Our Arklahoma Heritage: The heart of a Creek poet poetically drowned as he foreshadowed in one of his works
- Jul 12, 2025
- 3 min read
In the Muscogee (Creek) Nation of Oklahoma, , Alexander Lawrence Posey stands out as a powerful voice in Native American literature and cultural history. As a poet, humorist, journalist, and politician, Posey expressed the spirit of his people during a time of great change in Indian Territory.
Born near what is now Eufaula, Posey was the oldest of twelve children. His father, Lewis Henderson Posey, came from the Scots-Irish Muscogee Berryhill family, while his mother, Nancy Phillips==whose Muscogee name was Pohas Harjo--was a full-blood Creek of the Wind Clan.
Posey’s upbringing followed the matrilineal traditions of the Tuskegee tribal town.
He grew up speaking Muscogee and embraced the oral storytelling and speaking style of his mother’s side. His father, who also spoke Muscogee fluently and belonged to the Broken Arrow tribal town, later pushed him to learn English. That dual fluency helped Posey move between Native and Euro-American communities.
Posey studied at the Creek national school in Eufaula and later at Bacone Indian University in Muskogee. He discovered a love for literature and admired writers like Henry David Thoreau and Robert Burns. Inspired by their work and the Muscogee landscape, he wrote poetry that honored the rivers and plains of his youth.
In 1896, he married Minnie Harris, a schoolteacher, and together they had three children: Yahola Irving, Pachina Kipling, and Wynema Torrans. Each name reflected Posey’s deep love for literature and storytelling.
At just 22, Posey was elected to the Creek National Council’s House of Warriors, representing the Wind Clan. He worked as the superintendent of both the Creek Orphan Asylum and later public instruction, showing a strong commitment to service.
His role with the Dawes Commission, which helped organize land allotments, placed him directly in the middle of one of the most controversial shifts in Native life.
In 1901, Posey founded thethe first Native American daily newspaper. The paper earned national attention, and under the pen name Chinnubbee Harjo, Posey published poems like “Ode to Sequoyah” and “Dew and the Bird,” which reflected Muscogee ideas through poetic form.
His most famous work came through the Fus Fixico Letters (1902–1908). These satirical writings, told from the point of view of a fictional Muscogee traditionalist named Fus Fixico (“Heartless Bird”), cleverly poked fun at the political chaos of the time.
Through characters like Hotgun and Kono Harjo, Posey criticized federal laws like the Dawes Act and Curtis Act, which disrupted tribal sovereignty, and even mocked the push for Oklahoma statehood.
His witty wordplay--calling President Theodore Roosevelt “Rooster Feather”--made Creek readers laugh while addressing serious concerns. Although major newspapers offered to publish his work, Posey kept his focus on his local community, knowing the deeper meaning might be lost on outsiders.
In 1906, Posey served as secretary for the Sequoyah Constitutional Convention, where he helped write a proposed constitution for a Native-governed state. Although Congress rejected the idea, much of Posey’s work shaped the foundation of Oklahoma’s actual state constitution.
Sadly, Posey’s life was cut short in 1908 when he drowned while trying to cross the flooded North Canadian River--called Oktahutchee by the Muscogee--=with his friend Robert Howe.
A washed-out railroad bridge forced them to use a boat, which overturned in the strong current. Posey held on to a tree limb but was swept away. His body was found nearly two months later and buried in Greenhill Cemetery in Muskogee.
His eerie poem “My Fancy,” which imagined drowning and being saved by a tree, seemed to predict his fate.
"Why do trees along the river
Lean so far out o’er the tide?
Very wise men tell me why,
but I am never satisfied;
And so I keep my fancy still,
That trees lean out to saveThe drowning from the clutches of
The cold, remorseless wave.?"
Today, Posey’s impact still resonates. His Fus Fixico Letters and poetry are preserved in
like Lost Creeks (2009), Song of the Oktahutche (2008), and Chinnubbie and the Owl (2005). The University of Central Oklahoma honors his legacy with the Alexander Lawrence Posey Speaker Series, and his biography by Daniel F. Littlefield Jr., along with poetry volumes edited by his wife, Minnie, continue to share his voice.
Alexander Posey remains a lasting symbol of resilience, wit, and creativity. His ability to blend traditional Muscogee storytelling with sharp political commentary reminds us that words have the power to guide communities through change.
