Major Participants in the Creek War

portrait of man with grey hair from stomach up wearing a cloak type jacket with red collar/lining and blacvk shirt covering neck, white collar showing just above the neck line
Andrew Jackson

portrait by Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl

Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) - known to his Creek enemies as “Mad Dog Jackson” or “Old Mad Jackson.” After the Fort Mims attack, he railed against the “horrid butcheries” committed there, and called for a “spirit of revenge.” Jackson’s desire for revenge never softened. He drove himself and his volunteers hard, and exacted enormous punishment from the Creeks (friend and foe) when he finally won the war. Jackson’s reputation as a war hero began with the Battle of Horseshoe Bend and continued to grow. With the successful completion of the Creek War, Jackson was promoted to Major General in the United States Army for the duration of the War of 1812. He soundly defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans. The American victory in the War of 1812 dashed any lingering British hopes of dominating the continent, and accelerated the westward movement of the American frontier.

 
portrait of man from stomach up wearing black jacket, white vest and shirt, partially bald
Painting of Sam Houston by Thomas Flintoff (ca. 1851) (Museum of Fine Arts, Houston)

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Mr. and Mrs. R. E. Zimmerman

Sam Houston (1793-1863) - Wounded at horseshoe bend, Sam Houston went on to become governor of Tennessee, and later the general who defended Texas against Santa Anna’s Mexican forces in 1836. He eventually became president of the Lone Star Republic (Texas).
 
engraving of man in native american garb with right hand outstretched looking to shake hands
Chief Red Eagle (William Weatherford)
Artist J.R. Chapin, Engraver W. Ridgway (cropped)

Library of Congress

William Weatherford (1780-1824) - also known as Red Eagle. Son of a Scottish trader and a Creek woman. Participated in the attack on Fort Mims and was the leader of the Red Sticks at the Holy Ground.
 
painting of man in formal attire sitting at desk with right hand on deskresting on top of a paper document
John Ross
painting by Charles Bird King

Library of Congress

John Ross (1790-1866) - Also known as Koo-wi-s-gu-wi, he was a Cherokee leader who fought at Horseshoe Bend as an adjutant to Colonel Morgan. Years later, he led the Cherokee in protesting Jackson’s Indian policy.
 
sketch of man in military jacket, medallion around neck, hat with feather, seen from chest up looking to left
Tecumseh
pencil sketch (ca. 1858 - 1863)

Benson John Lossing

Tecumseh (1768-1813) - In 1811, the Shawnee chief, Tecumseh, electrified Creek country by urging Creeks to join his Great Confederacy, reject white ways, and forcibly take their lands back.
 
painting of man, stomach up, wearing black jacket and gold vest, white collared shirt, and facing left
David "Davy" Crockett
painting by Chester Harding (1834)

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution

Davy Crockett (1786-1836). Though not at Horseshoe Bend, Davy Crockett was a scout for Jackson during the Creek War. Perhaps best known for his heroic stand (and death) at the Alamo in 1836, he became a symbol of the American frontier spirit during the Jacksonian era.
 
Peter McQueen - (c. 1780-1820) - Son of a Scottish trader and a Creek woman. McQueen lead a group of Tallassees in the Red Stick faction of the Upper Creeks. Was present at Burnt Corn Creek and Fort Mims. After the Red Sticks were defeated at Horseshoe Bend, McQueen along with other Red Stick warriors retreated into Florida and continued to fight during the First Seminole War.
 
painting of white man in formal attire with Native American people around him; woman sitting breastfeeding child, two men conversing, one with basket of corn, and two others conversing with white man; houses in the background
Benjamin Hawkins with The Creek Indians
Artist unknown (1805)

Greenville County Museum of Art

Benjamin Hawkins (1754-1816) - Agent for Indian Affairs in the South: George Washington referred to him as "that ingenious gentleman;" among the Indian tribes of the south he was known as the "Beloved Man of the Four Nations." A sincere man of broad intellect and high ideals, Benjamin Hawkins of North Carolina held the respect of Presidents and Indian chiefs alike. President George Washington appointed Benjamin Hawkins to the post of Indian Agent in 1796. Through a program designed to introduce the "civilizing" influences of agriculture and animal husbandry to Creek culture, Hawkins hoped to alleviate increasing social pressures among the Creeks and engender harmonious coexistence with the whites. The "civilizing" policy of the United States government and Hawkins personal influence on the Creek National Council unfortunately served to aggravate tensions which eventually led to civil war among the Creeks in the summer of 1813. During the Creek War of 1813-1814, Hawkins organized the friendly Creeks under Major William McIntosh to aid the Georgia and Tennessee militias during their forays against the Red Sticks. After the Red Stick defeat at Horseshoe Bend, activities in Georgia and Tennessee prevented Hawkins from moderating the Treaty of Fort Jackson in August 1814. Hawkins later organized friendly Creeks against a British force on the Apalachicola River that threatened to rally the scattered Red Sticks and reignite the war on the Georgia frontier. After the British withdrew in 1815 Hawkins began organizing a force to secure the area when he died from a sudden illness in June 1816.
 
portrait of Native American with red and white striped coat, satchel, green hat with feather, and face markings that appear to be tattoos on cheeks
Menawa
portrait (ca. 1837)

by Charles Bird King

Menawa - (1765- ca. 1843). Son of a white trader and a Creek woman. Known in his youth as Hothlepoya or "Crazy War Hunter" for his prowess as a warrior along the Tennessee and Georgia frontiers. Supported the Red Stick cause during the Creek civil war and led Red Stick warriors at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. Although seriously wounded, Menawa survived the battle and subsequently served in the First Seminole War as an ally of the United States. He is believed to have died after Creek removal to the western territories about 1843.

Last updated: June 2, 2017

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