Are Blacks Now Suing Cherokees Over Slavery? Yes,...

So the Cherokee had slaves?

Thousands, actually. And it wasn’t just the Cherokee. Many members the Five Civilized Tribes—Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaws, Creeks and Seminoles—all of them had slaves, though the Cherokee were the primary holders. By 1860, the tribe had 4,600 enslaved blacks under their dominion, owned mainly by a minority of elite members. Beginning in the late 18th century, white leaders encouraged the tribe to adopt the practice in order to facilitate large-scale agricultural production and their assimilation into the white way of life.