Ye Olde History Snippets... Pioneer Presbyterian minister Rev. Joseph Bullen

 On this day May 22, 1799, pioneering Presbyterian minister Rev. Joseph Bullen met with Chickasaw leader Levi Colbert in Mississippi. 

Using another Chickasaw, Joseph Colbert, as interpreter, Rev. Bullock proposed a mission to the Chickasaw Indians.  The proposal was well received. 

Three years prior, in 1796, the New York Missionary Society published an appeal for “missionaries to the destitute parts of the country.”

​The sole applicant was Rev. Joseph Bullen.

Following his commissioning, he and his son, Joseph, then age 16, left on horseback to make the trip to the Mississippi Territory “to work among the Chickasaw Indians.” 

Rev. Joseph Bullen was born on 8 July 1750, in Brimfield Massachusetts. He was a member of an old colonial family, being the fourth generation in America.   

​Source and courtesy of Robert W. Bullen, Biography of Rev. Joseph Bullen, Mississippi Genealogy.  Findagrave memorial photograph courtesy of Gayle Basaldu.

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Note:  Today, the Chickasaw Nation is economically strong, culturally vibrant and full of energetic people dedicated to the preservation of family, community, and heritage.

​Since the 1980s, the tribal government has focused on building an economically diverse base to generate funds that will support programs and services to Indian people. The business has flourished, programs and services have grown, and the quality of life for all Chickasaws has been greatly enhanced.  Source: https://www.nativeknot.com/Tribes/Oklahoma/Chickasaw-Nation.html

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