The Seminole Tribe of Florida is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its constitution.
Tribal members gathered at an oak tree on August 21, 1957, to sign the document. It prevented them from being terminated and losing their relationship with the federal government.
"We were here for over 500 years, and we fought three bloody wars in the 1800s, but it took a legal document in 1957 to make our existence official,'' council member Max Osceola told The Miami Herald.
The tribe has since become a billion-dollar empire, thanks largely to gaming.
Get the Story:Mighty oak symbolizes Seminole Tribe's historic growth (The Miami Herald 8/21)
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