Pulliam: Isaac McCoy's quest for statehood for native Americans

The new chief of the Cherokee Indian tribe wants native American representation before Congress.

Chuck Hoskin Jr. and the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council have named Kimberly Teehee to represent the nation's largest Indian tribe to Congress.

The Cherokee representative would be a delegate, not a voting member, based on a 19th century treaty between the U.S. and the Cherokees.

Almost two centuries ago an Indiana pioneer petitioned Congress for a bigger proposal — full statehood for native Americans, including members of the U.S. House and Senate.

Isaac McCoy couldn't get his proposal adopted in Congress. But his life of service among the Indians in Indiana and Michigan offered a worthy alternative to the injustices against native Americans and their confinement to reservations.

We bring you stories that matter to Indiana: Subscribe now.

Have something to say? Submit a letter to the editor.

McCoy and his wife Christiana came to Indiana as pioneers from Kentucky, several years before 1816 statehood. Sometimes settlers would purchase land from Indian tribes. Other times they went to war against the Indians. William Henry Harrison won a famous key battle at Tippecanoe in 1811, setting him up as a presidential candidate in 1840.

McCoy had a different vision. He and his wife moved near an Indian settlement around Vincennes, offering the gospel of Jesus Christ along with a school for children and farming for adult Indians. The McCoys joined the Indians as they moved north, first to what would become the Fort Wayne area, then into southern Michigan. They had 11 of their own children, as well as native American children in informal foster care with their family.

The McCoys became advocates of justice for the native Americans, as Isaac started making trips to Washington to petition presidents and Congress for statehood for the Indians.

Some members of Congress were sympathetic to his proposal, in response to his exploratory reports from the west. He thought the state could be established in what is now Kansas, which at that time didn't look promising to potential settlers looking for farmland. He wanted a separate state to escape the white liquor sales that devastated native American families. 

The McCoys wanted to Indian tribes to have schools for their children, representative state government and representation in Congress. He drew some support in Congress from Ohio Rep. William McLean, chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee. He also sometimes found a sympathetic ear in Michigan territorial Gov. Lewis Cass, later the Democratic Party candidate for president against Whig Party candidate Zachary Taylor.

The McCoys never got a state for native Americans. Instead the settlers kept moving west, and the Indians were sent to live on reservations.

In a sense the McCoys failed, at least with their larger vision. They offered an important alternative in American history. They served those in need, in the name of Christ, and sought justice for native Americans instead of conquest.

The McCoys deserve more attention than they usually receive in Indiana or national history. Occasionally they are mentioned in an Indiana history textbook. The only monument to them is a creek and a small lake named for Christiana McCoy in Elkhart County.

Pulliam is associate editor of The Star. Follow him on twitter at RBPulliam@twitter.com. Email him at Russell.Pulliam@indystar.com.