1860 Slave Schedule Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory
The 1860 Arkansas Slave Schedules for the Chickasaw Nation are interesting in many ways. Granted the names of those enslaved do not appear but upon closer examination there is vital information that can be glean from these documents.
In the Chickasaw Nation there were only four districts or counties in which a census enumeration appears, they are:
- Panola West there appears to be 320 enslaved people in 1860; 150 are male and 170 are female.
- Pickens West there appears to be 240 enslaved people in 1860; 121 are male and 119 are female.
- Pontotoc there appears to be 117 enslaved people in 1860; 58 male and 59 female.
- Tishomingo County there appears to be 240 enslaved people in 1860; 119 males and 121 females.
These figures illustrate that in 1860 there were approximately 917 enslaved people of African or African Native descent living among the Chickasaws.
There is another aspect of the 1860 slave schedule that should also be pointed out, especially for those whose ancestors have claimed Chickasaw ancestry. When you take a closer look at the enslaved people on the census you find many who were enumerated as mulatto. It is significant when you consider that during the Dawes enrollment period many people classified as freedmen sought to be transferred to the "by blood" roll.
- In Panola County of the 320 people enslaved approximately 105 were classified as mulatto, almost half the enslaved population!
- In Pickens County of the 240 people enslaved approximately 35 were classified as mulatto, approximately 7% of the enslaved population.
- In Pontotoc County of the 117 people enslaved approximately 27 were classified as mulatto, approximately 4% of the enslaved population.
- In Tishomingo County of the 240 people enslaved approximately 49 were classified as mulatto, approximately 5% of the enslaved population were classified as mulatto.
These numbers demonstrate that of the enslaved population in the Chickasaw Nation in 1860, two hundred and sixteen individuals were noted to be of "mixed race." They represented almost 25% of the enslaved population and during the Dawes enrollment those who survived and their descendants would become part of the class of individuals who sought to be enrolled as "Chickasaws by Blood."
When the allotment process began circa 1896-1898, the numbers represented by the Chickasaw freedmen had increased to more than four thousand individuals. The proportion of individuals seeking a transfer from the Freedmen roll to the citizen by blood roll had similar proportions of the population.