The Keetoowah Society
and the Civil War
in the Indian Territory
Abstract: This work
argues that radical changes within Cherokee society as a result of the
civilization program of the federal government created social and political
tensions that erupted into Civil War in the mid nineteenth century. At the core
of this rupture was the abandonment of traditional Cherokee cultural and
religious practices by an elite minority in order to pursue acculturation to
Euro-American values including chattel slavery. A resistance movement entitled
the Keetoowah Society formed within the Baptist churches and sought to preserve
Cherokee traditional values of harmony, inclusiveness, cooperation, and
collectivization. As the Baptist churches were historically composed of both
Africans and Indians, the Keetoowah Society’s commitment to the abolition of
slavery led to a militant response to the Cherokee Nation’s alliance with the
Confederacy. As much as the Civil War was a defining moment in the identity of
Cherokee Nation, the role of the Keetoowah Society in that struggle to define
“what is a Cherokee” is critical to understanding Cherokee history.
Introduction
Chapter 1
Contact and Conquest in Early America
The Beginnings of "Civilization"
The Baptist Churches and Slavery in Indian Territory
The Birth of the Keetoowah Society
The Keetoowah Mission to other Nations
The End of Secrecy and the Birth of the "Pins"
The Civil War Comes to Indian Territory
Fraught with Danger, Distress, and Ruin
Chapter 6
"An Indian shall not spill an Indian's blood"
Conclusion
Appendix A: Keetoowah Laws
Appendix B: Elizabeth Watts Interview
Appendix C: Benjamin Harrison Interview
