The
Jackson Purchase
was a historic event before it became a region. The transaction involved
prolonged negotiations culminating in a treaty between agents of the United States and those of the
Chickasaw Indian Nation. Representing the United States were the aging Isaac Shelby,
Revolutionary War hero and twice Kentucky governor, and General Andrew Jackson, hero of the
Battle of New Orleans and later president. The Chickasaws were represented by their chiefs, head
men and warriors including Levi and George Colbert, Chinubby (the Boy King), and Tishomingo.
The two sides signed the treaty in northwestern Mississippi on October 19, 1818; it was ratified by
the United States Senate and confirmed by President James Monroe on January 7, 1819.
In return for the relinquishments of all lands east of the Mississippi River and north of the Mississippi state line, the Chickasaws received $300,000 at the rate of $20,000 annually for fifteen years. The states of Kentucky and Tennessee, neither of which had previously extended beyond the Tennessee River, were enlarged by approximately 2,000 and 6,000 square miles respectively. The Kentucky addition became known as the Jackson Purchase, the larger Tennessee portion as West Tennessee.