Early in its history, the Republic of Texas had a pressing need for a national Indian policy. With increasing Anglo migration into the new country, Texans and Native Americans came into almost continual conflict with each other over land. Many Texans called for the removal of the Native Americans from their country, but Sam Houston was against such a policy. Houston believed that his new nation could not afford a war with the various tribes of Native Americans in Texas. In addition, Houston was noted as being sympathetic toward the Indians, especially the Cherokees in East Texas.

Mexican officials hoped to regain the territory lost when Texas won its independence. So they encouraged trouble between the Native Americans and the Anglos in Texas. Agents of the Mexican government secretly met with the Texas Cherokees and urged them to fight the Texans. The Texas government, during its bid for independence, had unofficially signed a treaty with the Cherokees giving them title to the land they inhabited in East Texas. Following the revolution, the government refused to obey the terms of the treaty. This greatly angered the Cherokees and gave them reason to follow the advice of Mexican agents. Only Houston�s influence kept the Cherokees and their allies from attacking Anglo settlers.

The nomadic Indians on the western frontier were also a problem for the Texas government. Settlers in this region of the country expected the government to protect them from Indian depredations (attacks). With Houston�s approval, the Texas Congress established a number of forts along the frontier to protect its citizens. The Texas Rangers were ordered to patrol the frontier region in the western part of the Republic.

President Houston hoped that the new forts would serve two purposes. First, Houston believed that the military posts would prevent Native American from raiding areas heavily populated by non-Indian settlers. Second, the president envisioned that the forts would prevent settlers from encroaching further into Indian territory. Land speculators saw Houston�s Indian policy as interfering with their business and as costing them thousands of dollars in profits gained from the sale of frontier lands. This issue was a heavily debated topic, and it remained a central question in every national election held in the Republic.

President Lamar held views very different from that of Sam Houston. He was a known "Indian hater" and wanted to remove the Native Americans from Texas. He was not alone in his hatred of the Native Americans, and his views became the new policy in the Texas government. The Cherokees were the first group of Native Americans to experience the harshness of Lamar�s Indian policy. Lamar blamed the killings of the Killough Massacre, which took place near the East Texas town of Jacksonville in 1838, on the Cherokees. Although they were innocent, Lamar declared that the Cherokees had no legal right to the land and ordered them to leave Texas.

Under the leadership of Chief John Bowles, the Cherokees remained in East Texas. Lamar sent the Texas army to forcibly remove them. This sparked the famous Cherokee War of 1839. Texans won the war within a few days. The Battle of the Neches, fought near Tyler marked the defeat of the Cherokees. The remaining Cherokees, along with other scattered tribes such as the Shawnees and Caddos, left Texas. They moved north in the region designated as Indian Territory, present-day Oklahoma.

To stop the Comanche raids, President Lamar sent Colonel John Moore to attack their villages. This action was somewhat successful. It led to the ill-fated Council House Meeting on March 19, 1840, in San Antonio. At this meeting, Comanche chiefs and Texas officials were to discuss plans for peace. Instead, a battle erupted in the downtown area. More than 40 Comanches were killed, along with seven Texans, in what became known as the Council House Fight. Later, on August 11, 1840, the Texans and Comanches fought a battle near Lockhart at Plum Creek. The Comanches lost more than one hundred warriors at the Battle of Plum Creek.

The cost of the Indian Wars was devastating to the government budget. Not only was there a large toll on the lives of both Native American and Texans, but the wars cost the Texas government more than $2.5 million. With the Cherokees removed from East Texas and the Comanches pushed further west, land speculators and newly arriving immigrants were pleased with Lamar�s Indian policies. Others, however, were concerned with the rising national debt. They wondered if Lamar had acted too hastily in his decision to wage war against the Native Americans.

During Houston�s second term as president of the Republic, the government once again restored peace between the Texans and the Indians. A peace agreement was signed between the Republic and the Wacos and Tawakonis in September of 1843 at Bird�s Fort. The most noted peace treaty was the Treaty of Tehuacana Creek, It was signed by Houston and Chief Buffalo Hump of the Penateka Comanches. In general, Houston had once again brought peace to the frontier regions.

Study Guide Question:

1. Why did the Republic need a national Indian policy?(7.4:A)
2. Why did Mexican officials encourage the Native Americans to attack the Texans?(7.4:A)
3. Why were forts built throughout Texas during this period?(7.4:A)
4. How did land speculators view Sam Houston�s Indian policy?
5. What sparked the famous Cherokee War? What was the outcome of the war?(7.4:A)
6. Who was Cynthia Ann Parker and Quanah Parker?(7.4:A)
7. What happened at the Council House Meeting?(7.4:A)
8. What impact did the Indian wars have on the Texas government?(7.4:A,B)