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7. Muskogee Nation - September 14, 1901
September 14, 1901
Honorable P. Porter,
Principal Chief, Muskogee Nation
I submit this as my annual report of the conditions of the Creek Schools during my term of office as Superintendent of Public Instruction for the Muskogee Nation.
Financial reports of the expenditures of school expenses have been rendered to your office quarterly during the year; you have them.
The condition of the schools during my incumbency of office has been fairly well with the exception of the prevalence of small pox which has been severe at Coweta, Wealaka, and Euchee National Boarding Schools . Also at a number of the Creek neighborhood schools. Pneumonia and malarial fever have been prevalent at the Eufaula High School , seemingly on account of the bad water supply and also to the limited spaces of the bed rooms of the pupils causing a too crowded condition in those sleeping apartments, antagonistic to the good health of the school. The same condition exists at the Euchee National Boarding School , although the Euchee school has been more exempt from the fevers mentioned. The Creek Orphan Home with the comfortable and commodious design of the building, under the charge of the most excellent fatherly superintendent of that institution, an institution budding from the deepest fountains of the hearts of every Muskogee Indian, an institution baptized with the tears and dying prayers of loving parents of youths of misfortune, an institution not of charity, but that of the inheritance of the Muskogee Indian children residing there; demands every comfort we would extend to our own children at home. Shady groves should surround the building where the wild birds would blend heaven endowed songs of comfort to them that have sorrowed. Tributes of flowery beauty should adorn the paths that would lead them onward to happier days than the bitter hours they have passed through. It should be a home in every sense of the term from the cold drink of pure water to the pillow where pleasant dreams should linger with them during their darkest hours. Many minor necessities of this home require attention to be perfect. The available water supply is unreliable being cisterns which fail during dry season. I am informed that the well water possibilities are not good. The land is fertile and capable of producing excellent agricultural supplies for the home. There is no timber or shade trees on the grounds of this orphan home. The usual appropriations are too limited, too inadequate to do this in one season.
Industrial training of the pupils may largely accomplish these necessary results if the prairie sod was broken and fenced for them. This proposition will apply to all the other national boarding schools more or less. Broad acres then would yield much to the support of these schools that is being purchased with cash out of the school funds. Fruit, vegetables and other luxuries may even be produced over and beyond the needs of the schools which could be sold and the proceeds placed to the credit of the school producing same. I would recommend that consideration be made to this end by the Creek Council. I would further recommend that a kit of blacksmith's tools and one of carpenter's tools with necessary agricultural implements be allowed each one of the nation boarding schools and one text book on the use of the mechanic's tools be furnished with each kit of tools, and an act of Council direction the instruction of the school boys in the use of these tools be enacted. This would result in the saving of much expenditure for the cruder portions of such work and would better advance the pupils of these schools to better meet the world after attaining majority than they would without such industrial training. I would further recommend that a system of teaching the Indian children the English language by direct tuition be adopted for the classes of the Creek schools. The intense patriotism of the Euchees of this Nation causes them to still cling to the language of their fore-fathers, their language seems to them to be a part of their very lives. Unfortunately there has never been an English and Euchee pronouncing dictionary constructed. The lesson in their case would have to be oral. A majority of the Euchees do not speak the Muskogee language. The Alabamas , Natchez , Quasadas, and Hitchitas, tribes originally of different languages from the Muskogee , now all speak the Muskogee language fluently, and are really more of an English speaking people than the Muskogees and the Euchees are. Rev. R. M. Loughridge who was long a missionary among the Creeks and is yet remembered by the oldest of the present generation of Creeks, compiled an excellent dictionary, pronouncing in the English and Muskogee Languages. That work reveals the fact of the immense volume of the variations of the verb in the Muskogee language. Vastly more than any known language found. Its descriptive powers renders it an open and overflowing revelation of mind thought on the tip of the Muskogee Indian tongue. It is the reason why the Muskogees are so persistent in speaking their own native language. There are a few volumes of Mr. Loughridge's dictionaries in existence yet, but I believe them to be out of print. In such case it may be necessary under such conditions to teach such lessons orally unless a volume of Mr. Loughridge's dictionary can be furnished to each Creek Indian School .
I am indebted to Mr. Charles Gibson for many valuable suggestions in the direction of teaching Indian children the English language. He shows to the public by his recent sarticles in the public press his observations of the Indian student being taught words by sound without comprehending the meaning of the word rendering it a burden without any realized benefit. In that language alone will our opportunities depend. It is most important that a special study of the language be devised for the use of our schools. It has been deemed advisable by the United States Supervisor of Schools for the Creek people that the advanced students of the Indian schools be assigned to higher grade classes at the Eufaula High School and primary grades to the other national Creek schools for Indians. I have concurred with such advice for I am impressed that such was the intention at the original institution of the Eufaula High School and would prove an advantage of more rapid progress to the advanced students of our schools.
Some repairing has been done on buildings of the National Boarding Schools during vacation months on roofs that were leaky and flues, furnaces, and other apparatus that endangered the buildings to fire and for protection from the weather. This work has been done at Tullahassee and Pecan Creek National Boarding Schools by the superintendents who had saved a large surplus of the appropriations by last Council for said schools. I would recommend that Council by act make such surplus appropriations available or that portion of them that may be needed for such special repairs mentioned above. Repairs are badly needed at Eufaula High School , the southwest porch being now a veritable death trap and all the other three porches are dangerous to the occupants. Much repairing is needed on doors and windows to make the building comfortable during cold weather. The surplus of the appropriations were too small to attempt any repairs and the superintendency of the school having been a matter of contention for some time. Nothing had been done towards the repairs needed. The boys dormitory buildings at the Colored Orphan Home was burned last spring and no appropriation being in sight to have the dormitory rebuilt by the new regulations and modifications as per treaty by the Secretary of the Interior received at Mr. J. D. Benedict's office September 3, 1901; Architects will have to be sent to estimate specifications, plans, and costs before the contracts for repairing and building can be let. Therefore I would recommend that a proper amount should be appropriated by act of the Council to defray the expenses of architect's fees as above mentioned, including repairs on the Nuyaka National Boarding School, as Mr. Robe the superintendent there states repairs are needed there too as the building will have to be repaired or the school suspended on account of the condition of the buildings there. If an arrangement could be made to have a sufficient amount appropriated to do the repairing and building after the architect's estimates were made, such work could be proceeded with, without delay. The lives of the occupants of some of these school buildings are at dangerous risk until the buildings are rendered secure requires prompt action.
The barn at the Orphan Home was burned last summer. Mr. J. E. Tiger had over $900.00 saved out of the appropriation last year. He obtained permission of the School Board to rebuild the barn right away as the Orphan Home stock and hay required a barn badly. Therefore I would recommend that Council by act allow the settlement of the repairs done on Tullahassee National Boarding School and the rebuilding of the barn at the Creek Orphan Home which has been done before the Secretary of the Interior forwards his rules and regulations as per treaty. I further recommend that Council by act make available by appropriation necessary for architect's fees on specifications, plans and estimates, and for repairs on the Nuyaka National Boarding School building and for rebuilding the boy's dormitory building that was burned last spring at the Colored Orphan Home. The repairs above mentioned at Tullahassee, Pecan Creek and Orphan Home national boarding schools will cost less than the surplus the superintendents have saved over and bills, if approved will be due settlement at the end of the first scholastic quarter, Nov. 16th next, the bills to be presented by the superintendents with their reports of school expenditures at that date. Inspection of the work is to be made prior to the settlement of the accounts by the Supervision and the office before settlement and pay is allowed. If necessary an architect will be employed to assist in the inspection.
You are aware that our school system as now instituted is yet new, being but a few years ago when the present extensive up-building of the extraordinary fine system of schools were build with the newly acquired school fund by the Oklahoma sale a few years ago. Before that time the school fund of the Nation was insufficient to accomplish much with. Those that received advanced education in those small schools are now mostly in other employment. Therefore we have very few of our educated people in the school work; a host of new students of this new system preparing to teach and aid in the schools of their fellow men.
Arguments have been used against the Creek people that their vast school system has failed to develop graduated students not accounting for the short period of the existence of these schools. This accusation amounts to a very galic belch from professors who are most profoundly interested in saying that very thing without noting records. I must say that I am highly encouraged with the prospective good results of the great interest the Creek people are taking in their schools. The pupils of Indian blood excel in penmanship, spelling, and reading. They are apt and quick mathematicians, they are fond of history and geography. They have superlative strong nerve and steady hand for the finer arts. They have strong passions and supreme resisting wills that they are not easily discouraged with their tasks.
Full classes of the primary rudiments of music should receive more attention than is being done. As I said before, the English language should be specially taught to all Indian pupils who do not understand that language or speak it imperfectly. Industrial training in the trades should be taught the boys. Housekeeping and cooking might prove a merry romp each day for the future housekeepers among the Creek people if the school girls could only be given a chance to show the folks what they could do in that time.
I would recommend that the superintendents of each of the national boarding schools be authorized by act of the National Council to take measures to take allotments of forty acres each for their respective schools as provided by the recent treaty. These school superintendents each being the business head of their respective schools, they alone have the information of evidence required at the land office as to the occupation of the lands describing the bounds and location and the previous holding of their own personal knowledge during the term of their service and transfers from preceding superintendents. These questions will have to be answered of their own personal knowledge and not by hearsay evidence renders these superintendents the only competent qualified officers to comply with the rules of filing for the national schools as such school lands. A sufficient fund should be appropriated by act of the National Council to aid in defending these school allotments from persons who have or may presume to file on or contest these filings as in the case at the Eufaula High School where filings have been made on the school farm and show inclination to contest the allotment on the cultivated land of the school farm. The certificates of these school lands, deeds, and etc., should be help by the superintendents of these schools for each school.
Upon my entrance to this office I found that a good supply of school books had been secured for the schools with the exception of a few editions which were short. On the 6th instant an order was on Mr. J. B. Bleser of Wichita , Kansas for:
250 Baldwin 's Primers
100 Baldwin 's First Readers
300 Baldwin 's Second Readers
100 Baldwin 's Third Readers
200 Milne's Elementary Arithmetics
150 Redway & Hinman Natural Elementary Geography
250 Small Slates
250 Medium Slates
2500 Slate Pencils
10 Gross Steel pens for copy book use
500 Lead Pencils
50 Black Board Erasers
Up to this writing, nothing has been heard from them yet.
Find appended as Exhibit copies of the statistics of the Creek schools furnished this Office by Miss Alice Robertson, Supervisor of Schools in the Creek Nation.
Near all the teachers' reports have been made to that Office. The original records are deposited in Miss Robertson's charge and through her kindness, I obtained of that office the appended statistic sheets.
The costs of the National Board Schools are more correctly $50,470.40, the appropriations are $57,500.00. The expenditures for the neighborhood schools are $12,366.92. The Nuyaka Boarding School contract $5,600.00. I would recommend that $9,000 each be appropriated for Eufaula High School , Wetumka National Boarding School and Tullahassee Colored Boarding School . That $7,200 be appropriated for the Euchee Naitonal Boarding School . That $6,666.66 be appropriated for the Creek Orphan Home. I would recommend that the sum of $5,600.00 be appropriated on the contract for the Nuyaka Boarding School . I would recommend the sums of $4,500 for the Wealaka, Coweta, and Pecan Creek (Colored) National Boarding Schools each. I would recommend that the sum of $3,333.33 be appropriated for the Colored Orphan Home and $12,500 for neighborhood schools of the Creek Nation.
I respectfully ask that you submit the several recommendations herein stated to the National Council of the Muskogee Nation for the above specified considerations and appropriations.
Respectfully
Your Humble Servant,
James R. Gregory
Superintendent of Public Instruction for the Muskogee Nation
(Document # 38800, J. R. Gregory file, Creek Indian Files, Indian Archives of the Oklahoma Historical Society Library, Oklahoma City . Transcribed by Barbara Cox.)
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