appalachian, Ozarks, Lowcountry, Cajun, Creole, African American cuisi ...
. Chicken and pastry is a mainstay of Lumbee food, as is
cornbread Cornbread is a quick bread made with cornmeal, associated with the cuisine of the Southern United States, with origins in Native American cuisine. It is an example of batter bread. Dumplings and pancakes made with finely ground cornmeal are st ...
. The collard sandwich—consisting of fried cornbread, collard greens, and
fatback Fatback is a layer of subcutaneous fat taken from under the skin of the back of a domestic pig, with or without the skin (referred to as pork rind). In cuisine Fatback is a preferred fat for various forms of charcuterie, particularly sau ...
—is a popular dish among the Lumbee in Robeson County. It is sometimes served with
chow-chow The Chow Chow is a spitz-type of dog breed originally from Northern China. The Chow Chow is a sturdily built dog, square in profile, with a broad skull and small, triangular, erect ears with rounded tips. The breed is known for a very dense doub ...
.


Religion

Today the Lumbee primarily practice Protestantism, and attending church is an important social activity. Churches have Sunday schools, youth organizations, senior citizens' programs, Bible study programs, and choir practices. Gospel songs are popular. Ministers are highly respected. When a sizeable number of Lumbee people move to a city, they tend to settle in a particular section or neighborhood and establish a church. This took place in Lumbee communities in Baltimore, Greensboro, Fayetteville, Charlotte, and Claxton, Georgia.Stilling, Glenn Ellen Starr
"North Carolina's Lumbee Indians in Literature, Art, and Music"
, ''Lumbee Indians.'' Retrieved 1 July 2013
A study has documented Lumbee
Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
back to 1787. Lumbees created two church conferences of Indian congregations — the Burnt Swamp
Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
Association, founded around 1880, and the Lumbee River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Association in 1900. In 1984 Bruce Barton documented 104 Lumbee churches. Prospect Community Church , with 1,008 members in 2017, has purportedly the largest congregation of Native Americans in the United States.


Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina

The
Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina is a state-recognized tribe in North Carolina. The tribe represents Lumbee people. They have federal recognition as a Native American tribe but do not receive the benefits accorded to most other federally-recog ...
is one of eight state-recognized Native American tribes in North Carolina. They participate at the state level in many ways, including in the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs. They also participate in such national organizations as the
National Congress of American Indians The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is an Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American Indian and Alaska Natives, Alaska Native Indigenous rights, rights organization. It was founded in 1944 to represent the tribes and resist U.S. ...
and the
National Indian Education Association The National Indian Education Association (NIEA) is the only national nonprofit exclusive to education issues for Native Americans in the United States, American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian people of the United States. History In Ma ...
. According to its constitution, adopted in 2000, the Lumbee tribal government is organized into three branches: the tribal chairperson (executive), the 21-member Tribal Council (legislative), and Supreme Court (judicial). The tribal chairperson and the Tribal Council are elected to three-year terms. The current administration includes: * Chairman: John Lowery * Administrator: Tammy Maynor * Administration assistant to the chairman: Camera Brewer * Enrollment director: Reena Locklear.


Unrecognized organizations

Some unrecognized organizations identify as being Lumbee. One, the United Lumbee Nation of North Carolina and America, based in Exeter, California, petitioned for federal recognition in 1980. The final determination was that the group "does not exist as an Indian tribe" and that they did not descend from any Lumbee community.


See also

* List of notable Lumbee


Notes


References


Works cited


Books

* * * * * *Rights, Douglas L. ''The American Indian in North Carolina''. Winston-Salem: John F. Blair, 1957. *Ross, Thomas E. ''American Indians in North Carolina: Geographic Interpretations'', Southern Pines: Karo Hollow Press, 1999. . *Sider, Gerald M. ''Living Indian Histories: Lumbee and Tuscarora People in North Carolina''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2003 (reprint). . *Townsend, George Alfred
''The Swamp Outlaws, or, The North Carolina Bandits: Being a Complete History of the Modern Rob Roys and Robin Hoods''
New York: Robert M. DeWitt, 1872. * *


Journal articles

* *


Primary sources

* * * *McPherson, O.M

63rd Congress, 3rd session, January 5, 1915. Senate Document 677 (This was submitted to the legislature of North Carolina, as they were considering issues related especially to the Cherokee and other tribal groups). *Oxendine, Clifton. ''A Social and Economic History of the Indians of Robeson County North Carolina'', unpublished M.A. thesis, George Peabody College for Teachers, 1934. *Thomas, Robert K. "A Report on Research of Lumbee Origins."; Lumbee River Legal Services. The Lumbee petition. Prepared in cooperation with the Lumbee Tribal Enrollment Office. Julian T. Pierce and Cynthia Hunt-Locklear, authors. Jack Campisi and Wesley White, consultants. Pembroke: Lumbee River Legal Services, 1987. *U.S. Bureau of the Census. ''The First Census of the U.S.: 1790. Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States: North Carolina''. Washington, DC:
Government Printing Office The United States Government Publishing Office (USGPO or GPO), formerly the United States Government Printing Office, is an agency of the Legislature, legislative branch of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal gove ...
, 1908.


Further reading

*Cameron, Jno. D. "The Croatan Indians of Robeson", North Carolina: The Fayetteville Observer, February 12, 1885 *Eliades, David K., Oxendine, Linda E., and Locklear, Lawrence T. "Hail to UNCP! A 125-Year History of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke". Chapel Hill, NC: Chapel Hill Press, 2014. . *Gregg, Alexander (1819-1893). ''History of the Old Cheraws'' *Gorman, C. John "Gorman Papers", State archives, c. 1875 and with the Gorman family, Durham N.C. c. 1917 *Hawks, Francis. ''History of North Carolina''. Vol. I. Fayetteville, NC: E.J. Hale & Son, 1858. *Houghton, Richard H., III. "The Lumbee: 'Not a Tribe,' ''The Nation''. 257.21 (20 December 1993) * * *Lawson, John. ''A New Voyage to Carolina''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 1967. . *Miller, Mark Edwin. ‘’Claiming Tribal Identity: The Five Tribes and the Politics of Tribal Recognition. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2013. *Milling, Chapman J. ''Red Carolinians''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1940. *Norment, Mary C. ''The Lowrie History, As Acted in Part by Henry Berry Lowrie, the Great North Carolina Bandit''. Weldon, NC: Harrell's Printing House, 1895.


External links

* *Native American Resource Center, UNC Pembrok
The Museum of the Southeast American IndianTuscarora Nation One Fire Council
Official Website
The Center for Lumbee Studies
Native Languages
"The Lumbee Indians": An annotated bibliography
{{authority control Native American tribes in North Carolina Robeson County, North Carolina