List of chiefs of the Seminoles

There were four leading chiefs of the Seminole, a Native American tribe that formed in what was then Spanish Florida in the present-day United States. They were leaders between the time the tribe organized in the mid-18th century until Micanopy and many Seminole were removed to Indian Territory in the 1830s following the Second Seminole War. • Cowkeeper, 1750-1783 • King Payne, 1783-1812 • Bolek, 1812-1819 • Micanopy, 1819-1849 == Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida ==

The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida were recognized by the state of Florida in 1957, and gained federal recognition in 1962 as the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida. • ca. late 18th c.–1819: Kinache, also Kinhagee (ca. 1750–ca. 1819), the last chief of the Creek of Miccosukee, Florida, who was defeated in battle in 1818 by US forces commanded by General Andrew Jackson. Later Kinhagee's people migrated south, maintaining their local village name Miccosukee as the name of the tribe. • 1962–1985: William Buffalo Tiger, also Buffalo Tiger or Heenehatche, (1920–2015), first chief of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, led initiatives for self-determination • 1986–2011:–2015: ousted in 2015 tribal chairman • 2021–Present: Talbert Cypress, tribal chairman == Seminole Nation of Oklahoma ==

• 1819–1849: Micanopy (ca. 1780–ca. 1849) • 1849–: John Jumper (ca. 1820–1896), chief of Confederate faction of Seminole • 1882–1885: John Jumper, chief • 2021–present: Lewis Johnson == Seminole Tribe of Florida ==

• 1957–1966: Billy Osceola, inaugural holder. • 1967–1971: Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, first and only chairwoman of the tribe, editor-in-chief of the Seminole Tribune, tribal communications director, and the last matriarch of the Snake clan. Jumper spoke English, Mikasuki, and Muskogee. • 1971–1979: Howard Tommie, political leader and two-term chairman of Seminole Tribal Council who initiated programs in the 1970s, including accepting the U.S. land claim settlement; successfully negotiated with the State of Florida for water rights for the Seminole reservations, and establishment of tax-free smoke shops and high-stakes bingo as revenue generators. Tommie speaks English, Mikasuki, and Muskogee. • 1979–2003: Jim Billie, suspended in 2001, officially removed in 2003. Billie chaired during an expansion of Indian gaming and time of increased tribal wealth and economic development. • 2003–2011: Mitchell Cypress • 2011–2016: Jim Billie, re-elected and again removed by Seminole Tribal Council in a unanimous vote (4–0) on account of "various issues with policies and procedures of the Chairman's office." • 2016–present: Marcellus Osceola Jr. == References ==