Near Ocala in Marion County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Oklahoma Seminole Nations History
Historic Florida Barge Canal Trail
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, February 13, 2021
1. Oklahoma Seminole Nations History Marker
Oklahoma Seminoles. The Seminole Nation in the State of Oklahoma is the largest of the three recognized Seminole governments in the United States. They are descendants of the 3,000 Seminoles who were forcibly removed from Florida in the middle 1800s after the three Seminole Wars. They were among nearly 60,000 Native Americans from five tribes in southeastern states who were forced to walk the "Trail of Tears" to Oklahoma (1858). An estimated 12,000 died along the way.
The first tribal leader was Chief Micanopy in Oklahoma. He was the principal chief, leading the Seminole struggle to gain an independent reservation for the tribe, after being forced to move from Florida to the Oklahoma Territory. The Seminoles were initially placed by the federal government under the Creek Indian Territory. Micanopy was chief from 1825 until his death in 1849.
As they had in Florida, the Seminoles strongly discouraged intermarriage with whites or adoption of European-American ways (which had been expected by the federal government).
Modern times. There are nearly 19,000 enrolled tribal members, nearly 14,000 living within the State of Oklahoma. Today the tribal jurisdiction covers Seminole County. The tribe is headquartered in the town of Wewoka.
Erected by Florida State
this page online
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Native Americans • Settlements & Settlers • Wars, US Indian. In addition, it is included in the Trail of Tears series list.
Location. 29° 6.126′ N, 82° 5.355′ W. Marker is near Ocala, Florida, in Marion County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Southeast 80th Street (County Road 328) and South Pine Avenue (U.S. 441), on the right when traveling east. Marker is located along the trail at "The Island" - Cross Florida Barge Canal Interpretive Park, just south of the Marion County Sheriff's Station. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3260 Southeast 80th Street, Ocala FL 34480, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Florida Seminole Nations History (here, next to this marker); A Tribe Lost: Timicua (here, next to this marker); Florida Seminoles (a few steps from this marker); Florida Crackers (a few steps from this marker); Cat Face (within shouting distance of this marker); Greenway Greenlife (within shouting distance of this marker); History: Crops (within shouting distance of this marker); Green Monsters (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Ocala.
Related markers.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, February 13, 2021
2. Oklahoma Seminole Nations History Marker
Also see . . .
1. Seminole - Oklahoma Historical Society. The Seminole were originally part of the Creek, a loose confederacy of ethnic groups and tribes in southern Georgia, northern Florida, and Alabama. During the late eighteenth century some Lower Creek villages on the middle Chattahoochee River cut their political and social ties with their neighbors and moved south into northern Florida. There they became known as Seminole, perhaps a derivation of cimarron, a Spanish term for runaway. By the nineteenth century the Seminole were deemed a threat to the slaveholding culture of the American South and thus were designated for pacification and removal. (Submitted on February 21, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. Seminole Nation of Oklahoma (Wikipedia). The few hundred Seminoles remaining in Florida fought against US forces in the Third Seminole war, and peace was made without their defeat. Today, descendants of those people have formed two federally recognized Seminole tribes. Together, the three tribes and unorganized Traditionals in Florida were awarded a land claims settlement valued in total at $16 million in 1976, for nearly 24 million acres of lands seized by the United States government in Florida in 1823. (Submitted on February 21, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 21, 2021. It was originally submitted on February 20, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 184 times since then and 26 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 21, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
