18th century Cherokee people who lived on the west side of the Appalachian Mountains
Timberlake's "Draught of the Cherokee Country." Timberlake's "Tennessee River" is now known as the Little Tennessee River. North is to the left.
Overhill Cherokee was the term for the Cherokee people located in their historic settlements in what is now the U.S. state of Tennessee in the Southeastern United States, on the western side of the Appalachian Mountains. This name was used by 18th-century European traders and explorers from British colonies along the Atlantic coast, as they had to cross the mountains to reach these settlements.
Situated along the lower Little Tennessee, lower Tellico, lower Hiwassee and upper Tennessee rivers, the Overhill towns rose to prominence within the Cherokee Nation in the early 18th century. They began to standardize trade with British colonists. In the early part of the century, the Overhill towns' remote location at the far end of the Trading Path meant they were reached only by those traders and explorers adventurous enough to make the difficult journey to the interior over the mountain range. By the middle of the century, the Overhill towns were consistently courted by both British and French emissaries, as the two powers struggled for the control of the North American continent and the lucrative fur trade.
During and following the American Revolutionary War, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the westward thrust of Euro-American settlement resulted in conflict and the decline of the Overhill towns. The Cherokee were forced to cede most of their lands in this area through a series of unfavorable treaties with the United States. For a time, they migrated to the south and west, deeper into Georgia and Alabama, and away from settler pressure.[1]
The Overhill town of Chota, in present-day Monroe County, Tennessee, was recognized as the de facto capital and mother town of the entire Cherokee Nation for most of the 18th century, when it was the major settlement. The town of Tanasi became the namesake for the state of Tennessee. Many prominent Cherokee leaders, including Attakullakulla, Oconastota, Nancy Ward, and Sequoyah, were born and raised in Overhill towns.[1]
^ abGerald Schroedl, "Overhill Cherokees." The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, 2002. Retrieved: 21 January 2008.
OverhillCherokee was the term for the Cherokee people located in their historic settlements in what is now the U.S. state of Tennessee in the Southeastern...
A third group, the Overhill Towns, located on the western side of the Appalachian Mountains, made up the remainder of the Cherokee settlements of the...
(Cherokee: ᏔᎾᏏ, romanized: Tanasi; also rendered Tanase, Tenasi, Tenassee, Tunissee, Tennessee, and other such variations) was a historic Overhill settlement...
British colonies to the OverhillCherokee during the 1761–1762 Timberlake Expedition. Timberlake's account of his journeys to the Cherokee, published posthumously...
was "First Beloved Man" (the equivalent of a regional Cherokee chief) of the OverhillCherokee after 1783, when the United States gained independence...
Cornstalk, Cherokee attacked settlers in South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and North Carolina in the Second Cherokee War. OverhillCherokee Nancy Ward...
These western counties had originally been acquired by lease from the OverhillCherokee, out of which the Watauga Republic had arisen. The North Carolina...
of the OverhillCherokee and chief of the Cherokee, and several other pacifist chiefs invited by the State of Franklin, outraged the Cherokee. More joined...
and the Overhill Towns in present-day southeastern Tennessee west of the Appalachian Mountains. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Cherokee Path was...
dividing the OverhillCherokee villages in modern-day Tennessee from the Cherokee Middle towns in present-day North Carolina. The Overhill town of Chilhowee...
/ 35.24085; -84.56361 Great Hiwassee (Cherokee: ᎠᏴᏩᏏ ᎢᏆᎭ, romanized: Ayvwasi Egwaha) was an important Overhill settlement from the late 17th through the...
(c. 1707–1783) was a Cherokee skiagusta (war chief) of Chota, which was for nearly four decades the primary town in the Overhill territory, and within...
bulwark dividing the OverhillCherokee villages in modern Tennessee from the Cherokee Middle towns in modern North Carolina. The Overhill town of Chilhowee...
Monroe County, Tennessee, home to a substantial pre-Cherokee town and later an OverhillCherokee village, now submerged by Tellico Lake This disambiguation...
The Cherokee Nation (Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ Tsalagihi Ayeli or ᏣᎳᎩᏰᎵ Tsalagiyehli), formerly known as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, is the largest of three...
were killed, and brought south to Overhill territory, where he was adopted by a Cherokee family, and raised as Cherokee. Attakullakulla believed he was...
excursion into the OverhillCherokee lands west of the Appalachian Mountains, which took place in 1761 following the Anglo-Cherokee War. Its purpose was...
Hanging Maw, or Uskwa'li-gu'ta in Cherokee, was the leading chief of the OverhillCherokee from 1788 to 1794. They were located in present-day southeastern...
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