Black Mixed Seminoles inside the Seminole Tribe of Florida, and the one-quarter blood rule (Fort Pierce Reservation and 1957 roll)

SUMMARYBlack Mixed Seminoles inside the Seminole Tribe of Florida, and the one-quarter blood rule (Fort Pierce Reservation and 1957 roll) [Connections: Miami & Lake Okeechobee, Nov 5, 2026]

RECORDThe Seminole Tribe of Florida, federally recognized in 1957, requires at least one-quarter documented Seminole blood quantum and direct descent from someone on the 1957 Tribal Roll. "The tribe includes some Black Mixed Seminoles, including 50 living on Fort Pierce Reservation"; the 50-acre Fort Pierce Reservation was taken into trust by Interior in 1995 (housing development "Chupco's Landing"). After the Second Seminole War most Seminole and Black Seminole people were forced west, while a smaller group, possibly fewer than 500, stayed in the Everglades

PATTERNPeople of Black and Seminole descent are documented members of a federally recognized Florida tribe today, but only through a 1957 roll and a blood fraction set under federal recognition

LENS (WW9)A blood fraction on a 1957 list decides who is "Indian" and who is "Black" in the same family

OPENHow the 1957 roll was compiled (BIA agents?) and whether Black Seminole families in Florida were left off; the Chupco family history (the page does not explain the name's link)

SOURCESeminole Tribe of Florida (Wikipedia); Fort Pierce Reservation (Wikiwand).