George Edwin Butler

George Edwin Butler (1868–1941) was an American lawyer and an author of research studies and works, the most notable of which is his book The Croatan Indians of Sampson County, North Carolina. Their Origin and Racial Status. A Plea for Separate Schools. He was a younger brother to the former United States Senator Marion Butler of North Carolina.

Early life

Butler was born in rural Sampson County, North Carolina, with his father's farm being located a few short miles outside of the town of Roseboro, North Carolina; a place where the Sampson County Butler family had lived since the inception of the county. His family consisted of yeoman farmers; however the family prized intellect and knowledge.

It is unknown whether or not Butler attended any formal college or school; however his brother Marion Butler was a graduate of the University of North Carolina.

Notable works and research

Butler wrote a book in 1916 titled The Croatan Indians of Sampson County, North Carolina. Their Origin and Racial Status. A Plea for Separate Schools. This book was an attempt to gain North Carolina state funding for the establishment of public schools for members of the Indian Race in Sampson County.

Between 1859 and 1911, [Croatan Indians]] living in Sampson County had been allowed by the State of North Carolina to send their children to "Indian Only" schools. These schools were paid for by the Croatan Indians tribe members themselves, with no state-government funding. In 1911, the North Carolina General Assembly enacted laws providing for the financial needs of these schools in lieu of the Croatan Indians Of Sampson County paying for it themselves. This 1911 law only lasted two years before funding for the Croatan Indians Of Sampson County Schools in Sampson County was eliminated by the state.^[1]

The reason for the elimination by the state was that the Croatan Indians tribe were considered a "mixed-race" and therefore would have to attend African-American schools. During this period of time in Sampson County, it appears as though there was a three-cast-type system in the county, with the Native Americans being given advantages of white citizens in some areas, but treated like African Americans in other areas. Based upon interviews with tribe members and elders in Butler's 1916 book, it appears that tribe members also shared in at least some of the Jim Crow law-era beliefs, as their plea to the state for funding was due to them not wanting their children to attend African American schools. The tribe hired Butler as their attorney to fight on their behalf for the reinstatement of funds. Butler spent the next three years researching the historical documents, records, family history of the tribe members and local history trying to determine what his best argument would be.^[2]

In its final edition, Butler's book makes a case that the State of North Carolina should provide funding for the tribe to have a school district separate from the African Americans because these people appear to be European with Native-American features as well. The majority of the book discusses how these tribe members have assimilated with the local white population, and that its members have no African ancestry. Throughout the course of the book, one is reminded of the mindset of the white population of Sampson County as the entire book sets up an image of a social order in which Whites are first, with Native Americans second, followed by African Americans at the bottom. Butler does not apply any direct or expressed racism in his book, and that was never his point; however the book does provide insight into the mindset of the Southern American culture of the early-20th century. Butler further points out that Native-American tribes elsewhere in the state have retained their own school district, financed by the state.^[3]

Legacy of works

Butler's research and subsequent book did indeed bring about change from the North Carolina General Assembly as in 1917, one year after publishing his book, the law was reinstated and the Croatan Indians again had a public school to call their own. The Sampson County school system continued to operate three separate school districts depending on one's skin color: white, black, or Indian; until the repeal of Jim Crow laws and regulations in the 1960s. Butler's book also had an effect on unifying the Croatan Indians of Sampson County such that they were able to obtain status as an independent tribe, separate and distinct from other North Carolina tribes.

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References