Choctaw People - Influential Leaders

Influential Leaders

• Tuscaloosa (?-d. October 1540) retaliated against Hernando de Soto at the Battle of Mabilia. The battle was the first major conflict in North America between Native Americans and Europeans.
• Franchimastabe (d. 19th c.) was a transitional benefactor and a contemporary of Taboca. To some Americans he was the "leading chief of the Choctaws." He led a war party with British forces against American rebels.
• Taboca (d. 19th c.) was a traditional "prophet-chief" who led a delegation starting in October 1785 to Hopewell, South Carolina.
• Apuckshunubbee (ca. 1740–1824) was chief of the Okla Falaya (Tall People) district in old Choctaw nation. He died in Kentucky on his way to Washington D.C. to conduct negotiations.
• Pushmataha (Apushmataha) (1760s–December 24, 1824) was a chief in old Choctaw nation. He negotiated treaties with the United States and fought on the American's side in the War of 1812. He died in Washington D.C. and is buried in the Congressional Cemetery in Washington D.C.
• Mosholatubbee (1770–1836) was a chief in the Choctaw nation before the removal and after. He went to Washington D.C. to negotiate for the tribe in 1824 and was the only major leader to return. In the summer of 1830, he ran for a seat in the Congress of the United States to represent the state of Mississippi.
• Greenwood LeFlore (June 3, 1800–August 31, 1865) was a District Chief of the Choctaws in Mississippi. He was an influential state representative and senator in Mississippi.
• George W. Harkins (1810–1890) was a district Choctaw chief in Indian Territory (1850–1857) prior to the Civil War and author of the "Farewell Letter to the American People".
• Peter Pitchlynn (January 30, 1806–January 17, 1881) was a highly influential leader during the removal era and long after. He represented the Choctaws in Washington D.C. for some years and is buried in the Congressional Cemetery. Charles Dickens described him "as stately and complete a gentleman of nature's making as ever I beheld."
• Phillip Martin (March 13, 1926–February 4, 2010) was the Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians from 1979–2007 and worked in tribal government for over fifty years. He encouraged outside investment and reduced unemployment to nearly 0% on the reservation.