CHICKASAW BIG KEYS AND THE YOCUM SILVER DOLLAR

I do some research for the Chickasaw Nation. I happened to read your article on the Yocum Silver Dollar. I think I can shed a little light on the topic.

There actually was a Chickasaw in that area looking for the silver just after 1900. His name was Big Keys. Something that gives a little credence to the story is that he said they came from Georgia. Someone might think that indicates an error since the Chickasaws were from Mississippi but there actually was a group of Chickasaws near Augusta, GA that were there for about 80 years. They were given 10 square miles in appreciation for helping Oglethorpe against the Spanish in Florida. They left that area sometime before 1800 and came back to Mississippi which was their traditional homeland.

The timeframe for them leaving is earlier than implied by Big Keys but it oddly matches the same area. It was documented that there were Chickasaws living in northern Arkansas and the Missouri bootheel about the time he mentions. Some may have settled on the White River. Some had gone there very early when it was Spanish territory. I just thought you might like to read more about the story.

The attached newspaper article is from the The Pittsburg Press, July 26, 1910

Thank you! Another piece of the puzzle. The article images appear small here, but if you click on them you'll be taken to our Flickr archive where the original files and be downloaded and read. I enjoyed the "heap big silver" joy dance when a bountiful silver lode was discovered. Here are a few paragraphs I've transcribed. -Editor

The silver mine, according to Big Keys, was worked by the indians for several years. Large quantities of the ore were melted in a hollowed-out rock and molded into large bars in molds made of stiff clay, and carried to St. Louis and St. Charles, Mo., and traded for blankets and other necessities.

Fearing an attack by Mexicans, all valuables of the little band were placed in the cave and preparations made for a move to a new territory. the entrance to the cave was closed up with rock and dirt scraped from the mountainside, and covered to a depth of several feet...

Big Keys, who was then only a young brave, but now an old haggard Indian, was one of the few that found their way back to Oklahoma. In the last four years Big Keys has made several trips back to the White River territory in search of the long-lost cave...

Great story, but is a word of it true? There are multiple versions of the silver mine tale. The dollar story is set in the 1820s when settlers supposedly found the silver and sliced ingots into coins stamped with their family name, Yoacham. No such coins have ever come to light. While there may well be some basis in fact for parts of the stories that have been handed down over the years, we may never learn the real truth. Meanwhile, enjoy the tales. -Editor

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