Nanyehi ( Cherokee : ᎾᏅᏰᎯ), known in English as Nancy Ward (c.1738 – c.1823), was a Beloved Woman and political leader of the Cherokee . She advocated for peaceful coexistence with European Americans and, late in life, spoke out for Cherokee retention of tribal hunting lands. She is credited with the introduction of dairy products to the Cherokee economy.
52-657: Nanyehi (meaning "one who goes about") was born c. 1738 in the Cherokee chief-city, Chota (or "town of refuge") . Today, that area is within Monroe County , on the southeastern border of Tennessee . Her mother, a sister of Attakullakulla , was a member of the Wolf Clan . According to Nanyehi's descendant, John Walker "Jack" Hildebrand, her father was "Fivekiller", who was a member of the Lenape (Delaware) tribe. While
104-540: A "First Beloved Man"—the Uku . Although this person was not a chief in the literal sense, he was respected by the inhabitants, who deferred to the First Beloved Man in dealings with other towns and settlements, and other tribes or peoples. The Cherokee Towns of the eighteenth century were designated as being either red (war) or white (peace) towns. In times of strife, the leaders of the red towns gathered to
156-548: A causeway to the mainland. The Chota monument, situated directly above the ancient townhouse site, consists of eight pillars —one for each of the seven Cherokee clans , and one for the nation. The grave of Chief Oconostota , found in the 1969 excavations, was re-interred next to the monument. This site is now managed by the federally recognized Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians , based in Cherokee, North Carolina . The Little Tennessee River enters Tennessee from its source in
208-429: A chosen peace chief, and the peace towns remained a haven or sanctuary for those people who needed protection. These included Native American petty criminals and escaping colonial slaves. The peace chief had the right to over-rule decisions made by the skiagusta at any given time. The position of skiagusta was based on trust, ability, and continued success in battle. A war chief who was thought spiritually impure or
260-446: A chosen war chief's council in order to conduct discussions and war ceremonies if needed. This war chief, or skiagusta , became the supreme leader of the warriors and responsible for directing hostilities towards the enemy. Skiagusta was the highest rank in the war council hierarchy, and stood immediately above the rank of outacite (or "mankiller"). The leaders of the peace (white) towns in these times continued to take council with
312-468: A confrontation between 14 Cherokee hostages at Fort Prince George and the fort's garrison on February 16 resulted in the death of the hostages. After several months, the Fort Loudoun garrison surrendered. The Cherokee killed many of them as they struggled to return to Virginia, and took plunder from the fort to Chota. After the fall of Fort Loudoun, British forces launched another offensive against
364-516: A daughter together, Elizabeth "Betsy" Ward, who would one day marry General Joseph Martin . Bryant Ward eventually left her, and returned to his base in South Carolina and his first wife. For her actions at the Battle of Taliwa, the Cherokee awarded her the title of Ghigau (or "Beloved Woman") . This made her the only female voting member of the Cherokee general council. She was also named
416-594: A hatchet, symbolizing peace between the British and Cherokee, and the parties smoked ritual tobacco in peace pipes. Timberlake spent the night in Old Hop's "hot-house" (a circular dwelling used by the Overhill Cherokee in cooler months) before proceeding to Citico the next day. Timberlake kept a journal, which was published posthumously as his memoirs. He also made a detailed map of the Cherokee towns along
468-582: A large townhouse or council house, the site of community meetings of hundreds of people. These were usually built on top of an existing platform mound in the center of the town. These earthworks had typically been built by ancestral peoples of the South Appalachian Mississippian or earlier cultures. Prior to the flooding of Tellico Reservoir, the Chota townhouse site was raised above the reservoir's operating levels and connected via
520-577: A letter to the council, writing: "…don't part with any more of our lands but continue on it and enlarge your farms and cultivate and raise corn and cotton and we, your mothers and sisters, will make clothing for you… It was our desire to forewarn you all not to part with our lands." Despite her efforts, in 1819 the Cherokee ceded their lands north of the Hiwassee River and she was forced to join other Cherokee in moving south. Nancy Ward opened an inn in southeastern Tennessee at Womankiller Ford, on
572-479: A pair of wire spectacles) as that of Chief Oconostota. Thousands of stone and ceramic artifacts were uncovered, including projectile points dating to the Archaic period (8000–1000 B.C.). The structures uncovered at Chota included two townhouses, one of which had a diameter of 60 feet (18 m) and another a diameter of just over 50 feet (15 m). The smaller townhouse, which was slightly older, may have been
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#1732771997560624-746: A punitive expedition against Cherokee settlements in Fall of that year, that burnt most of the Overhill Cherokee towns, crops, and winter supplies. Devastated, the Cherokee sought peace in January 1777, and gave up hunting grounds in east Tennessee to the American frontiersmen. In her role as a Beloved Woman, Nancy Ward had the authority to spare captives. Following the Cherokee attacks on the Watauga settlements, she saved settler Lydia (Russell) Bean,
676-529: A young teen, Nanyehi was married to Tsu-la (or "Kingfisher"). According to historian Emmet Starr, he was a member of the Deer Clan. By the time she was 17, Nanyehi and Kingfisher had two children, Catherine Ka-Ti Walker and Littlefellow Hiskyteehee Fivekiller. In the 1755 Battle of Taliwa , when the Cherokee fought their traditional enemy, the Muscogee (Creek) people , Nanyehi accompanied her husband to
728-662: Is a historic Overhill Cherokee town site in Monroe County, Tennessee , in the southeastern United States. Developing after nearby Tanasi , Chota ( Cherokee : ᎢᏣᏘ , romanized: Itsati ) was the most important of the Overhill towns from the late 1740s until 1788. It replaced Tanasi as the de facto capital, or 'mother town' of the Cherokee people. A number of prominent Cherokee leaders were born or resided at Chota, among them Attakullakulla , Oconostota , Old Hop , Old Tassel , Hanging Maw , and Nancy Ward . The former Chota and Tanasi sites are listed together on
780-535: The Appalachian Mountains and flows for just over 50 miles (80 km) through parts of Blount , Monroe, and Loudon counties before joining the Tennessee River near present-day Lenoir City . Tellico Lake, created by the completion of Tellico Dam in 1979, spans the lower 33 miles (53 km) of the river. The Chota site is located approximately 27 miles (43 km) above the mouth of
832-677: The Chickamauga (or Lower) Cherokee . Ward's peace efforts had not prevented another invasion of the Cherokee territory by the North Carolina militia in 1778. The force under Evan Shelby destroyed more villages and demanded further land cessions. Ward and her family were captured in the battle, but they were eventually released and returned to Chota. In 1780, Ward continued to warn Patriot soldiers of attacks, in an effort to prevent further retaliatory raids against her people. According to folklorist, Harold Felton , she even sent cattle to
884-580: The Chickamauga Cherokee moved their capital further south to Ustanali , near what developed as modern Calhoun, Georgia . In the late 1790s, the Duke of Orleans paid a visit to the American fort known as Tellico Blockhouse while on a tour of East Tennessee. There the duke watched more than 600 Cherokees engage in a ritual "ballplay" at Chota; he bet six gallons of brandy on the outcome. By this time, only five dwellings remained standing in
936-732: The Little Pigeon River in Tennessee. Nanyehi expressed surprise that there were no women negotiators among the Americans. Sevier was equally astonished that the Cherokee had entrusted such important work to a woman. Nanyehi reportedly told him, "You know that women are always looked upon as nothing; but we are your mothers; you are our sons. Our cry is all for peace; let it continue. This peace must last forever. Let your women's sons be ours; our sons be yours. Let your women hear our words." An American observer said that her speech
988-622: The National Register of Historic Places ; Tanasi also has an archaeological site designation (40MR62) assigned in 1972. Since 1979, both sites have been mostly submerged by the Tellico Lake impoundment of the Little Tennessee River . Archeological excavations were conducted before the dam was completed. During the excavations, the site of the Chota townhouse was found. Major Cherokee towns were centered around
1040-619: The "mother town" of the Overhill Cherokee. Around this time, on the eve of the French and Indian War , the Cherokee were reportedly leaning toward the French side, prompting the English colonies of Virginia and South Carolina to increase contact with leaders of the Overhill towns in order to strengthen an alliance. Virginia sent Major Andrew Lewis with 60 men to build a fort at Chota, which
1092-539: The 'white', or peace, chief in non- tactical matters, even during wartime. Before the 1794 establishment of the Cherokee Nation , the Cherokee people had no standing government. The citizens were all considered equal, although those with the ability to speak well were highly regarded and held more power in council . The Cherokee people as a whole were historically connected by a decentralized and loose confederacy of towns, villages, and settlements, each run by
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#17327719975601144-651: The 1794 establishment of the Cherokee Nation . In 1808 and again in 1817, the Women's Council reportedly spoke out against the cession or sale to the United States of any more lands. In 1817 Nanyehi was too sick to attend the Cherokee council at which leaders discussed whether or not to move west of the Mississippi River to Indian Territory , as was proposed by Georgia and the US federal government. She sent
1196-601: The Cherokee and the Americans, helping negotiate the Cherokee Treaty of Hopewell (1785). Nanyehi objected to further sales of Cherokee lands to whites, but her objections were largely ignored. The Cherokee were under pressure in Georgia and Alabama from encroachment by White settlers. Some leaders believed that ceding lands bought them some time and helped preserve the Cherokee people. The Chickamauga, however, continued their relentless fight against frontier settlers up to
1248-584: The Cherokee captured Fort Loudon on the Tellico River in August 1760. A decade later, In May 1775, a group of Delaware, Mohawk and Shawnee emissaries formed a delegation that headed south to support the British who were trying to gain the help of the Cherokee and other tribes for war with their rebel colonies. The Cherokee had to face multiple issues during the Revolutionary War. Most of
1300-495: The Cherokee, and the Overhill towns sued for peace. This was granted in the Treaty of Long Island in 1761. Virginia authorities dispatched a friendship delegation led by colonist and military officer Henry Timberlake to solidify peace with the Overhill towns. He reached Chota in late December 1761, accompanied by Ostenaco (the head Cherokee man at Tomotley ). At a ceremony inside the Chota townhouse, Ostenaco ceremoniously buried
1352-643: The Chota site. Laborers were paid by the Works Projects Administration during the Great Depression . Their findings, which Lewis and Kneburg hoped would provide comparison data for their Hiwassee Island findings, included 85 pit features, 12 burials, and one structure. After the Tennessee Valley Authority announced plans in 1967 to build Tellico Dam, which would flood several historic Cherokee sites,
1404-539: The Creek and Choctaw peoples . The British built military stations and frontier posts on Cherokee land. These posts gradually attracted more European-American settlers. A group of White frontiersmen killed a group of Cherokee in present-day West Virginia, who were returning from having helped the British take over Fort Duquesne (at present-day Pittsburgh). Outraged, the Cherokee killed more than 20 settlers in retaliation. Conflict broke out that lasted two years, during which
1456-578: The Ocowee River (present-day Ocoee River ). Her son cared for her during her last years. Ward died 1822 – 1824, before the Cherokee were removed from their remaining lands. She and her son, Fivekiller, are buried at the Nancy Ward Tomb , on top of a hill not far from the site of the inn, south of present-day Benton, Tennessee . Chota (Cherokee town) Chota (also spelled Chote , Echota , Itsati , and other similar variations)
1508-451: The Overhill country in response to several attacks by Cherokee on American settlements. His party destroyed most of the remaining Overhill towns, including their capital, Chota. The Cherokee rebuilt Chota by 1784, but it never recovered its former status. In 1788, Old Tassel —who had become the leader of the Overhill towns —was murdered with another chief by Americans under a flag of truce at Chilhowee. Largely in response to this atrocity,
1560-637: The Overhill territory produced in the 1720s and 1730s, but Chota does not. This suggests that Chota may have been part of Tanasi, or may not have been considered a town before the 1740s. In the 1720s, the head man of Tanasi— known simply as the "Tanasi Warrior"— was the chief of the Overhill towns in what is now Tennessee, and the Middle and Valley towns in Western North Carolina. Chota does not appear in historical records until around 1745. In 1730, however, Moytoy of Tellico , with
1612-553: The Overhill towns. Christian's force entered the Little Tennessee Valley unopposed and negotiated a truce with chiefs Attakullakulla (Dragging Canoe's father) and Oconastota . When Dragging Canoe refused to negotiate, however, Christian destroyed the towns of Great Tellico, Citico, Mialoquo, Chilhowee, and Toqua . In 1780, John Sevier , who had just returned from the Battle of Kings Mountain , led an invasion of
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1664-462: The Tanasi townhouse. Other structures included a 48-foot (15 m) x 23-foot (7.0 m) summer pavilion flanked by a 100-foot (30 m) x 160-foot (49 m) village plaza, and 11 rectangular summer dwelling/circular winter dwelling pairings. Dwellings were spaced between 40 feet (12 m) and 100 feet (30 m) apart and were located up to 2,000 feet (610 m) from the townhouse. One of
1716-478: The University of Tennessee initiated a plan to conduct salvage archeological excavations throughout the Little Tennessee Valley. Excavations were conducted at Chota between 1969 and 1974, as litigation stalled the dam project. The excavations uncovered 783 features (mostly refuse pits), the postmold layouts of 31 structures, and 91 burials. Burial 10, uncovered in 1969, was identified by its grave goods (namely
1768-640: The Virginia border about an imminent attack by her people. In late July 1776, Dragging Canoe , Oconostota , and The Raven led a surprise attack on the Overmountain settlements of Heaton's station , Fort Watauga , and Carter's Valley, respectively. After being beaten back by the frontiersmen, Cherokee raiding parties continued attacks against the isolated settlements in the region. State militias retaliated, destroying Native villages and crops. The Carolina Light Horse Rangers and Virginia Royal Scots formed
1820-413: The cloth in the village for tribal members' garments. Lydia Bean had reclaimed two of her dairy cows from the settlement. While she was living with Nanyehi, she taught the Cherokee woman how to care for the cows, milk them, and process the milk into dairy products. Both the animals and their products would sustain the Cherokee when hunting was bad. Starr wrote that Nancy Ward successfully raised cows and
1872-487: The dwellings was classified as Early Mississippian culture (c. 1000–1300 A.D.), while the others were historic Cherokee. In 1986, the burials revealed at the Chota site were reinterred in a burial mound at the Sequoyah Museum, near Vonore . The exception was the remains of Oconostota, which were buried next to the Chota monument over the townhouse site, as desired by the Cherokee. The eight pillars stand for
1924-409: The field, located in what is now northern Georgia. She chewed his bullets before he loaded his gun, so that the jagged edges would inflict more damage. After Kingfisher was killed in the battle, Nanyehi picked up his rifle and led the Cherokee warriors to victory. In the late 1750s, Nanyehi married an Irish trader, Bryant Ward. She became known as Nancy, an anglicized version of her name. The couple had
1976-429: The help of English emissary Alexander Cuming , was crowned "Emperor of the Cherokee." This effectively shifted the overall capital to his town of Great Tellico , where Moytoy was chief. When Moytoy died in 1741, his son, Amouskositte , attempted to succeed him as emperor. But Conocotocko , called Old Hop by the English, was the head man at Chota and began to consolidate power. By 1753 Chota had usurped Great Tellico as
2028-489: The leader of the women's clan council that authorized her to become an ambassador and negotiator for all her people. Nanye'hi became a de facto ambassador between the Cherokee and the British and European Americans. She had learned the art of diplomacy from her maternal uncle, the influential chief Attakullakulla ("Little Carpenter"). In 1781, she was among the Cherokee leaders who met with an American delegation led by John Sevier , to discuss American settlements along
2080-538: The main Appalachian crest, rise a few miles to the southeast and southwest, respectively. The Tanasi and Chota monuments are located just off Highway 360 (Citico Road) on Bacon Ferry Road, which ends in a cul-de-sac parking lot. A short, maintained trail connects the parking lot to the Chota monument. Tanasi is first mentioned in early 18th-century documents as the base or destination of various English colonial traders and diplomats. Tanasi appears on multiple maps of
2132-495: The outbreak of the American Revolution , the Cherokee aligned with the British, hoping to expel American colonists from their territory. In 1776, Dragging Canoe (the head man at Mialoquo ), Old Abraham of Chilhowee , and The Raven led an unsuccessful three-pronged attack against Heaton's station , Fort Watauga , and Carter's Valley, respectively. In response, Virginia sent Colonel William Christian to subdue
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2184-468: The river, entitled "Draught of the Cherokee Country". It recorded 52 dwellings and a townhouse at Chota. He listed chiefs, the number of warriors, and general population for each of the major towns. Conocotocko (Old Hop) was listed as governor of both Chota and Tanasi. The 175 warriors available at Chota made up the second-largest contingent among the Overhill towns, behind only Citico . At
2236-612: The river, opposite a sharp bend in the river known as Bacon's Bend. Both Chota and Tanasi were developed by the Cherokee on a relatively flat terrace along the river, flanked by steep hills rising to the south. These hills are part of the Appalachian Ridge-and-Valley Physiographic Province , which is characterized by narrow, elongated ridges and steep hills. The Great Smoky Mountains and the Unicoi Mountains , both part of
2288-410: The seven clans and one for the Cherokee nation as a whole. Skiagusta A skiagusta / ˌ s k aɪ ə ˈ ɡ ʌ s t ə / (ᎠᏍᎦᏯᎬᏍᏔ, also asgayagvsta , also skyagunsta , also skayagusta ) is a Cherokee title for a war chief, known as the 'red chief' in times of turmoil. The skiagusta was the highest possible rank for a red chief; however, he remained subordinate to the council of
2340-605: The starving militia. In July 1781, Nanyehi negotiated a peace treaty between her people and the Americans. No longer facing a major Cherokee threat along the western frontier, the Overmountain Men were able to send a considerable amount of man power to support the eastern seaboard militias and Washington 's Continental army against British General Cornwallis ' forces in the American Revolution. Ward continued promoting alliance and mutual friendship between
2392-488: The town. In the 1880s, Cyrus Thomas, working for the Smithsonian Institution , conducted a survey of ancient earthwork mounds in the Little Tennessee Valley. Thomas excavated a mound at the Chota site and uncovered several artifacts. The site was undisturbed for decades. In 1939, a University of Tennessee team, mainly under the auspices of Thomas Lewis and Madeline Kneburg, conducted excavations at
2444-531: The tribes were originally allied with the British against the rebel colonists. They wanted to expel the European-American settlers from their lands. Ward's cousin, the war chief , Dragging Canoe , wanted to ally with the British against the settlers, but Nanyehi wanted to keep peace with the rebels. In early July 1776, Ward, warned a group of white settlers living near the Holston River and on
2496-535: The war against the frontier settlements had been dismissed, left the area of the traditional Cherokee towns with many like-minded warriors and their families. The group traveled further down the Tennessee River valley, away from the White men. He and about 500 Cherokee settled 11 new tribal towns centered on the convergence of the Tennessee River with South Chickamauga Creek . This band was thereafter known as
2548-448: The wife of William Bean , at what is present day's Elizabethton, Tennessee . She took Bean into her house and nursed her back to health from her wounds. A recovered Bean taught Nanyehi a new loom-weaving technique, which she then taught other women in the tribe. The Cherokee women had typically made garments by sewing a combination of processed hides, handwoven vegetal fiber cloth, and cotton or wool cloth bought from traders. Women wove all
2600-575: Was completed in August 1756. It was never garrisoned because the Cherokee allied with the English against the French. Later that year, South Carolina sent engineer William de Brahm with 300 men to build Fort Loudoun , which was completed on the Little Tennessee River in March 1757. By 1760, relations between the British and Cherokee had soured, erupting into open conflict by February. After Cherokee warriors laid siege to Fort Loudoun ,
2652-473: Was said to have been the first to introduce that industry among the Cherokees. Those Cherokee who adopted loom weaving and dairy farming began to resemble European-American subsistence farmers. According to a 1933 account, Nanyehi was also among the first Cherokees to own African-American slaves . With the signing of the Treaty of Dewitt's Corner in early 1777, Dragging Canoe, whose lone counsel to continue
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#17327719975602704-710: Was very moving. In the early 1760s, the Cherokee entered an alliance with the British colonists who were fighting the French and their allies in the French and Indian War (the North American front of the Seven Years' War in Europe). Each side had Native American allies in North America. In exchange for their assistance, the British Americans promised to protect the Cherokee from their enemies:
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