Poarch Creek Indians

Mailing Address

5811 Jack Springs Road
Atmore, AL 36502

Contact Information

251-368-9136

Website

Casino(s)

Cultural History

The Poarch Creek Indians originated from the states of Alabama and Georgia. They are the remaining descendants of the portion of the original Creek Nation. The Poarch Creek Indians is one of those few lucky Indian Tribes who were nto removed from their original dwellings. They have lived in their current settlement for more than one hundred fifty years.

It was in the late seventeenth century when the Creek Confederacy was composed of Alabama land in the north of the current day Stockton, with the heart of the Creek Nation focused on the intersection of the Coosa and the Tallapoosa Rivers which are near Montgomery. Their ancestors used to live along the Alabama River which included areas from the Wetumpka located in the southern portion of the Tensaw settlement.

The Treaty of New York signed in the year 1790 granted the United States government the permission in the tribal land so that they could use it and improve the Indian trail located in Alabama. Because of the treaty, the American settlement was made easier following the Louisiana Purchase. The Creeks were then allowed to enter business enterprises along the Indian trails, in exchange of the signing of the treaty. The businesses also helped in the accommodation of the American settlers who were passing through the Indian Territory. Years later, the Indian Trail was renovated and was turned into a Federal Road as it is today. The ancestors of the tribe were then urged to move down the Alabama River so that they could ask the government for services that should be intended for their youth. The tribal leaders then signed contracts with the government giving them employment as guides, interpreters, ferry men, and river pilots for those tourists and civilians traveling through the Creek Territory. The tribe also entered business ventures such as inns. They also engaged into cattle ranching. Soon enough, these families acquired land allotments which were along the Alabama River from the Tensaw up to the Claiborne and on the eastern portion along the banks of the Little River.

The settlers soon increased dramatically in number and they did not only inhabit the lands of the government, but those of the Indians as well. Tensions began sprawling as hostility was promoted towards the American government. The animosity resulted in battles in which the Creek Nation and the Horsehoe Bend were defeated. The Treaty of Fort Jackson forcefully and illegally ceded the lands of the tribes leaving them homeless.

The tribe has since then traveled a winding road towards success. According to the Census data of the year 2006, the Poarch Creek Indians have a population of not less than 2,340 members. Over one thousand of these members are residing along the vicinity of the Poarch, Alabama which is eight miles in the northwestern portion of Atmore, Alabama. Their current chairman is Buford L. Rolin. Their gaming facilities are currently their top earners, giving them revenues every year thus contributing to their economical success.