The Original Thomas Atkins & the Question of Slavery in Indian Territory by Russell Cobb
"Thomas Atkins was a pretty wild sort of fellow”
—Principal Chief Pleasant Porter
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Thomas Atkins belonged to Coweta Town, an ancient tribal town that was relocated to Indian Territory when he was a young child. The Muscogee Nation rebuilt its society in the 1840s and 1850s in Indian Territory, which included rekindling of the the ceremonial fires of their towns. While there are no known photos of Thomas Atkins, we know he was a large and imposing man. The citizens of Coweta Town elected him as the Captain of the Lighthorse Police, an agency called upon to not only enforce the laws of the Nation but also to keep out white outlaws— mainly whiskey bootleggers and Christian preachers.
Another part of Atkins’ job: rounding up runaway slaves.
Thomas Atkins was married to Millie Marshall, the daughter of one of the richest men in Indian Territory, “Chief” Benjamin Marshall. Marshall, whose status as Principal Chief was hotly contested by abolitionists in the Nation, was one of the largest slave owners in the entire Indian Territory. Creeks opposed to the Confederacy recognized Opotholeyahola as Principal Chief.
Shortly before the Civil War, Marshall owned 109 slaves, and he constantly complained that he could not keep them on his plantation. The outbreak of the Civil War led the entire Marshall family to flee southward to Texas. Thomas Atkins enlisted with the first Creek Mounted Regiment of the Confederate States of America and served as a lieutenant.
The Slave Schedule for Benjamin Marshall in 1860.
Let’s look at this document carefully. One of the categories is “fugitive from the state.” There are 8 people listed on this first page alone. The schedule continues, with more fugitives reported. Another interesting category here is “Color.” Most are listed as B for “black” but there are others who are M, for “mulatto.” Those of mixed race were the fugitives. Why? In slavery lore, better treatment was reserved for those of lighter skin color.
Benjamin Marshall's wealth was the stuff of legend. No bank in the South would ensure his deposits, but the money flowing from his cotton fields was turned into gold bars which he buried in coffee pots along the Texas Road (what is today Highway 75). The previously wealthy Marshall family fell apart during and after the War. Benjamin Marshall and two of his daughters died before the end of the war in Stonewall, Oklahoma– today part of the Chickasaw Nation.
How did Marshall become so rich? His son, Richard Adkins (the alternative spelling of Atkins is intentional and will be discussed later) said that he had his own fortune as well as the Treasury of the Creek Nation.
Excerpt from an oral history of Richard Adkins from the Indian Pioneer Papers done by WPA workers during the Great Depression. Marshall, as the leader of the Confederate faction of the Creek Nation, takes his fortune southward, along with as many slaves as he can manage. Many run away despite the threat of death. Considering that his son-in-law, Thomas, is a Confederate officer and a Lighthorse officer, it’s reasonable to assume Thomas is on the trail with them, trying to keep them on the task of hiding Marshall’s loot.
Many did run away—all the way to Kansas, where they signed up to fight for the Union.
After the war, a mixed-race man named Richard Atkins surfaces in Missouri. He is a young man, and formerly enslaved. His mother tells him that his father was none other than the Indian Thomas Atkins, Captain of the Lighthorse for Coweta Town. This Richard—he goes by Dick Atkins—lights out for Indian Territory sometime in the 1870s, hoping to establish his citizenship in the Creek Nation.
Who does Dick Atkins meet? Thomas’s son, Richard Adkins, who has grown up as a cow boss in the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations. Their father—old Thomas Atkins—is now dead. Two Richard Atkinses—both of mixed descent. One part white, and related to Chief Benjamin Marshall. The other part Black, with a mother who was enslaved by the same Chief.
These two Richards are half-brothers, but the part-white one disavows his namesake sibling. From this point on, he will spell his name Adkins. And he’ll insist on that spelling to the Dawes Commission, the official Federal record keepers of who is, and who is not, an Indian.
A-D-K-I-N-S. This will differentiate him from Richard Atkins, the former slave and son to Thomas Atkins. Richard Atkins persisted in trying to enroll in the Creek Nation. He would be thwarted and pushed aside many times, but he would not go away.
Stay tuned for episode 4...
All Crooks at Tulsa: An Investigation, is a reader-supported project. To receive early access to new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber to the "All Crooks at Tulsa" Substack page here.
Click here to pre-order the forthcoming book "Ghosts of Crook County" from Beacon Press now, or find it in bookstores on October 8th, 2024.
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