Though he died at the age of thirty-four, the Muscogee (Creek) poet, journalist, and humorist Alexander Posey (1873-1908) was one of the most prolific and influential American Indian writers of his time. This volume of nine stories, five orations, and nine works of oral tradition is the first to collect these entertaining and important works of Muscogee literature. Many of Posey's stories reflect trickster themes; his orations demonstrate both his rhetorical prowess and his political stance as a "Progressive" Muscogee; and his works of oral tradition reveal his deep cultural roots. Most of...

Muscogee (Creek) writer and humorist Alexander Posey (1873 1908) lived most of his short but productive life in the Muscogee Nation, in what is now Oklahoma. He was an influential political spokesperson, an advocate for improving conditions in Indian Territory, and one of the most prominent American Indian literary figures of his era. One of Posey s dearest subjects was the Oktahutche River, which he so loved that he gave it voice in his poem, Song of the Oktahutche. His poetry, drawing from Romantic European and Euro-American influences such as Robert Burns and John Greenleaf Whittier,...

Lost Creeks collects for the first time all the journals and shorter autobiographical works of noted Muscogee (Creek) writer, humorist, and political activist Alexander Posey (1873 1908). In his brief but productive life Posey became an influential political spokesperson, man of letters, and advocate for better conditions in Indian Territory. Posey s journals reveal much about his turbulent but noteworthy political career, his personal aspirations and challenges, and the creative process behind not only his poetry and short stories but also his famed Fus Fixico letters.
Drawing on...