|
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 west 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, and lower Hiwassee rivers, the Overhill towns rose to prominence within the Cherokee Nation in the early 18th century, when they began to standardize trade with the 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 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 led to 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, and they migrated to the south and west away from settler pressure for a time.〔Gerald Schroedl, "(Overhill Cherokees )." ''The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 2002. Retrieved: 21 January 2008.〕 The Overhill town of Chota, in present-day Monroe County, Tennessee, was recognized as the ''de facto'' capital 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.〔 In the 1970s, most of the former Overhill sites were submerged by the impoundment of the Little Tennessee River in a Tennessee Valley Authority project. But, archaeologists conducted extensive excavations prior to this, during which they identified most of the Overhill towns and extracted thousands of artifacts, helping them develop volumes of invaluable information regarding the region's Cherokee and pre-Cherokee inhabitants. Different cultures of indigenous peoples had lived along the river for 12,000 years.〔For a summary of the Overhill country's pre-Cherokee inhabitants, see: Jefferson Chapman, ''Tellico Archaeology: 12,000 Years of Native American History'' (Tennessee Valley Authority, 1985/reprint Knoxville, Tenn.: University of Tennessee Press, 1995).〕 ==Geographic area== The Overhill settlements were concentrated around three rivers at the base of the Great Smoky Mountains and the Unicoi Mountains, in what are now Monroe and Polk counties in Tennessee. The northernmost of these three rivers, the Little Tennessee, was the locus for a string of prominent Overhill settlements situated between modern-day Vonore and Calderwood Dam. Other important settlements were situated along the Hiwassee River south of modern Etowah and along the Tellico River in modern Tellico Plains. Although Native Americans used most of the Tennessee side of the Great Smoky Mountains primarily as a hunting ground, early Euro-American explorers recalled abandoned villages and temporary hunting camps scattered around the region. These were often found in the game-rich coves of the northern part of the range and near the junctions of major streams.〔Henry Timberlake, Samuel Williams (ed.), ''Memoirs'', 1756–1765 (Marietta, Georgia: Continental Book Co., 1948), 118–119.〕〔Evelyn Parrott Graham, "Cocke County." ''Newport'' (Newport, Tenn.: Clifton Club, 1970).〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Overhill Cherokee」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|