Cherokee Nation (1794–1907)
This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (August 2022) ) |
Cherokee Nation ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ Tsalagihi Ayeli[1] | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1794–1907 | |||||||||||||||||
Status | Sovereign state (1794-1865) United States region (1865-1907) | ||||||||||||||||
Capital |
| ||||||||||||||||
Common languages | Tribal Council | ||||||||||||||||
Historical era | Post-colonial to early 20th century | ||||||||||||||||
• Created with the Treaty of Tellico Blockhouse | 7 November 1794 | ||||||||||||||||
• New Echota officially designated capital city | 12 November 1825 | ||||||||||||||||
29 December 1835 | |||||||||||||||||
• Cherokee Trail of Tears | 1838–1839 | ||||||||||||||||
• Tahlequah becomes new official capital | 6 September 1839 | ||||||||||||||||
• Disbanded by U.S. Federal Government | 16 November 1907 | ||||||||||||||||
Currency | US dollar | ||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
Today part of | United States -Oklahoma |
The Cherokee Nation (
The Cherokee Nation consisted of the
The nation was recognized as a sovereign government; because the majority of its leaders allied with the Confederacy, the United States required a new peace treaty after the American Civil War, which also provided for emancipation of Cherokee slaves. The territory was partially occupied by United States. In the late 19th century, Congress passed the Dawes Act, intended to promote assimilation and extinguish Indian governments and land claims in preparation for the admission of Oklahoma as a state in 1907. After allotment of lands to households, all the Cherokee were considered state and United States citizens.[4]
History
The Cherokee called themselves the Ani-Yun' wiya. In
The chief's function was to serve as focal point for negotiations with the encroaching Europeans. Hanging Maw was recognized as a chief by the United States government, but not by the majority of Cherokee peoples.[6]
At the end of the
The break-away Chickamauga band (or Lower Cherokee), under War Chief Dragging Canoe (Tsiyugunsini, 1738–1792), had retreated to and inhabited a mountainous area in what later became the northeastern part of the future state of Alabama.[7]
U.S. president
Succeeding Little Turkey as Principal Chief were
Three important veterans of the Cherokee–American wars,
These men continued to be leaders in the tribe. Hicks participated in the
Constitutional governments
The Cherokee Nation—East had first created electoral districts in 1817. By 1822, the Cherokee Supreme Court was founded. Lastly, the Cherokee Nation adopted a written constitution in 1827 that created a government with three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. The Principal Chief was elected by the National Council, which was the legislature of the Nation. A similar constitution was adopted by the Cherokee Nation—West in 1833.
The Constitution of the reunited Cherokee Nation was ratified at Tahlequah, Oklahoma on September 6, 1839, at the conclusion of "The Removal". The signing is commemorated every Labor Day weekend with the celebration of the Cherokee National Holiday.
Removal
In 1802, the U.S. federal government promised representatives of the state of Georgia to extinguish Native American titles to internal Georgia lands in return for the state's formal cession of its unincorporated western claim (which was made part of the Mississippi Territory). Negotiating with states to give up western claims was part of the unfinished business from the American Revolution and establishing of the United States. European Americans were seeking more land in what became known as the Deep South because of the expansion of cotton plantations. Invention of the cotton gin had made short-staple cotton profitable, and it could be cultivated in the uplands of Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi.
In 1815, the US government established a Cherokee
By additional treaties signed with the U.S., in 1817 (
Most of the settlements were established in the area around the western capital of Tahlontiskee (near present-day Gore, Oklahoma).
American Civil War and Reconstruction
Within the Cherokee Nation, there were advocates for neutrality, a Union alliance, and a Confederate alliance. Two prominent Cherokee, John Ross and Stand Watie were slaveholders and shared some values with Southern plantation owners. Watie thought it best for the Cherokee to side with the Confederacy, while Ross thought it better to remain neutral. This split was due to the Union's and Southern state's involvement of the Trail of Tears, which complicated the nation's political outlook. Within the first year of the war, general consensus in the nation moved towards siding with the Confederacy.[10]
Numerous skirmishes took place in the Trans-Mississippi area, which included the Cherokee Nation–West. There were seven officially recognized battles involving Native American units, who were either allied with the Confederate States of America or loyal to the United States government. 3,000 out of 21,000 members served as a soldier in the Confederacy.[11] Several prominent members of the Cherokee Nation made contributions during the war:
- William Penn Adair (1830–1880), a Cherokee senator and diplomat, served as a Confederate Colonel
- Nimrod Jarrett Smith, Tsaladihi (1837–1893), a future Principal Chief of the Eastern Band, also served during the war
- Confederate Brig. General Stand Watie (also known as Degataga, (1806–1871), a signer of the Treaty of New Echota) raided Union positions in the Indian Territory with his 1st Cherokee Mounted Rifles Regiment of the Army of Trans-Mississippi well after the Confederacy had abandoned the area. He became the last Confederate general to surrender—on June 25, 1865.[12]
After the war, the United States negotiated new treaties with the
A 2020 study contrasted the successful distribution of free land to former slaves in the Cherokee Nation with the failure to give former slaves in the Confederacy free land. The study found that even though levels of inequality in 1860 were similar in the Cherokee Nation and the Confederacy, former black slaves prospered in the Cherokee Nation over the next decades. The Cherokee Nation had lower levels of racial inequality where blacks saw higher incomes, higher literacy rates, and greater school attendance.[14]
Nation's demise
President
From 1898–1906, beginning with the Curtis Act of 1898, the US federal government set about the dismantling of the Cherokee Nation's governmental and civic institutions, in preparation for the incorporation of the Indian Territory into the new state of Oklahoma. In response, the leaders of the Five Civilized Tribes sought to gain approval for a new State of Sequoyah in 1905 that would have a Native American constitution and government. The proposal received a cool reception in Congress and failed. The tribal government of the Cherokee Nation was dissolved in 1906. After this, the structure and function of the tribal government were not formally defined. The federal government occasionally designated chiefs of a provisional "Cherokee Nation", but usually just long enough to sign treaties.[16]
As the shortcomings of the arrangement became increasingly evident to the Cherokee, a demand arose for the formation of a more permanent and accountable tribal government. New administrations at the federal level also recognized this issue, and the
Indian Territory
The Cherokee Nation was divided into nine districts [1] named Canadian, Cooweescoowee, Delaware, Flint, Goingsnake, Illinois, Saline, Sequoyah, and Tahlequah (capital).
Cherokee capital
Founded in 1838, Tahlequah was developed as the new capital of a united Cherokee Nation. It was named after the historic Great Tellico, an important Cherokee town and cultural center in present-day Tennessee that was one of the largest Cherokee towns ever established. The mostly European-American settlement of Tellico Plains later developed at the site. Indications of Cherokee influence found in and about Tahlequah. For example, street signs appear in both the Cherokee language—in the syllabary alphabet created by Sequoyah (ca. 1767–1843)[18]—and in English.
Cherokee National Capitol
Designed by architect C. W. Goodlander in the 'late Italianate' style, the Cherokee National Capitol was constructed between 1867 and 1869.[19] Originally, it housed the nation's court as well as other offices. In 1961, the US Department of Interior designated it a National Historic Landmark.[19][20][21]
People
The Nation was made up of scattered peoples mostly living in the Cherokee Nation–West and the
The Delaware
In 1866, some Delaware (Lenape) were relocated to the Cherokee Nation from Kansas, where they had been sent in the 1830s. Assigned to the northeast area of the Indian Territory, they united with the Cherokee Nation in 1867. The Delaware Tribes operated autonomously within the lands of the Cherokee Nation.[22]
Natchez people
The Natchez are a Native American people who originally lived in the Natchez Bluffs area. The present-day city of Natchez, Mississippi developed in their former territory. By the mid-eighteenth century, the Natchez people were defeated by French colonists and dispersed from there. Many survivors had been sold (by the French) into slavery in the West Indies. Others took refuge with allied tribes, one of which was the Cherokee.
The Shawnee
Known as the Loyal Shawnee or Cherokee Shawnee, one band of
In 1869, the Cherokee Nation and Loyal Shawnee agreed that 722 of the Shawnee would be granted Cherokee citizenship. They settled in Craig and Rogers counties.[23]
Swan Creek and Black River Chippewa
The Anishinaabe-speaking Swan Creek and Black River Chippewa bands were removed from southeast Michigan to Kansas in 1839. After Kansas became a state and the Civil War ended, European-American settlers pushed out the Native Americans. Like the Delaware, the two Chippewa bands were relocated to the Cherokee Nation in 1866. They were so few in number that they eventually merged with the Cherokee.
Cherokee Freedmen
The Cherokee Freedmen were former
Notable Cherokee Nation citizens
This list of historic people includes only documented Cherokee living in, or born into, the original Cherokee Nation who are not mentioned in the main article:
- Elias Boudinot, Galagina (1802–1839), statesman, orator, and editor; founded the first Cherokee newspaper, the Cherokee Phoenix. Assassinated by opponents for signing the New Echota Treaty to cede lands in the East.
- Ned Christie (1852–1892), statesman, Cherokee Nation senator, infamous outlaw[25]
- Rear Admiral Joseph J. Clark (1893–1971), United States Navy, highest-ranking Native American in US military history.
- Doublehead, Taltsuska (d. 1807), a war leader during the Cherokee–American wars, led the Lower Cherokee, and signed land deals with the U.S.
- Junaluska (ca. 1775–1868), a veteran of the Creek War, who saved President Andrew Jackson's life.
- John Ridge, Skatlelohski (1792–1839), son of Major Ridge, statesman and signer of New Echota Treaty signer, assassinated by opponents.
- John Rollin Ridge, Cheesquatalawny, or "Yellow Bird" (1827–1867), grandson of Major Ridge, first Native American novelist.
- Clement V. Rogers(1839–1911), Cherokee senator, judge, cattleman, member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention.
- Will Rogers, (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) Cherokee entertainer, roper, journalist, and author.[26]
- John Ross, Guwisguwi (1790–1866), a veteran of the Red Stick War, Principal Chief in the east during Removal, and in the west.
- Redbird Smith (1850–1918), traditionalist, political activist, and chief of the Keetoowah Nighthawk Society.
- William Holland Thomas, Wil' Usdi (1805–1893), non-Native who was adopted into the tribe, founding Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, commanding officer of the Thomas Legion of Cherokee Indians and Highlanders.
- Nancy Ward, Nanye-hi (ca. 1736–1822/4), Beloved Woman, diplomat.
In popular culture
- Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian) (or the Cherokee Nation song) by Paul Revere & the Raiders tells of the plight of the Cherokee Nation.[27]
See also
- Cherokee military history
- Cherokee Commission
- Chief Vann House Historic Site
- Timeline of Cherokee removal
References
- ^ a b The James Scrolls
- ^ "Cherokee People". www.britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
- ^ "Indians, Eastern Band of Cherokees of North Carolina;" Donaldson, Thomas; 1892; 11th Census of the United States; Robert P. Porter, Superintendent, U.S. Printing Office, Washington, D.C.; published online at Eastern Band of Cherokees of North Carolina; retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ "Cherokee Nation History". Cherokee Nation. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
- ^ Stanley W. Hoig, The Cherokees and Their Chiefs: In the Wake of Empire, University of Arkansas Press, 1999, pp. 36, 37, 80
- ^ A Small Lexicon of Tsalagi words at Web Citations; A Few Words in Cherokee/Tsalagi; Tsalagi resources; access date January 18, 2010.
- ^ Evans, E. Raymond. "Notable Persons in Cherokee History: Dragging Canoe"; Journal of Cherokee Studies, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 170–190; (Cherokee: Museum of the Cherokee Indian); 1977.
- ISBN 978-0-8032-8760-0.
- ^ Lowery, Charles D. "The Great Migration to the Mississippi Territory, 1798–1819," Journal of Mississippi History, 1968 30(3): 173–192
- ^ "How the Cherokee Fought the Civil War". Ict News. Mar 27, 2012. Retrieved Sep 10, 2020.
- ISBN 9780029141809.
- ^ Confer, Clarissa; The Cherokee Nation in the Civil War; University of Oklahoma Press; 2007; pg. 4.
- OCLC 1240582535.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - ISSN 0034-6535.
- ^ Rennard Strickland, "Cherokee (tribe)," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Accessed April 18, 2015.
- ^ Cherokee Archived October 8, 2014, at the Wayback Machine; article; Oklahoma Historical Society; "Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture."
- ^ Moser, George W. A Brief History of Cherokee Lodge #10., Retrieved 26 June 2009.
- ^ Sequoyah Archived 2007-11-16 at the Wayback Machine, "New Georgia Encyclopedia"; retrieved 8 Aug 2010.
- ^ a b Francine Weiss (1980). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Cherokee National Capitol" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (pdf) on May 25, 2011.
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ "Cherokee National Capitol". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service, added = October 15, 1966. Archived from the original on 2009-12-14. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ McCollum, Timothy James. Delaware, Western. Archived 2008-12-24 at the Wayback Machine Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture.. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
- ^ Smith, Pamela A. "Shawnee Tribe (Loyal Shawnee)." Archived 2009-05-16 at the Wayback Machine Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
- ISBN 978-0-8371-9034-1
- ^ "The Case of Ned Christie", Fort Smith Historic Site, National Park Service. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
- ^ Carter JH. "Father and Cherokee Tradition Molded Will Rogers". Archived from the original on November 10, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-10.
- ISBN 0-8230-7622-9page 247
Further reading
- Gen. Stand Watie, Confederate Indians (Univ. of Oklahoma, 1998)
External links
- Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the official site
- United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, the official site
- Cherokee Heritage Center, Park Hill, OK
- Compiled laws of the Cherokee Nation, published by authority of the National Council = ᏗᎦᏟᏌᏅᎯ ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏛᏍᏗ ᏣᎳᎩ ᎠᏰᎵ ᏕᎤᎲᎢ, ᎠᏰᎵ ᏗᏂᎳᏫᎩᏱ ᎤᎵᏁᏨᎯ ᏗᎦᏃᏣᎶᏗᏱ. 1881