African-Native American Heritage Month
King Blue Chickasaw Freedmen Activist
b. 1828 +/-
Residence 1890-Stonewall, Pontotoc County, Indian Territory
One of the more recognized leaders in the Choctaw and
Chickasaw Freedmen communities was King Blue and his legacy of activism for the
betterment of the Chickasaw Freedmen continues today. The first known
documentation of King Blue and his life among the Chickasaw Indians is when he
and some notable men formed a committee of freedmen to petition the United
States Congress to enforce the articles of the Treaty of 1866 that called for
the adoption of the formerly enslaved population as citizens in the Chickasaw
and Choctaw nations.
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| Senate Executive Document 82, 40th Congress, 2nd Session 1868 |
It is probably no coincidence that his residence in
Stonewall influenced his participation and activism for the rights and
privileges of citizenship for Chickasaw Freedmen following their emancipation
from bondage in 1866. The group of approximately forty-four men began
petitioning the United States government about their status in relation to the
Treaty of 1866 and the unresolved issue of their adoption into the Chickasaw
and Choctaw Nation “relating to the rights of freedmen under the 3rd
article of the treaty with the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations of Indians,
concluded April 28, 1866.”
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| Senate Executive Document 82, 40th Congress, 2nd Session |
As descendants of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Freedmen we are fortunate to have documentation of our ancestor’s activism regarding their political, social and economic status following their emancipation and activities to secure their rights as humans to become citizens in the nations of their birth. King Blue was born circa 1828 in Mississippi and survived being enslaved and experiencing life as a “free man” in the Chickasaw Nation.
As a “free man” living in Stonewall, clearly King Blue became involved in the pursuit of justice for his family and community of Chickasaw and Choctaw Freedmen throughout the nation.
The next time we see any documentation of King Blue was
living with his wife Mary with some of their children in the 1890 Census Roll
of the Chickasaw Nation, Pontotoc County Stonewall, Indian Territory. Unremarkably,
we see one of King and Mary’s son Joseph enumerated on the same page with his
wife Amy and their children.
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| 1890 Census Roll of the Chickasaw Nation, Pontotoc County |
In 1894 we get a glimpse into the personality of King Blue as a leader of his community and how those who knew him may have thought about his abilities as a leader. In his seminal work on the Chickasaw Freedmen, Dr. Daniel F. Littlefield, Jr., “The Chickasaw Freedmen A People Without A Country” he describes a raid on the farm of George Traux, the postmaster at Stonewall. Though there was no knowledge of why the raid occurred but it is speculated the dispute centered on land.[i]
Researching the newspapers of the day may supply a probable
cause why King Blue used his powerful influence to organize his community to
assert their rights and protect their homes. The curious aspect of the raid is
the freedmen thought they were going to be “transported” from their homes by
the Chickasaws.
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| Oklahoma State Sept. 27, 1894 p2c4 |
Remember in the 1890 census of the Chickasaw Nation, King Blue would be almost 80 years old but the newspaper described Blue, “while an old man, is very strong physically and a natural leader of surprising tact.”
In some sense the article is condescending, it probably contained a great deal of truth and with the last sentence perhaps the true nature of King Blue’s influence and mental prowess “surprised” those who underestimated his abilities?
King Blue “was chosen king of the negro-Indians shortly after the war and he exercises an absolute tyranny over his followers.” How ironic, in a nation that enslaved King Blue and his family it is the height of hypocrisy to consider this leader, a tyrant.
The legacy of King Blue and his wife Mary Chism-Blue are
their lives as activist within the Stonewall community and throughout the
Chickasaw Freedmen community. King Blue and Mary who lived long enough to be
enumerated on her own Dawes Card are testimony to perseverance and we should
not forget her influence on events of the day.
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| Guthrie Daily Leader, Sept. 28, 1894 p6c5 |
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| Mary Blue Chickasaw Freedwoman Card #78 Front |
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