Thlopthlocco Tribal Town is both a federally recognized Native American tribe and a traditional township of Muscogee Creek Indians, based in

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. The tribe's native language is Mvskoke, also called Creek.

Pronunciation

The sound of the “thl" is usually spelled with an "r" in the Muscogee Creek alphabet and is pronounced as /ɬ/, a

voiceless lateral fricative The voiceless alveolar lateral fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents voiceless dental, alveolar, and postalveolar lateral fricatives is , a ...

. This sound has been described as “placing the tongue halfway between the ‘th’ position and the ‘l’ position."

History

The Muscogee Creek confederacy was composed of autonomous tribal towns, governed by their own elected leadership. The Creek originated in the Southeastern United States, in what is now

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. They were collectively removed from the southeast to

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

under the United States' Indian Removal Policy of the 1830s. Before 1832, the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town split from a larger town. It was removed to

in 1835.Moore, John H
"Thlopthlocco Tribal Town."
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture'' (retrieved 8 April 2009) The citizens of the town settled in an area south of Okemah, Oklahoma, in what would become

Okfuskee County Okfuskee County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 11,310. Its county seat is Okemah, Oklahoma, Okemah. The county is named for a forme ...

, on lands that were originally occupied by the Osage and

Quapaw The Quapaw ( , Quapaw language, Quapaw: ) or Arkansas, officially the Quapaw Nation, is a List of federally recognized tribes in the United States, U.S. federally recognized tribe comprising about 6,000 citizens. Also known as the Ogáxpa or � ...

. Those tribes ceded their lands to the US by 1825.Wilson, Linda D
"Okfuskee County"
''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.'' (retrieved 20 July 2011) During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, Thlopthlocco Tribal Town was briefly the headquarters of Confederate Col. Douglas H. Cooper. Greenleaf Town, located five miles northwest of Thlopthlocco, was the headquarters of ''

Opothleyahola Opothleyahola (also spelled Opothle Yohola, Opothleyoholo, Hu-pui-hilth Yahola, Hopoeitheyohola, and Hopere Yahvlv, – March 22, 1863) was a Muscogee Creek Indian chief, noted as a brilliant orator. He was a Speaker of the Upper Creek Co ...

'', a Muscogee leader who worked to resolve conflicts between the Creek factions during the war. He and 5000 others moved north to

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

to avoid the Civil War. After the war, the Muscogee Creek collectively signed the 1866 Treaty with the United States and freed their slaves. The treaty also called for the Creek Freedmen to have citizenship in the Muscogee Nation. The freedmen settled new townships in Okfuskee County, including Boley, Bookertee, Clearview, Chilesville, and

Rusk A rusk is a hard, dry Biscuit#Biscuits in British usage, biscuit or a twice-baked bread. It is sometimes used as a teether for babies. In some cultures, rusk is made of cake rather than bread: this is sometimes referred to as cake rusk. In the ...

. Thlopthlocco Tribal Town retained its tribal identity despite allotments of land to individual households under the

Dawes Commission The American Dawes Commission, named for its first chairman Henry L. Dawes, was authorized under a rider to an Indian Office appropriation bill, March 3, 1893. Its purpose was to convince the Five Civilized Tribes to agree to cede tribal title ...

of 1896. From 1898 to 1906, citizens among the

Five Civilized Tribes The term Five Civilized Tribes was applied by the United States government in the early federal period of the history of the United States to the five major Native American nations in the Southeast: the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Cr ...

were registered on what have come to be known as the Dawes Rolls. After making allotments to households registered with the tribes, the US government declared other formerly tribal land as surplus and sold it to European-American settlers after 1906. This further broke up tribal communal territory. The Thlopthlocco Tribal citizens organized as a distinct tribe under the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act of 1936, which followed the national

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. The original headquarters for the tribe was the Thlopthlocco Methodist Episcopal Church, located between Wetumka and Okemah. In August 2012, National Indian Gaming Commission gave a notice to Thlopthlocco Tribal Town for their violation of

Indian Gaming Regulatory Act The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (, ''et seq.'') is a 1988 United States federal law that establishes the jurisdictional framework that governs Indian gaming. There was no federal gaming structure before this act. The stated purposes of the ...

by allowing two casinos without a management contract. In August 2014, Thlopthlocco Tribal Town received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture as part of their partnership with Euchee Butterfly Farm to expand butterfly farming.

Government

Thlopthlocco Tribal Town is now headquartered in Okemah and

Clearview, Oklahoma Clearview is a town in Okfuskee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 41 at the 2020 Census. It was historically an all-black freedmen's town and was platted by the Lincoln Townsite Company and designated as Lincoln.O'Dell, Larry ...

. Tribal enrollment is 845, with 728 citizens living within the state of Oklahoma, and is based on lineal descent. The governing body of the town, known as the Business Committee, consists of five elected officials and five citizens of the town appointed by elected officials. Ryan Morrow is the elected Mekko, or Town King.2011 Oklahoma Indian Nations Pocket Pictorial Directory.
''Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commission.'' 2011: 35. Retrieved 8 Feb 2012. He succeeded Vernon Yarholar. The

tribal jurisdictional area Oklahoma Tribal Statistical Area is a statistical entity identified and delineated by federally recognized American Indian tribes in Oklahoma as part of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 Census and ongoing American Community Survey. Many of these ...

of Thlopthlocco is within Creek, Hughes,

Mayes Mayes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adrian Mayes (born 1980), American football player * Alan Mayes (born 1953), English footballer * Bernard Mayes (1929–2014), British-American lecturer and author * Clifford Mayes (bor ...

, McIntosh, Muskogee, Okfuskee, Okmulgee, Rogers,

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

Tulsa Tulsa ( ) is the second-most-populous city in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tul ...

, and Wagoner Counties. The tribe maintains a close relationship with the

Muscogee (Creek) Nation The Muscogee Nation, or Muscogee (Creek) Nation, is a federally recognized Native American tribe based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The nation descends from the historic Muscogee Confederacy, a large group of indigenous peoples of the South ...

and falls under the jurisdiction of their tribal courts.

Citizenship

Citizens of the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town must be of matrilineal descent from a base enrollee of either the 1890 Creek Census Roll or the 1895 Creek Payroll. If an individual's mother is not of Muscogee descent, their father must be a citizen of the Town.

Economic development

Thlopthlocco operates its own tribal housing program, smoke shop, and the Golden Pony Casino, located in Okemah. The tribe's economic impact for 2011 was $12,500,000. In August 2012, the National Indian Gaming Commission notified the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town that it was in violation of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act for allowing two Atlanta, Georgia companies to operate the Golden Pony Casino for several years without a contract. The companies named were Titan Network LLC and Mercury Gaming Group LLC. The violations occurred from September 2005 through December 2010.Hylton, Susan. ''Tulsa World''. "Tribal town hit with federal violation." Retrieved February 16, 201

/ref>

Notes

External links

Tlopthlocco Tribal Town
official website

Thorpe College, University of Oklahoma {{DEFAULTSORT:Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Native American tribes in Oklahoma Muscogee tribal towns Federally recognized tribes in the United States