Indigenous Peoples of Kentucky
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Learn about the indigenous people of Kentucky, the tribes and bands, state recognized tribes,and records.
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Introduction[edit | edit source]
The most prominent early indigenous tribes in Kentucky were the Cherokee, Chickasaws, and Shawnee. Most of these tribes were eliminated from Kentucky by about the early 1800s either through warfare or resettlement to other territories by the federal government. No separate records were kept for people with Native American blood.
To learn how to get started with Native American research, find research facilities, and Native American websites click here.
See Indigenous Peoples of the United States and Their Records for suggestions on how to research Native American ancestry. If you are searching for indigenous people in Kentucky, search the same types of records used to research non-Native Americans. You may want to see:
- McConnell, Michael Norman. A Country Between: The Upper Ohio Valley and Its Peoples, 1724–1774. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1992. FHL book 970.1 M134c. This book contains a comprehensive history of indigenous people in the upper Ohio Valley, including the states of Ohio, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. In addition, this source contains biographies of prominent Kentucky Native Americans and a bibliography of sources.
Tribes and Bands of Kentucky[edit | edit source]
The following list of Native Americans who have lived in Kentucky has been compiled from Hodge's Handbook of American Indians...[1] and from Swanton's The Indian Tribes of North America[2]. Some may simply be variant spellings for the same tribe.
Tribes Recognized by the State of Kentucky[edit | edit source]
The Commonwealth of Kentucky currently has no federally recognized tribes and has not established a process by which tribes can be recognized by the state.
Records[edit | edit source]
The majority of records of individuals were those created by the agencies. Some records may be available to tribal members through the tribal headquarters.They were (and are) the local office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and were charged with maintaining records of the activities of those under their responsibility. Among these records are:
- Allotment records
- Annuity rolls
- Census records
- Correspondence
- Health records
- Reports
- School census and records
- Vital records
See Also:[edit | edit source]
- Kentucky-History for a calendar of events
- Kentucky-Military for a list of forts
- Melungeons a "tri-racial" group of Indian, and possibly Portuguese, and possibly African mix.
Family History Library[edit | edit source]
For additional sources on specific tribes, use the Subject Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under the name of the tribe. For example:
SHAWNEE
Other sources are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Hodge, Frederick Webb. Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico. Washington D.C.:Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #30 1907. Available online.
- ↑ Swanton John R. The Indian Tribes of North America. Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #145 Available online.
Bibliography[edit | edit source]
- "Accompanying Pamphlet for Microcopy 1011", National Archives Microfilm Publications, Appendix.
- American Indians: A Select Catalog of National Archives Microfilm Publications. Washington DC: National Archives Trust Fund Board, National Archives and Records Administration, 1998.
- Gilbert, William Harlen, Jr. Surviving Indian Groups in the Eastern United States. Pp. 407-438 of the Smithsonian Report for 1948. Available online.
- Hill, Edward E. (comp.). Guide to Records in the National Archives of the United States Relating to American Indians. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1981.
- Hill, Edward E. The Office of Indian Affairs, 1824-1880: Historical Sketches. New York, New York: Clearwater Publishing Company, Inc., 1974.
- Historical Sketches for Jurisdictional and Subject Headings Used for the Letters Received by the Office of Indian Affairs, 1824-1880. National Archives Microcopy T1105.
- Hodge, Frederick Webb. Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico. Washington D.C.:Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #30 1907. Available online.
- Isaacs. Katherine M., editor. Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America. U.S. Data Sourcebook, Volume 11 Appendices, Bureau of Indian Affairs List of American Indian Reservations, Appendix E, Indian Reservations. Omnigraphics, Inc., 1991.
- National Atlas of the United States of America -- Federal Lands and Indian Reservations Available online.
- Preliminary Inventory No. 163: Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Services. Available online
- Swanton John R. The Indian Tribes of North America. Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #145 Available online.
