A Traveler in Indian Territory: The Journal of Ethan Allen Hitchcock Contributor(s): Hitchcock, Ethan A. (Author), Foreman, Grant (Editor), Green, Michael D. (Foreword by) |
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ISBN: 0806128402 ISBN-13: 9780806128405 Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press OUR PRICE: $23.70 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: February 2021 Annotation: In 1841 U.S. government authorities sent Major Ethan Allen Hitchcock to Indian Territory to investigate numerous charges of fraud and profiteering by various contractors dealing with the Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Indians, who had been removed from the South during the last decade. Hitchcock's report, filed after four months of travel, exposed such a high level of graft and corruption that his investigation was suppressed and never brought to the attention of Congress. Hitchcock kept nine personal diaries of his travels and observations, however, and they reveal much historic and ethnographic information on Indian life in Indian Territory. He observes how the Indians were adjusting after removal and includes many details on their customs, beliefs, culture, religion, ceremonies, amusements, industry, tribal councils, and government. To aid the modern reader, editor Grant Foreman provides an introduction and annotations, and Michael D. Green, in his foreword, explains the politics behind Hitchcock's mission to Indian Territory and his accomplishments in advancing ethnographic knowledge. |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Historical |
Dewey: B |
LCCN: 95046136 |
Series: American Exploration and Travel |
Physical Information: 0.77" H x 5.97" W x 9.04" (1.02 lbs) 286 pages |
Themes: - Cultural Region - Southwest U.S. - Ethnic Orientation - Native American |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: In 1841 U.S. government authorities sent Major Ethan Allen Hitchcock to Indian Territory to investigate numerous charges of fraud and profiteering by various contractors dealing with the Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Indians, who had been removed from the South during the last decade. Hitchcock's report, filed after four months of travel, exposed such a high level of graft and corruption that his investigation was suppressed and never brought to the attention of Congress. Hitchcock kept nine personal diaries of his travels and observations, however, and they reveal much historic and ethnographic information on Indian life in Indian Territory. He observes how the Indians were adjusting alter removal and includes many details on their customs, beliefs, culture, religion, ceremonies, amusements, industry, tribal councils, and government. To aid the modern reader, editor Grant Foreman provides an introduction and annotations, and Michael D. Green, in his foreword, explains the politics behind Hitchcock's mission to Indian Territory and his accomplishments in advancing ethnographic knowledge. |
Contributor Bio(s): Foreman, Grant: - Grant Foreman (1869-1953), known as the dean of American Indian historians, was the author of Indian Removal, The Five Civilized Tribes, and Sequoyah and editor of Ethan Allen Hitchcock's Traveler in Indian Territory, all published by the University of Oklahoma Press. Green, Michael D.: -Michael D. Green, is Professor of History at the University of Kentucky and the author of The Politics of Indian Removal and The Creeks: A Critical Bibliography. |