Tomochichi
[citation needed] As the principal mediator between the native population and the new British settlers during the first years of settlement, he contributed much to the establishment of peaceful relations between the two groups and to the ultimate success of Georgia.
In about 1730 Tomochichi created his own tribe of Yamacraw from an assortment of Creek and Yamasee Indians after the two nations disagreed over future relations with the British and the Spanish.
His group, approximately two hundred people, settled on the bluffs of the Savannah River because the location was the resting place of his ancestors and had close proximity to British traders.
When General James Oglethorpe and his fellow settlers reached the region in February 1733, they realized the need to negotiate fairly with the neighboring Indian tribes or risk the success of their enterprise.
Mary Musgrove, daughter of a Creek mother and an English father, and her husband, John, served as interpreters for the general and the chief.
The aging warrior had several different options available, but he decided to receive the new arrivals and to give them permission to establish Savannah in order to take advantage of trading and diplomatic connections.
James Oglethorpe wrote the following account in a letter dated June 9, 1737:"There seems a Door opened to our Colony towards the Conversion of the Indians.
The Passion of Revenge, which they call Honour, and Drunkenness, which they learnt from our Traders, seem to be the two greatest Obstacles to their being truly Christians: But upon both these Points they hear Reason; and with respect to drinking of Rum, I have weaned those near me a good deal from it.
And, indeed, they seem to me, both in Action and Expression, to be thorough Masters of true Eloquence; and, making Allowances for badness of Interpreters, many of their Speeches are equal to those which we admire most in the Greeks and Roman Writings.
For Example, Tomo-chi-chi, in his first set Speech to me, among other Things said, Here is a little Present; and then gave me a Buffalo's Skin, painted on the Inside with the Head and Feathers of an Eagle.
One year after Oglethorpe's arrival, the Indian chief accompanied him back to England along with a small delegation of family and Lower Creek tribesmen.
[7] He politely followed English mannerisms in his public appearances while pushing for recognition and realization of the demands of his people for education and fair trade.
[citation needed] After Oglethorpe returned to Georgia in February 1736, the chief received John Wesley, minister of Savannah, his brother Charles, and their friend Benjamin Ingham.
[8] During the summer of 1739 Oglethorpe made an unprecedented journey to Coweta, deep in Indian Territory, to bolster his connections to the Lower Creeks, which resulted in a mutually favorable treaty.
[9] His contributions to the colony of Georgia were celebrated with a British military funeral, and the grave site was commemorated with a marker of "a Pyramid of Stone" collected from the vicinity.
