Chipco | |
---|---|
Native name | Echo Emathla (Deer Leader) |
Born | c. 1805 Near Tallapoosa River, Alabama, United States |
Died | October 16, 1881 (aged 75-76) Lake Pierce, Florida, United States |
Allegiance | Seminole |
Years of service | 1835–1858 |
Battles / wars |
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Chipco, also known as Echo Emathla, (1805-1881) was a 19th-century Seminole Indian chief and warrior. He was one of the most prominent Seminole chiefs during the Seminole Wars, and by the end of the conflict he was the main leader of the Muscogee-speaking band of Seminoles in Florida.[1] At a young age, Chipco and his family of Red Sticks fled as refugees to Florida because of the War of 1812, where they joined the Seminole tribe.[2] As Chipco grew older he became a chief and eventually fought against the United States and its policy of Indian Removal. Chipco was one of the Seminole leaders at the Dade Battle, where Seminole warriors successfully ambushed a column of the U.S. Army and killed over 100 U.S. troops.[1] This battle started the Second Seminole War, which Chipco would fight in through its entire duration. By the end of the Seminole Wars, Chipco and his band had successfully resisted the United States and were part of the group of Seminoles who remained in Florida, and they were the only Seminole band who continued living in Central Florida.[3]