The ancestry of Burleson’s CEO, Robert Burleson, is Choctaw Indian, a descendant of Chief Moshulatubbee from the Choctaw Nation. Today, there are three federally recognized Choctaw Indian tribes—each with its own government, and several state-recognized Choctaw tribes. The two largest tribes are the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians (the Choctaw Tribe) and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma (the Choctaw Nation). California has the second largest population of Choctaw Indians in the US with approximately 26,000 members. Many are descendents of Dust Bowl refugees from Oklahoma who sought jobs in urban areas and farming communities. California Choctaw are not a separate tribe. Most are descendants of the Oklahoma Choctaw Nation.

The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States—Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana. They were descendants of the Mississippian culture and Hopewellian people who lived throughout the east of the Mississippi River valley and its tributaries. In the 16th century, Spanish explorers encountered Choctaw ancestors, and the first contact with Europeans may have been with DeSoto around 1540. In the 18th century, most Choctaw supported the Thirteen Colonies’ bid for independence from the British during the American Revolution. In 1770, Moshulatubbee was born. He received his name as a young warrior and was dignified in bearing, of fine physique, and steady and thoughtful in disposition.

Treaty of Choctaw Trading House. On January 27, 1815, Moshulatubbee was mustered out of service at Fort Stoddard, Alabama. On October 24, 1816, he signed the Treaty of Choctaw Trading House between the US and the Choctaws, ceding 10,000 acres of Choctaw land east of the Tombigbee River for $6,000 a year for 20 years.

On April 19, 1819, the first school opened in the Choctaw Nation with ten children enrolled. Several schools followed, and Chief Moshulatubbee brought two of his sons and a nephew to one of the schools. They were delighted with the facility, and the Chief addressed the school children:

“When I was young, such a thing was not known here. I have heard of it but never expected to see it. You must be obedient to your teachers and learn all you can. I hope I shall live to see my council filled with the boys who are now in school and that you will know much more than we know and do much better than we do.”

In December 1824, Moshulatubbee was in Washington DC as a member of the Choctaw Delegation. There he met and became acquainted with Lafayette on Lafayette’s last visit to the United States to celebrate the nation’s 50th anniversary.

Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. Between 1801 and 1830, the Choctaw ceded more than 23 million acres to the US. In 1830, the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek marked the final secession of lands and outlined the terms of Choctaw removal to the west. Chief Moshulatubbee, a great orator, gave several speeches that remain in existence today, among them his speech before Congress when he signed the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. The signing of the treaty on September 27, 1830, was Moshulatubbee’s last act as chief of the Choctaws.

The Trail of Tears. In 1831, when the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek was ratified, thousands from six southern tribes were moved to Oklahoma, including approximately 13,000 of the 19,000 Choctaws. Thousands died from disease, famine, and attacks from white men and hostile Indians during this transition, which came to be known as the Trail of Tears. Before the departure, Moshulatubbee was included in the Indian census in Mississippi with a household of 10 persons and 53 slaves, and he had 30 cultivated acres on the Military Road. In the fall of 1832, Moshulatubbee led his people out of Mississippi in the Trail of Tears relocation of the Choctaws to parts of Arkansas and Oklahoma, where he appears on the Indian Rolls with a household of only 13 persons. Moshulatubbee stepped down as Chief when the removal of the Choctaw’s took effect and recommended Peter Pitchlynn to replace him as Chief in Mississippi.

In the 1834-1907 law books of the Choctaw Nation, the region from the Arkansas River to the Winding Stair Mountains was called Moshulatubbee District. The Choctaw Nation was the first American Indian tribe to be removed by the federal government from its ancestral home to Oklahoma. Those who adjusted to the relocation were assimilated by religious missionaries sent to Oklahoma to “civilize” the Natives. The missionaries stressed the importance of education to establish a better rapport with the white man. The Choctaw and four other tribes became known as one of the Five Civilized Tribes because of their willingness to adapt to European ways.

On September 30, 1838, Moshulatubbee died of smallpox near Latham, Leflore County, Oklahoma. His gravesite is near the site of the old Butterfield Overland Mail Route, six miles west of Shady point. Moshulatubbee’s children assumed the name King in honor of their father, the last King or Royal Mingo of the Choctaw Nation. On the 1855 tax rolls, his daughter Susan King was listed. Robert Burleson’s great, great grandfather, Isreal Cooper, is a proven son of Susan King by his census card. Isreal Cooper’s daughter, Lorinda Cooper, married a white man, Issac Mason. Their son, George Mason, was Burleson’s grandfather.

American Civil War. During the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Choctaw in Oklahoma and Mississippi sided mostly with the Confederate States of America, prompting the Choctaw to become the first US Indian tribe to adopt a flag of its own. Carried by the Choctaw Confederate Soldiers, the flag features a circle surrounding a calumet, and a bow with three arrows to symbolize the three Choctaw subnations. After the Civil War, the Mississippi Choctaw fell into obscurity and the Choctaw in Oklahoma struggled to maintain a nation.

20th Century

During World War I (1914-1918), the Choctaw served in the US military as the first Native American codetalkers, using the Choctaw language as a natural code. After World War II (1939-1945), Choctaw attracted and developed business industries to their Oklahoma location. Today Choctaw operate business ventures in Oklahoma, Mississippi, and California, and they continue to practice their language and cultural traditions.