The Morgan County Genealogical Society’s (MCGS) monthly meeting will be held Sun., March 3, at 2 p.m. on the third floor of the Morgan County Archives in Decatur.

A short business meeting precedes the regular program, and light refreshments follow. The meeting is free and open to the public.

The MCGS March program will feature author and Alabama native, Rickey Butch Walker. Born in the Warrior Mountains and a member of the Echota Cherokee tribe of Alabama, Walker will speak on two of his books, “Chickasaw Chief George Colbert: His Family and His County” and “Doublehead Last Chickamauga Cherokee Chief.”

George Colbert’s story follows his life from being born the son of a Scot father and Chickasaw mother to becoming a decorated military leader, a successful ferry operator, a plantation owner, businessman, and Chickasaw chief. Colbert, a relatively unknown historical figure, was a decorated military hero who led the Chickasaws through the Indian removal ‘Trail of Tears,’ one of the darkest eras of American history.

Through sheer force of will, Chief Doublehead became the principal leader among the Cherokees. Walker takes Doublehead from warrior to famous chief to shrewd businessman. Refusing to cede the valuable hunting grounds to white intruders, he managed to confederate several tribes of Native Americans to wage war for 25 years.

Butch Walker, the author of many books on Native American history in the southeastern United States, graduated from the University of North Alabama. He worked to help establish the Sipsey Wilderness Area, and served as chairman of the board of directors of Wild South, an organization dedicated to fighting the destructive practices conducted at sacred native sites in Alabama by the US Forest Service. Walker taught at Speake High School for 11 years and retired after 35 years with the Lawrence County Board of Education. He also served as the director of Lawrence County Schools’ Indian Education Program and the Oakville Indian Mounds Education Center. Walker is currently working on three new books: “Celtic Indian Boy of Appalachia,” “Black Folk Tales of Appalachia: Slavery to Survival,” and “Soldier’s Wife: Alabama Cotton Fields to Tripoli and Berlin.”

For more information about MCGS and upcoming programs, contact the society’s program director, Terri Hildreth, at tleeh1@aol.com or 256.777.8153.