Cherokee Indians
http://wsharing.com/WScherokeeTimeline.htm
Location~
In the mid 1600s, the Cherokee were located in parts of the Appalachian Mountains in what is now Georgia, eastern Tennessee, and the western parts of the Carolinas (Britannica). There were about 22,500 Cherokee people who were managing about 40,000 square miles of land (Britannica). Even though they were all Cherokee, they were very much a divided people (Boulware). "They organized themselves into the divisions known during the Historic Period: the Overhill Towns, the Middle Towns, the Out Towns, the Valley Towns, and the Lower Towns" (Boulware).
Location~
In the mid 1600s, the Cherokee were located in parts of the Appalachian Mountains in what is now Georgia, eastern Tennessee, and the western parts of the Carolinas (Britannica). There were about 22,500 Cherokee people who were managing about 40,000 square miles of land (Britannica). Even though they were all Cherokee, they were very much a divided people (Boulware). "They organized themselves into the divisions known during the Historic Period: the Overhill Towns, the Middle Towns, the Out Towns, the Valley Towns, and the Lower Towns" (Boulware).
Living Style~
Like other stationary tribes in the south east, the Cherokee lived in wattle and daub houses (native-languages.org). These were made by using river cane, wood, and vines to make a frame, and then putting plaster on the frame, which would dry because of the warm climate (native-languages.org). The roof was either made out of grass or bark (native-languages.org). There were about 200 Cherokee villages and 30 to 60 houses per town, including 1 large council house per town which was used for councils, general meetings, and religious ceremonies (Martin). http://www.native-languages.org/houses.htm
Relations with Other Tribes~
"Cherokee relations with their neighbors were not always friendly before contact." (Martin). In 1673 they fought they coastal tribes of the Carolinas, and by 1680, there was constant fighting between the Cherokee and the Catawba who were located in the east (Martin). To the south, there were growing tensions with the Creek and Choctaw, and to the west there had always been animosity with the Chickasaw (Martin). There was a brief period of peace in 1706 between the Cherokee and the Iroquois, but fighting broke out shortly after, when the Cherokee refused to obey the Iroquois demands (Martin). In 1692, the Cherokee allied themselves with the Chickasaw to get the Shawnee out of there territory (Martin). Overall, the Cherokee did not have many other allies besides the British, not even other native tribes. |
Important Products and Gender Roles~
"The women of the tribe focused on growing corn, squash, and beans, known as "the three sisters" (Martin)." Along with corn, squash, and beans, women also farmed sunflowers (Cherokee Smokies). While the women did this, the men went hunting and fishing in order to supplement the crop system (Martin). "They used bows and arrows and blowguns to shoot deer, wild turkeys, and small game; and used fishing poles and spears to fish" (Cherokee Smokies). Women did most of the farm work, and they also cooked and made their own pottery and baskets (Cherokee Smokies). Women were obviously valued in the Cherokee society, and were not treated badly like women in some of the other tribes. http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Squash-Corn-and-Beans-the-Three-Sisters-of-Native-American-Agriculture-Posters_i2873424_.htm
http://www.ducksters.com/history/native_american_cherokee.php
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Government~
"The Cherokee nation was composed of a confederacy of symbolically red (war) and white (peace) towns" (Britannica). The peace towns were sanctuaries for wrongdoers and the red towns were where war ceremonies took place (Britannica). Council houses consisted of 7 chiefs, one from each of the 7 clans (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). There was also a single chief appointed to handle political and social issues when the council was not in session (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). A "war chief" was also chosen to deal with matters involving war (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). Religion~ The Cherokee believed that their land was the center of the universe (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). "They also believed that everything, not only living things, had a soul, except for the bear." (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). This meant that the land and everything else was sacred (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). Until 1738, a shaman (holy man) would make decisions about anything having to do with religion; he was considered the second most powerful man in the tribe (aboutnorthgeorgia.com). Relations with Europeans~
The first European-Cherokee contact took place in 1540 when Hernando De Soto came across their tribe (Martin). The two groups did not establish a solid trade relationship until the 1690s when fur traders started to rely on Cherokee hunters for deerskins (Martin). Both the British and the French took advantage of them and used them to acquire land and goods, which ultimately resulted in The Tuscarora War in 1711 and the Yamassee War of 1715 (Martin). "While the Cherokee lost many due to the wars with European settlers, smallpox and other European diseases proved more fatal than warfare" (Martin). http://fineartamerica.com/featured/yamasee-war-1715-granger.html
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Bibliography:
Boulware, Tyler. "Cherokee Indians." New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Foundation, 20 Jan. 2009. Web. 7 Sept. 2015. <http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/cherokee-indians>.
Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print.
Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Cherokee", accessed September 11, 2015, http://www.britannica.com/topic/Cherokee-people."A History in Measured Eons." Cherokee Smokies. Cherokee Champber of Commerce, n.d. Web. 8 Sept. 2015. <http://www.cherokeesmokies.com/history_culture.html>.
Martin, Jonothan. "Cherokee Indians." North Carolina History Project. John Locke Foundation, n.d. Web. 9 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/764/entry/>.
Martin, Ken. "Cherokee History - part one." Tolatsga. N.p., 28 Feb. 1996. Web. 7 Sept. 2015. <http://www.tolatsga.org/Cherokee1.html>.
"Native American Houses." Native American Homes: Wigwams, Longhouses, Tepees, Lodges, and Other American Indian Houses. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.native-languages.org>.
"The Cherokee Before 1800." The Cherokee Before 1800. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.aboutnorthgeorgia.com/ang/The_Cherokee>.
Weatherford, J. McIver. Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World. New York, NY: Crown, 1988. Print.