Hickory Ground, known as "Oce Vpofv" in the
Muscogee language, was the last capital of the National Council of
the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, prior to forced removal to Indian
Territory in the 1830s. The sacred place includes a
ceremonial ground, a tribal burial ground and individual
graves.
Hickory Ground was listed on the National Register of
Historic Places in 1980. In 1984, the federal government
officially recognized the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, descendants
of Muscogee (Creeks) who were not removed and did not live in
Alabama as Muscogee Creeks. The Alabama Historical Commission
transferred Hickory Ground to the Poarch Band, even though they had
no direct ancestral or cultural connection to the ceremonial
ground.
Although the Poarch Band promised to preserve the Hickory
Ground for the benefit of all Creek Indians, the Poarch Band
exhumed Muscogee human remains and ceremonial objects to build the
Creek Casino Wetumpka, with assistance from researchers at Auburn
University. The excavated human remains belong to the lineal
ancestors of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in Oklahoma, who hold
Hickory Ground as sacred and oppose development on the ceremonial
ground.