Chief Billy Bowlegs was one of the last Seminole resisters of the Seminole Wars. After the treacherous killing of Osceola - and the death or capture of several other Seminole leaders- Chief Bowlegs and his band of 200 warriors became some of the most prominent fighters surviving at the time hostilities ended officially on 14 August 1842. His band continued to evade capture until the Third Seminole War, when the US government sent an Oklahoma Seminole Chief to seek him out and offer money and land in Indian Territory in exchange for surrender. Eventually, his band moved. Chief Billy Bowlegs later gained fame as a captain in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Billy Bowlegs was born into a family of hereditary chiefs descended from Cowkeeper of the Oconee tribe of the Seminole in the village of Cuscowilla on the Alachua savannah.
This Notable Native American History Poster Series is meant to educate individuals on the important Native American Historical Figures that have paved the way for American Indians and others today by being involved in political issues, science, and other important academia in our society today.
