The story
of the USA can’t be told without references to its original inhabitants, the
Native Americans, formerly dubbed as ‘the Indians’ in politically less correct
times. There are dozens of maps that show just which tribe was settling in
which area, long before state lines were ever drawn. The Cherokee territory
encompassed parts of what is now North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Kentucky.
As a reminder, the word ‘Indian’ supposedly comes from India itself, or the Indies. Christopher Columbus, in one of the biggest blunders of navigational history, thought he had discovered a western passage to India when he discovered America. Hence, the inhabitants became known as ‘Indians’. I still remember calling them Indians in the 1980’s and 1990’s before we were introduced to the more proper terms. Also, see ‘negroes’ and ‘African Americans’.
As a reminder, the word ‘Indian’ supposedly comes from India itself, or the Indies. Christopher Columbus, in one of the biggest blunders of navigational history, thought he had discovered a western passage to India when he discovered America. Hence, the inhabitants became known as ‘Indians’. I still remember calling them Indians in the 1980’s and 1990’s before we were introduced to the more proper terms. Also, see ‘negroes’ and ‘African Americans’.
For
Veterans Day weekend, we decide to travel to the most western part of North
Carolina, in the middle of the Great Smokies, or the heart of Cherokee Nation.
For the day, we plan a trip to both, the reservation and the museum in Cherokee, NC. First on our list is the reservation for the tourists. Once we enter the area, we are greeted by our tour guide who leads us to several huts, where we are introduced to the arts and crafts of the Cherokees, from making caps and clothes, the carving of wooden kitchenware to the manufacturing of weaponry, like blowguns and bows and arrows. Equally fascinating is the development in the construction of their houses, how they were built more efficiently throughout the years with better and sturdier material.
Another favorite exhibit is the trader post. Contrary to popular belief, Native Americans traded quite frequently with civilian merchants. Not that the Cherokees didn’t have the know-how to provide for themselves. But there was one item that was coveted in particular. Not surprisingly, this was the rifle. Cherokees didn’t believe in using guns in battle—they considered this cowardly. Where it certainly would help them would be in the everyday grind of hunting. Cornering bucks can be hard work, energy best spent for making home improvements around the village.
The final stop is at the community circle, where the tribe would assemble for social occasions. Here, alliances would be shaped and dances performed. Our guide quickly put an end to any myths or ‘John Wayne’ Indian folklore. For example, the salutation how or the yip yip shrieks you would see and hear in the movies will earn you a punch in the face rather than a good natured chuckle.
Later at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, we are treated to an extensive exhibit of The Trail of Tears. This was the forced repatriation of several tribes, including the Cherokees, the Creeks, and the Choctaw, where thousands of them perished on their way out west. The removals themselves, not surprisingly, were precipitated by the discoveries of natural resources, primarily gold.
Andrew Jackson, one of the prime architects of the Indian Removal Act, was as wily a politician as any we’ve witnessed this century. Not a stranger to brutality exercised against Native Americans, Jackson frequently would form alliances with the Indians, only to turn against them later while he was occupying the Oval Office.
The numbers vary as to how many Cherokees lost their lives on the Trail of Tears. What we do know is that only very few Cherokees left their land voluntarily. Many felt they had been sold out by their leadership. Only a few hundred fortunate Cherokees, thanks to connections within the civilian population, were able to remain while the remainder embarked upon the nu na hi du na tlo hi lu (translated: the trail where they wept), where they would die of disease, the cold, and starvation.
The museum is as haunting a place as any I’ve ever visited, on par with the concentration camps I’ve visited or the civil rights museums.
For the day, we plan a trip to both, the reservation and the museum in Cherokee, NC. First on our list is the reservation for the tourists. Once we enter the area, we are greeted by our tour guide who leads us to several huts, where we are introduced to the arts and crafts of the Cherokees, from making caps and clothes, the carving of wooden kitchenware to the manufacturing of weaponry, like blowguns and bows and arrows. Equally fascinating is the development in the construction of their houses, how they were built more efficiently throughout the years with better and sturdier material.
Another favorite exhibit is the trader post. Contrary to popular belief, Native Americans traded quite frequently with civilian merchants. Not that the Cherokees didn’t have the know-how to provide for themselves. But there was one item that was coveted in particular. Not surprisingly, this was the rifle. Cherokees didn’t believe in using guns in battle—they considered this cowardly. Where it certainly would help them would be in the everyday grind of hunting. Cornering bucks can be hard work, energy best spent for making home improvements around the village.
The final stop is at the community circle, where the tribe would assemble for social occasions. Here, alliances would be shaped and dances performed. Our guide quickly put an end to any myths or ‘John Wayne’ Indian folklore. For example, the salutation how or the yip yip shrieks you would see and hear in the movies will earn you a punch in the face rather than a good natured chuckle.
Later at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, we are treated to an extensive exhibit of The Trail of Tears. This was the forced repatriation of several tribes, including the Cherokees, the Creeks, and the Choctaw, where thousands of them perished on their way out west. The removals themselves, not surprisingly, were precipitated by the discoveries of natural resources, primarily gold.
Andrew Jackson, one of the prime architects of the Indian Removal Act, was as wily a politician as any we’ve witnessed this century. Not a stranger to brutality exercised against Native Americans, Jackson frequently would form alliances with the Indians, only to turn against them later while he was occupying the Oval Office.
The numbers vary as to how many Cherokees lost their lives on the Trail of Tears. What we do know is that only very few Cherokees left their land voluntarily. Many felt they had been sold out by their leadership. Only a few hundred fortunate Cherokees, thanks to connections within the civilian population, were able to remain while the remainder embarked upon the nu na hi du na tlo hi lu (translated: the trail where they wept), where they would die of disease, the cold, and starvation.
The museum is as haunting a place as any I’ve ever visited, on par with the concentration camps I’ve visited or the civil rights museums.
