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Seneca News Dispatch
Seneca, MO
Former Seneca resident authors book shedding new light on Cherokee history
by Wes James
Wednesday, February 22, 2006 4:44 PM CST
Paul Thomas Vickers was a resident of Seneca, Missouri for two years during a
ten year odyssey that culminated in the publishing of a 424 page, authoritative
and comprehensive history of the Cherokee Nation from 1730 to 1839.
Vickers, originally a California native, began researching his own Cherokee
history, but there were gaps and unanswered questions in the historical accounts
available. To fill in those gaps and answer those questions, Vickers, a
carpenter by trade, moved to Oklahoma to continue his research.
“I was on the road for eight years doing my research,” Vickers said. “I started
in Oklahoma, actually at Tulsa University, studying in the legal library and
also in the old archives they have.”
Vickers moved several times during the eight years to pursue his research. And
then, while at the state library in North Carolina, he hit the jackpot!
While in the state library in North Carolina he happened on some old colonial
records. Amongst them he discovered a batch of letters written to correspondents
by the Cherokee chiefs, the old colonial governors and territorial leaders.
“I basically discovered these colonial records by chance. I was upstairs,
walking around and I just happened to find them,” Vickers explained. “I spent
about four months going through them and you wouldn’t believe the stuff I found.
It’s just unbelievable.”
Vickers continued, “I even found letters from the governors of Virginia and
North Carolina on their boats after they were compelled to go into exile because
of the rebels that took over. I discovered this whole segment of history.”
Vickers also uncovered valuable information concerning 200 years of history that
had essentially been hidden in the records of the Cherokee Indian Agency.
Vickers left no stone unturned, searching the Colonial Records, National
Archives Records, Office of Indian Affairs, Records of the Cherokee Indian
Agency, The American State Papers of Indian Affairs, Public land records, the
minutes of the 1st through 17th United States Congress.
Setting history straight
During his exhaustive research Vickers found numerous documents that
contradicted other published accounts of early Cherokee history. He also found
that, in the light of his work, questions that had been left unanswered were no
longer mysteries.
Vickers set about to rectify the mistakes of previous Cherokee historians and to
shed light on an important part of the Cherokee heritage. In January of this
year, Vickers published his findings in a book entitled, Chiefs of Nations First
Edition: The Cherokee Nation 1730 to 1839, 109 years of dialogue and treaties.
The book contains over 450 maps, complete and unedited treaties, documents,
letters and official records.
Vickers has also written critical reviews pointing out inaccuracies in books
that have, in the past, been widely accepted as factual and authoritative.
And unlike other books which relate only the details of historic events which
took place during the period, Vickers cites documentation which reveals the
reasons why the events took place.
About the book
In a brief review of the book, Vickers says that the five chapters it contains
explore the location, tribal structure and National Council of the Cherokees in
the early 1700s; documents the involvement of the Cherokees in the French and
Indian and Revolutionary wars; reveals treacherous and unspeakable actions of
leaders in North Carolina and even raids against Cherokee towns and the killing
of unsuspecting, innocent Cherokees; reveals the true intent of the United
States to subjugate the unsuspecting Cherokee Nation to confiscate their lands
and it explodes false accounts of Cherokee brutality and lawlessness; and in the
final chapter it cites previously unreleased historical accounts disclosing
here-to-fore unknown facts about the Cherokee Nations separation from the
National Council and reveals that Seqouyah and his council members of the
Arkansas Cherokee actually refused the terms of the Treaty of 1828 in which they
allegedly agreed to cede land in Arkansas in exchange for land in Oklahoma.
Vickers believes that Chiefs of Nations First Edition is a book that any
Cherokee interested in knowing the truth about their historical roots will want
to own. But it is not just for Cherokees, it’s for anyone interested in
understanding more about American history. The official documents and records it
contains give special insight into the beginnings of our nation.
To learn more about Chiefs of Nations First Edition and read excerpts from the
book, or to order a copy, go online to www.arkansascherokees.com. The book may
also be ordered by calling 1-800-AUTHORS. |
