Halleck Tustenuggee (also spelled
Halek Tustenuggee and
Hallock Tustenuggee) (about 1807 –
?or is a letter derived from the Latin alphabet. Both glyphs of the majuscule and minuscule forms of this letter are based on the rotated form of a minuscule e; a similar letter with identical minuscule is used in the Pan-Nigerian Alphabet, but has the capital form majuscule , based on a...
) was a 19th century Seminole warchief. He fought against the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government in the
Second Seminole WarThe Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between various groups of Native Americans, collectively known as Seminoles, and the United States. The First Seminole War was from 1817 to 1818; the Second Seminole War from 1835 to 1842; and the Third Seminole War...
and for the government in the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
.
Tustenuggee, translated as "Warrior" or "Grand Chief of War," was a common surname for Seminole warchiefs. Halleck was born in central
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
in the
Miccosuke clan.
Halleck Tustenuggee (also spelled
Halek Tustenuggee and
Hallock Tustenuggee) (about 1807 –
?or is a letter derived from the Latin alphabet. Both glyphs of the majuscule and minuscule forms of this letter are based on the rotated form of a minuscule e; a similar letter with identical minuscule is used in the Pan-Nigerian Alphabet, but has the capital form majuscule , based on a...
) was a 19th century Seminole warchief. He fought against the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government in the
Second Seminole WarThe Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between various groups of Native Americans, collectively known as Seminoles, and the United States. The First Seminole War was from 1817 to 1818; the Second Seminole War from 1835 to 1842; and the Third Seminole War...
and for the government in the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
.
Tustenuggee, translated as "Warrior" or "Grand Chief of War," was a common surname for Seminole warchiefs. Halleck was born in central
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
in the
Miccosuke clan. He vehemently opposed the seizure of Indian lands by whites, and even killed his own sister by cutting her throat when she talked about surrender. He fought at the
Battle of Lake OkeechobeeThe Battle of Lake Okeechobee was one of the major battles of the Second Seminole War. It was fought between 800 troops of the 6th Infantry Regiment and 400 Seminoles led by Billy Bowlegs, Abiaca and Alligator on December 25, 1837...
on December 25, 1837, and took control of the Seminole force from their aged warchief
ArpeikaAr-pi-uck-i, also known as Sam Jones , generally believed to have been born 1760 in Georgia, died c. 1860 in Florida, was a powerful spiritual/alektca and war chief of the Miccosukee, Ar-pi-uck-i, also known as Sam Jones , generally believed to have been born 1760 in Georgia, died c. 1860 in...
(also known as "Sam Jones").
On April 22, 1839, Halleck and other Seminole leaders met with
Maj. Gen.Major General or Major-General is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of Sergeant Major General. A Major General is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of Lieutenant General and senior to the ranks of Brigadier and Brigadier General...
Alexander Macomb, the new military commander in Florida, and received written assurance that their people could indefinitely remain in Florida if they stayed near
Lake OkeechobeeLake Okeechobee locally referred to as The Lake or The Big O, is a freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the second-largest freshwater lake wholly within the continental United States and the largest in the southern United States...
. Both parties believed that the war was finally over, but attacks by other bands of Indians in south Florida continued and the
ceasefireA ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces.-World War I:On December 24, 1914,...
soon ended.
Halleck was severely wounded by U.S. troops at a skirmish at
Fort KingFort King was a United States military fort in north central Florida. It was named after Colonel William King, commander of Florida's Fourth Infantry and the first governor of the provisional West Florida region. The fort was built in 1827, and became the genesis of the city of Ocala...
(in present day
OcalaOcala is a city in Marion County, Florida, United States. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 53,491. It is the county seat of Marion County, and the principal city of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated 2007 population of...
) in April 1840 against Capt.
Gabriel J. RainsGabriel James Rains was a career United States Army officer and a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.-Early life:...
(a future Civil War
ConfederateThe Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865. It was established in two phases with provisional and permanent organizations, which existed concurrently....
General). After he recovered, Halleck Tustenuggee went on a bloody rampage in north Florida for two years, leading a series of raids and skirmishes. In January 1842, the army sent the Second Infantry Regiment in pursuit of Halleck's warband. They located the Seminoles' camp near
Lake GeorgeLake George or Lake Welaka is a broad and shallow lake on the St. Johns River in the U.S. state of Florida. It is six miles wide and eleven miles long, with an average depth of 8 feet . The west side of the lake is encompassed in the Ocala National Forest. Three major spring groups flow into...
, but the Indians escaped capture.
Halleck, with a band of seventy warriors, was finally defeated by Federal troops on April 19, 1842, near the settlement of
Peliklakaha Hammock (in today's
Lake County, FloridaLake County is a county located in the state of Florida, United States. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 210,528. The Census Bureau estimated the population in 2008 to be 307,243. Its county seat is Tavares, Florida...
), the last battle of the Second Seminole War in Florida. The chief traveled from fort to fort talking about a formal surrender, all the while collecting supplies and rations for his remaining people. Finally, Federal officer
William J. WorthWilliam Jenkins Worth was a United States general during the Mexican-American War.-Early life:Worth was born in 1794 in Hudson, New York, to Thomas Worth and Abigail Jenkins. Both of his parents were Quakers, but he rejected the pacifism of their faith...
, wise to the trick, lured Halleck's family to Fort King with a promise of food and whiskey at a celebration. Halleck soon arrived and was captured. He was held as a
prisoner of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a combatant who is held in continuing custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
with his people on
Cedar KeyCedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 790 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2005, the city had a population of 958. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of islands close to the mainland. Most of the developed area of the city has been on...
. On July 14, Halleck and 66 of his followers were
transported out of FloridaIndian Removal was a nineteenth century policy of the government of the United States to relocate Native American tribes living east of the Mississippi River to lands west of the river...
for the
WestThe American Old West comprises the history, geography, peoples, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the period of the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
. They arrived at
Fort GibsonFort Gibson is a town in Cherokee and Muskogee counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 4,054 at the 2000 census. It is the location of Fort Gibson National Cemetery and is located roughly at the end of the Cherokees' Trail of Tears at Tahlequah. It is the oldest town in...
in the
Indian TerritoryThe Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the use of Native Americans...
on September 5, 1842. Halleck briefly returned to Florida in 1850 to try to negotiate with Chief
Billy BowlegsthumbChief Billy Bowlegs or Billy Bolek was a leader of the Seminoles in Florida during the Second and Third Seminole Wars against the United States...
, who was still opposing resettlement.
During the Civil War, Halleck Tustenuggee supported the Federal government. When Confederate troops and pro-South Indian tribes moved against pro-Union Indians, Halleck joined the band of Creek leader
OpothleyaholaOpothleyahola, also spelled Opothle Yohola, Opothleyoholo, Hu-pui-hilth Yahola, and Hopoeitheyohola, was a Muscogee Creek Indian chief, noted as a brilliant orator and spokesperson of the Upper Creek Council...
. He led his Seminole warriors in three battles —
Round MountainThe Battle of Round Mountain No primary source documents report the engagement as having occurred at a place named "Round Mountains". The name originates from a single writer who noticed a curl at the end of Mountain on the report and changed 'mountain' to its plural...
,
Chusto-TalasahThe Battle of Chusto-Talasah was fought December 9, 1861, in what is now Osage County, Oklahoma during the American Civil War....
and
ChustenahlahThe Battle of Chustenahlah was fought in Osage County, Oklahoma, on December 26, 1861, during the American Civil War. A band of 9,000 pro-Union Native Americans was forced to flee to Kansas in bitter cold and snow in what became known as the Trail of Blood on the Ice.Confederate troops had...
, where they were defeated and forced to flee to
KansasKansas is a state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa tribe, who inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south wind," although this was...
in severe winter weather. Halleck and his survivors settled near Fort Row, where several died of exposure and disease.