More Cherokee Adventures

As I've continued to learn more about the Cherokee, I recently made another trip to the Qualla Boundary in North Carolina. I talked to some folks about the Huskey and Bradley families and spent time with the collections there.

We came back via the Blue Ridge Parkway, where I contemplated more of the sacred sites, like Judaculla Courthouse shown here. The Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook, by Barbara R. Duncan and Brett H. Riggs, is a helpful source of information. To see my photos and notes of related Cherokee sites, click here.

Judaculla Rock

For many of us, our elusive Cherokee ties are intriguing, and I'm enjoying learning more about the history and ways. While searching for sacred Cherokee sites, I visited the mysterious Judaculla Rock, a large sandstone inscribed with various symbols and images.

According to Cherokee legend, Judaculla, the slant-eyed giant, leaped from his lofty mountain home on Tennessee Bald and scratched the rock as he landed. Rocks with similar carvings can be found in other Cherokee places, such as Georgia, and all of them are estimated to be hundreds and hundreds of years old.

Cherokee research adventures

Besides being busy with the holiday activities, I took some time to explore more about Cherokee heritage. I've been reading some really good books about the culture and history, such as G. Keith Parker's Seven Cherokee Myths, and James Mooney's History, Myths, and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokee. I've visited some of the sacred sites and took time to contemplate their significance.

Here, you see Kituhwa, one of the original mother town locations that was lost during the Removal in the late 1830s. The townhouse that held the sacred fire was built upon a 15-20 foot high mound that has been reduced to about six feet, as a result of the years of farming by others. What's left of the mound is the slight green rise visible in front of the wooded hill. This 300 acre river bottom land, which lies along the Tuckaseegee below the towering height of Clingman's Dome, was bought back by the Cherokee in 1996.

Cherokee blood

Many families that are native to the Sevier County area claim some tie to the Cherokees. Although physical features may certainly seem as evidence, determining the actual family link may be very difficult. Even with my green eyes and light brown hair, I've been told by more than one dentist that my front teeth seem to indicate a Native American gene or two, because they are "shovel shaped," cupped with a ridge at the upper inside. Other cousins have distinctive cheek bones, and some family members are very dark skinned. I've heard the Cherokee lore about more than one of my family lines, but who can prove anything?

Most individuals from older generations were very reluctant to speak about their Cherokee ancestry, simply because of the former stigma and the Trail of Tears experience that killed so many in the relocation to reservations. Those who wanted to stay in the mountains made every effort to be inconspicuous, explaining their dark skin as being a "Black Dutch" characteristic. However, no one is even certain what that is supposed to mean. Who are the Black Dutch?

In this day, those of us who feel a connection to the Cherokee spirit and roots are left to only imagine how we inherited it, but some of us take it pretty seriously. Pictured at top in a Cherokee ribbon shirt is my cousin George Brooks, who diligently seeks to learn more about the Cherokee ways and to celebrate them. Below is the back of his wife Gail, whose dress illustrates the sheathed knife typically worn by the women. If anyone can identify the Cherokee link in any of our family lines, we would like to know it!

Cherokee roots

Henry Oakley's son Wiley (b. September 12, 1885; d. November 18, 1954) was greatly influenced by the Cherokee heritage of his mother Elmina Conner's family. Wiley seemed to innately follow their ways and demonstrate their spirit in his appreciation and respect for nature. After Elmina's death in 1894, he spent much of his time wandering the hills and woods in search of a connection with his dear mother. His knowledge of the land earned him the nickname "The Roamin' Man of the Mountains." He served as a trail guide to many, and his entertaining stories won him the attention of some pretty important people like Harvey Firestone, Henry Ford, and Franklin D. Roosevelt, just to name a few. His wit and wisdom earned him the reputation as the Will Rogers of the Smoky Mountains. As a result, Wiley served in far away big cities as ambassador and spokesman for promoting the establishment of the Smokies as a National Park. However, he declined offers for lucrative contracts and preferred instead to live a simpler life near his beloved mountains, the home of his Cherokee kin.