Five Civilized Tribes

Five Civilized Tribes, alliance of 5 Native American tribes—the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Chocktaw, Creek, and Seminole—forced to leave their lands east of the Mississippi and resettle in the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) under the Removal Act of 1830. There the tribes established their own government, schools, and flourishing agricultural communities. Each tribe was organized as a “nation,” with a constitution and laws based on those of the U.S. government. The tribes lost their independence after 1893, when the government once again confiscated their lands.