Seminole Nation Museum
Seminole Nation Museum
Learn about one of the most historically significant communities in Oklahoma at the Seminole Nation Museum. Located in Wewoka, this museum documents and interprets the history and culture of the Seminole Nation. Artifacts, historic photographs and interpretive exhibits chronicle the captivating events and stories that shaped the Seminole people.
The Seminole Nation has a complex history. After the United States achieved independence, Florida settlers put increasing pressure on Seminoles to migrate west, despite their long-established history in the region. Conflict escalated as Southern slave-owners discovered Seminole tribes were providing safe havens for escaped slaves. Seminole understood of the profound plight of the African slaves, as European settlers had previously enslaved some tribe members. Confrontation turned into the Seminole Wars, resulting in the near total removal of the Seminole and Black Seminole populations from Florida to Indian Territory, later known as Oklahoma.
In 1856, the Federal government established a Seminole Nation in Oklahoma. This independent nation consisted of the land between the South and North Canadian River. However, after the Civil War and Curtis Act of 1898 that severely, and often fraudulently, limited Seminole land holdings, a new Seminole Nation was established in Wewoka. The Seminole quickly ratified a constitution and continued to observe their long-held cultural traditions while planning for the future.
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