The Chicora tribe was a small Native American

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 tribe of the Pee Dee

Pee Dee

The Pee Dee region of South Carolina is the northeastern corner of the state. It is the area of the lower watershed of the Pee Dee River, named after the Pee Dee Native American tribe. Its center is Florence...

 area in northeastern South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, ranging to the Cape Fear River

Cape Fear River

The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina in the United States. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The overall water quality of the river is continuously measured and monitored by and conducted by the , , and the...

 in North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

. Scholars consider them a Catawba

Catawba

Catawba may refer to several things:*Catawba , a Native American tribe*Catawban languages-Botany:*Catalpa, a genus of trees, based on the name used by the Catawba and other Native American tribes*Catawba , a variety of grape...

n group, likely to have spoken a Siouan language.

In 1521 a Spanish expedition from Santo Domingo

Santo Domingo

Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...

, led by Francisco Gordilla, landed in this area. They took 70 natives captive and returned with them to Hispaniola

Hispaniola

Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...

. While most died within two years, one native, whom the Spanish named Francisco de Chicora

Francisco de Chicora

Francisco de Chicora was the baptismal name given to a Native American kidnapped in 1521, along with 70 others, from near the mouth of the Pee Dee River by Spanish explorer Francisco Gordillo and slave trader Pedro de Quexos, based in Santo Domingo and the first Europeans to reach the area. From...

, was baptized and learned Spanish. He worked for Lucas Vásquez de Ayllón

Lucas Vásquez de Ayllón

Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón was a Spanish explorer who in 1526 established the short-lived San Miguel de Gualdape colony, the first European attempt at a settlement in what is now the continental United States...

 and was taken to Spain on a trip with him. Chicora gave an account of his people and their practices to the court chronicler, Peter Martyr

Peter Martyr

Peter Martyr is the name of:*Peter of Verona, 13th-century martyr*Peter Martyr Vermigli, 16th-century Italian theologian*Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, 16th-century Italian-born historian of Spain and its New World discoveries...

.

In 1526 de Chicora accompanied another Spanish expedition to North America. When the party reached land at the Santee River

Santee River

The Santee River is a river in South Carolina in the United States, long. The Santee and its tributaries provide the principal drainage and navigation for the central coastal plain of South Carolina, emptying into the Atlantic Ocean approximately from its farthest headwater on the Catawba River...

, he escaped and rejoined his people.

Martyr's De Orbe Novo was published in "Decades". It was translated into English in 1555 and a fuller account in 1912. "The Testimony of Francisco de Chicora" is included in the seventh Decade.

Remnants of the tribe are centered in Conway, South Carolina

Conway, South Carolina

Conway is a city in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 16,317 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Horry County and is part of the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area. It is the home of Coastal Carolina University....

 and are seeking official recognition by the state.

Legacy

• A Confederate ironclad ship was named CSS Chicora
  CSS Chicora
  CSS Chicora was a Confederate ironclad ram that fought in the American Civil War. She was built under contract at Charleston, South Carolina in 1862. James M. Eason built her to John L...
  
  .
• A regional council of the Boy Scouts of America
  Boy Scouts of America
  The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
  
  is named for the tribe.