Author: Belinda Brooks
Storyteller: Chief Rodger Collum, BTBB
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FOREWORD (from the book listed above)
Since the beginning of the 20th century, a mystery has evolved around the disappearance of the Indigenous people of Natchitoches Parish in Louisiana. After the Louisiana Purchase by the United States in 1803, President Thomas Jefferson held a particular interest in who the natives of Louisiana were. Orleans Territorial Agent John Sibley and his interpreter, Francois “Touline” Grappe, were appointed by Jefferson to record the customs, languages, and locations of all the tribes/clans within their territory. Eventually, President Andrew Jackson would use this information against them in the Indian Removal Act of 1835.
This oral history of the chiefs of the Butte Tribe of Bayou Bourbeaux has been documented through interviews with Chief Rodger Collum, a lifetime resident and guardian of Butte Tribal lands. Chiefs White Smoke, Powder Face, Hawkeye, Squarehead, and Parrain passed down their oral history, hoping that future generations would understand the importance of the survival of their family bloodlines. Collum’s elders and close cousins have verified his tribal placement. He sat at the elders’ feet from the age of 5 until he was 16 to memorize the tribal oral history.
Rodger was chosen to be the next leader of his family/people by his elders during the leadership of his grandfather, Chief Parrain (Clarence Desadier). Rodger was required to attend each meeting of the elders on Bayou Bourbeaux. During those years, his elders taught him the history of his people. He repeated the stories over and over to the elders until the stories were engraved in his mind and the elders were satisfied that the stories he told were accurate.
When the elders died, Rodger would reveal these secrets to their descendants. Collum knows every inch of Butte territory: the Indian trails, Butte Hill, Jewel Springs, Buffalo Lick, nearby lakes, Collum Temple Mound, Frederick Mound, and other area mounds that are now under his protection on Bayou Bourbeaux. The Collum Temple Mound sits within 50 feet of Chief Collum’s front door. All tribal photos and artifacts were left to him by his ancestors.
Butte Tribal lands cover the East side of the Red River across from the city of Natchitoches, Louisiana. These communities include Campti, Black Lake, Creston, Golddonna, Clarence, Pace, Chestnut, Ashland, and all the land owned by or the land that was ceded to our ancestor Francois “Touline” Grappe by the Caddo Nation in the 1835 Caddo Treaty with the U.S. government.
Without our oral history, our tribe would be lost. As the tribe’s historian and journalist, I have researched these historical events to the best of my knowledge to ensure that these stories have substance and are found to be credible.
–Belinda Brooks, Vice Chief
When asked, “After all these years, why have you decided to go public with your tribe?” Chief Rodger Collum replied, “My ancestors raised me for such a time as this. It is time to reveal the secrets and tell the story of my people.”
The secrets of the Butte Tribe began at Bayou Bourbeaux over 200 years ago. Only a handful of warriors at any given time knew the secret of Butte Hill. The few who knew it spent a lifetime guarding it.
Note: Butte Tribe’s lineage is a uniquely mixed tribal bloodline (Texas and Chitimacha Indians) of ancestors born and raised on Bayou Bourbeaux in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana.