Special Edition: Chief Osceola versus the Unconquered

On December 30, Florida State University will take on Michigan State in the Orange Bowl and, to the delight of fans and of Michigan's coach, will perform the Tradition of Tribute.  A student rider in full Seminole regalia on an Appaloosa gelding will gallop to the fifty yard line and throw down a flaming spear.  He's called Chief Osceola and the tradition is meant to honor Osceola and his people, one of the few tribes to remain unconquered by United States forces, but how do tradition and legend blend with reality?  And how does Chief Osceola stack up to the Tallassee Warrior himself.

First, let's dispense with the issue of Native symbols and mascots.  I'll leave that to each reader to decide.  The Seminole Tribe of  Florida has given approval to the use of its symbols and the name of its arguably most famous war leader.  And, it's a moving and quite intimidating way to start a ball game.  Watching the ritual go down, it's clear where the regalia, the horse and the whole idea of a flaming spear came from. 

As we've said time out of mind, Osceola (aka William "Billy" Powell) was not a chief.  He was Tustenugge or leading warrior, of Micanopy's band of Seminole.  Both of his biographers make a case that he ranked as a Tustenugge Thlocco, or Great Warrior, based on his skill and renown.  Osceola himself preferred the title he'd been given during his first Green Corn Ceremony, the Black Drink Crier, someone who performed the ritual songs used during the passing of the sacred beverage made of the Yaupon Holly.  He never referred to himself as Tustenugge, or used any of the other honorifics of Seminole warriors, such as Harjo or Fixico and the like.  Maybe he chose not to.  Maybe they weren't his to use yet, who knows.  What comes through in his portraits, though, was a love of fancy dress.  Nor was he alone.  Coacoochee and Billy Bowlegs also loved fine regalia. 

So, how close is the tribute rider's regalia to that worn by Osceola.  The full-length engraving by Catlin shows it's pretty close to what Osceola wore, the turban with plumes, three-decker gorget breast-piece, necklaces, a Calico hunting shirt, beaded hand-woven sash and garters, leather leggings and moccasins.  The tribute rider wears boots, something adopted by later Seminole leaders and definitely more practical than mocs while riding a horse or anywhere near a football field.  Pictures of two men who used the name Billy Bowlegs show the overall look. 

The Seminole were known to possess horses, though the Appaloosa appeared during the 19th century with the Nez Perce, a Plains tribe.  Further, Patricia Wickman, in her biography which interviewed people who had received stories of Osceola passed down orally through the generations indicated that he did not own horses and was not known for riding them.  In fact, the one single life event that connects Osceola with a horse was after his capture in October 1837, where he was given a horse to ride back to St. Augustine.  Likewise, the spear, more properly a lance, is a Plains weapon.  But the antecedent to the flaming spear tradition is obvious, the one legend of Osceola that almost anyone knows, the knife-through-the-treaty.  That episode has now been writ large as a nearly 25-lb flaming spear through the fifty yard line. 

The Chief Osceola tradition began in 1978, as FSU sought a more respectful rendition of the Seminole mascot.  The school has sought the continued approval of the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the NCAA to use the symbols.  So be it.  If the Tradition of Tribute does anything, it keeps the knowledge of Osceola, the Seminoles and their fight to survive in public view.  FSU offers classes in Seminole history which are reportedly well-attended each semester, students of all ethnic backgrounds taking pride in being Seminoles by extension.  A little tradition and respect for the past goes a long way.