"The evil, Sir, is enormous; the inevitable suffering incalculable. Do not stain the fair fame of the country. . . . Nations of dependent Indians, against their will, under color of law, are driven from their homes into the wilderness. You cannot explain it; you cannot reason it away. . . . Our friends will view this measure with sorrow, and our enemies alone with joy. And we ourselves, Sir, when the interests and passions of the day are past, shall look back upon it, I fear, with self-reproach, and a regret as bitter as unavailing."
    -Edward Everett, Speeches on the Passage of the Bill for the Removal of the Indians Delivered in the Congress of the United States (Boston, 1830)

The history of the Catawba Indians, like the history of all the Native American Indians, is incredibly tragic. Their cultural heritage was nearly destroyed, surviving on the mere spiritual strength and pride of a great nation; and today, what remains, is merely taped together by various government handouts and community programs. Though there is no definitive history on the origins of the tribe, the destruction of the Catawba nation, and of all the Native American nations, is quite clear and marked boldly in our history books. 

The Catawba’s origins are sprinkled with speculation. Where did they originate from? Was it Canada or was it the northern Ohio Valley? Many favor the latter. What about the name? Where did Catawba come from? Some claim the name Catawba comes from an early expedition of Juan Pardo, who jotted down the names of village people he encountered. Others say Catawba comes from the placename Katapu, meaning “fork in the river,” or possibly “to float on water.” However, what many people do agree on, is that the Catawba Indians use to refer to themselves as Ye Iswa, meaning “people of the river.” 

Speculation aside, the Catawba Indians were a Siouan-speaking tribe that prospered for centuries along the Catawba River, near North and South Carolina, until they were decimated by the combination of disease, war, and social destruction. 

At the height of the Catawba’s existence, it is said there were as many as 10,000 members. This was, of course, before the European colonists. Smallpox, the infelicitous disease that almost annihilated so many other Indian tribes, proved to be their main eradicator. Just before the exposure to smallpox, the Catawba population was estimated at 1,400, but in 1738 the infamous epidemic reduced this number by half.

After minor recovery, the persistent disease returned a generation later to claim, again, half of the Catawba tribe. In 1760 the Catawba tribe only had 400 members. The population continued to wane throughout the hurtles of the next two decades but the Catawba tribe proved to be fierce survivors, and today the population stands at approximately 2,600. 

Diseases was not their only enemy. For years the Catawba fought wars on many fronts. Though they had a boundary agreement with the Cherokee, other tribes, such as the Iroquois and the Lenape, were known intruders and were constantly chased off Catawba territory.

During this time, the Catawba were engaged in colonial conflict as well. In 1721 the colonial governments requested peace from the Catawba, and an agreement was struck. Everyone would stick to their own territories, but the Indian Road, which led through Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, could be used freely. 

Although, there was peace between Catawba and the colonists, settlers still clambered onto Indian territories, and tribes still raged war amongst themselves. After the smallpox devastation the Catawba Nation began to meet the infiltrating tribes with little resistance. Then, in 1762, the Catawba chief, King Hagler, was killed by a small tribe of invaders near his own village; it was a final blow that left the Catawba Nation of little significance.

 
Finding A Home

The first real dislocation the Catawba encountered was at the start of the American Revolutionary War. At the sight of British troops they relocated temporarily to Virginia, returning shortly thereafter. In 1826, the few Catawba that remained began to lease part of their land to white settlers. And in 1840, the Catawba ended up selling all but a single square mile of their land, on which they now reside.

It was called the Treaty of Nation Ford, and the land, 144,000 acres, was sold to the state of South Carolina. Later, the treaty would be determined as invalid; as the state did not have the power to make such arrangements, the federal government could only oversee such situations and had not approved this scenario. 

After the sale of their land the Catawba tribe struggled to be content with their new lives, and were becoming more and more intertwined with the colonists. This made them uneasy, and they began to search for a new home. The Cherokee in western North Carolina accepted their arrival. However, the Catawba found themselves just as unsettled among their old enemies. All, save one or two, returned to South Carolina. Sometime later, many Catawba found a home among the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma.

The Catawba struggled to find balance in the ever changing tides of their existence for many years. In 1944 they created a constitution and began organizing in a new way. However, in the 1950’s, the tribe was dissolved, at least as far the government was concerned. This was seen as an attempt at full assimilation.

The Catawba then ceased to have federal benefits and their assets were divided. The Catawba came to the conclusion they preferred their tribal lifestyle, and in 1973 they requested to again be recognized by the federal government as an Indian Nation. This would prove to be a complicated process. The Catawba re-adopted their constitution that had been written in 1944, and buckled down for a long battle with the government. 

The Catawba began to pursue the government for various land claims due to the illegal treaty made with South Carolina. The government was accused of not protecting the Catawba Indians’ interests. Finally, in 1993 the federal government agreed to recognize the Catawba as an Indian Nation once again, and a settlement of $50 million went toward economic development for the Nation. 

Today, the Catawba’s are the only recognized Indian Nation in South Carolina, and as their lineage exceeds that of any other in the Carolinas they have more rights to this precious land than anyone. Their dedication to the land, and their perseverance of spirit has enabled the Catawba to withstand centuries of turbulent and violent diversity. In the end, a portion of the Catawba heritage has been restored.

Now, they engage and contribute parts of their cultural heritage to the communities in which they live. The Catawba Indians continue to weave their story; a story that is already so deeply woven into the history of this land and soaked into the fabrics of our society. And just as the river flows over the rocks, so do the people of the river.