Lumbee

The Lumbee are centered in what is today southern North Carolina.

There's a controversial issue now about [|whether a Lumbee high school student named Corey Bird can wear his grandfather's eagle feathers] to his high school graduation ceremony on June 13 of this year.

The Lumbee People (Emily DeSimone) The Lumbee "Tribe" has been recognized as a "tribe" by the state of North Carolina since 1885. (I am finding different sites that say they are accepted by the United States Federal Government and sites that say they aren't recognized by the United States Federal Government) However they are not accepted by the services of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The clan includes 40,000 people, which most live in the Robeson Area of North Carolina. To help keep the traditions alive, schools for the Lumbee children and organizations to gain awareness and support for locals.

The State of North Carolina accepted them as Croaton Indians because they claimed to be descendants from the Lost Colony. This theory is widely rejected as to be a false identity because the Lumbee people have claimed to be from many various and popular tribes such as the Cherokee and Siouan Indians. The Ancestors of this "tribe" have been recorded since the year of 1790. They were called the "Free Persons of Color" referring to the color of their skin. It is unknown as to the main ethnic orgin of their people, because it was so varied. Most say their ancestry most likely contained African Americans, Europeans, and Native American blood.

The fight to gain recognition of the Lumbee people as a considered tribe of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the United States Federal Government (see above), is an ongoing fight. The struggle as to the unknown history of the tribe and its ancestors, repels the Bureau to accept. In 1911 they had sought federal recognition, but failed in attempt to do so. In this attempt they claimed to have ancestors from the Croatan Tribe (lost colony). They decided that the Croatans were most likely their ancestors however it was believed that they were more closely related to the Cherokee and Siouan Indians because they share the language of Carolina Algonquian and Carolina Siouan. The Lumbee people did in fact have history of Native American blood, however since the descendants are from high degree of mixed ethnicities, it is hard to give them confirmation as their own tribe because they come from many different tribes. So this leads to them be referred to as the "Lumbee People" instead of the "Lumbee Tribe". Since they had unsuccessfully managed to claim themselves as a tribe, they named their selves after the neighboring, Lumber River.

The Lumbees were generally a farming tribe and planted their crops in the great fertile soil of North Carolina. They planted and harvested corn, squash, beans, and tobacco mainly. For protein, deer and wild turkeys were most abundant.

Many people will hear of Henry Berry Lowrie as a bad man for he was in a gang, however not many hear or know much information about him and his generosity to the Lumbee people. Henry Berry Lowrie or HBL was born around 1844 and gave the Lumbee people a future, if to say, of hope and awareness that you should love how you are and what you have come from. This man has been reflected throughout the years of history of the Lumbee people, as to never give up and to achieve recognition. He sadly disappeared in 1872 in the swamps of the Lumber River.

media type="youtube" key="cNMhEwmOaKU&hl=en" height="344" width="425" This video gives you an image of their traditional clothing and dance.