This treaty voided the fraudulent 1825 Treaty of Indian Springs and formalized Creek cession of territory east of the Chattahoochee River to the United States.
Key Facts
- Date signed
- January 24, 1826
- One-time payment to Creeks
- $217,600 USD
- Annual annuity
- $20,000 USD
- Carroll County payment
- $30,000 USD
- Creek land retention deadline
- January 1, 1827
- McIntosh execution date
- May 31, 1825
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The fraudulent 1825 Treaty of Indian Springs, signed by a small Lower Creek faction under William McIntosh without broad Creek authority, was rejected by most Creek leaders and by President John Quincy Adams. McIntosh was executed under Creek law for the unauthorized cession, and Creek leaders traveled to Washington to negotiate a legitimate replacement agreement.
On January 24, 1826, the United States and a broad assembly of Creek leaders under Opothleyahola signed the Treaty of Washington. It voided the Treaty of Indian Springs, ceded all Creek territory east of the Chattahoochee River in exchange for a one-time payment of $217,600 and an annual annuity of $20,000, and included provisions for potential westward resettlement of the Lower Creeks.
Despite the treaty's terms, Georgia Governor George Troup ordered surveys of land still legally held by the Creeks, and President Adams ultimately conceded to state pressure. By 1827, Creeks were removed from Georgia, and within eight years most were relocated from Alabama to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma.
Political Outcome
Creek Confederacy ceded all territory east of the Chattahoochee River to the United States; Treaty of Indian Springs voided; Creek removal from Georgia completed by 1827.
Creek Confederacy held territory east of the Chattahoochee River in Georgia
United States acquired all Creek territory bordering Georgia; Creeks retained only a small Alabama-Georgia border tract temporarily