Cherokee is the gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Cherokee is located in North Carolina south of the Great Smoky Mountains in the Oconcluftee River Valley. Cherokee is the gateway to both the Great Smoky
Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is the headquarters for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The town is a tourist-oriented town due to its close proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the casino- Harrah’s Cherokee Casino which opened in 1995.
Once it was mainly a town of manufacturing and textile plants along with tourism to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Now Cherokee and Harrah’s Cherokee Casino attracts close to 4 million tourists. Many visitors travel to Cherokee due to the town’s close proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and for the casino.
Other popular attractions are: Mingo Falls, Museum of the Cherokee Indians, Oconaluftee Visitor Center at the south entrance of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Cherokee Indian Reservation, Oconaluftee Indian Village, the outdoor drama Unto These Hills, and the Qualla Arts and Crafts Center.
● At the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, you can experience the 11,000 year old Cherokee story through priceless ancient artifacts, computer-generated imagery, artwork, life-sized figures, dioramas, and more. The museum is located at 589 Tsali Blvd., Cherokee, NC. at the intersection of Tsali Blvd. and Drama Road.
● As you step into the Oconaluftee Indian Village, you’re transported back to witness the challenges of Cherokee life. Visitors can experience traditional medicine and interact with villagers as they hull canoes, make pottery and masks, weave baskets and beadwork, and participate in their daily activities. The Village also hosts live reenactments, interactive demonstrations as well as “Hands-On Cherokee” arts and crafts classes.
● The Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, Inc. was founded in 1946 with the purpose of preserving and advancing Cherokee arts and crafts. It is the oldest and leading Native American Arts cooperative in the United States. The Cherokee people are still in touch with pottery, basket weaving, carving, and tool-making that go back over ten thousand years. A variety of authentic and handmade Native American arts and crafts are available for purchase at Qualla Arts and Crafts.
● Unto These Hills is an outdoor historical drama staged annually at the 2800-seat Mountainside Theatre. The play follows the story of the Cherokee of the Eastern region up to their removal, via the Trail of Tears, in 1838. It is the second oldest outdoor historical drama in the United States.
History
The first inhabitants of the mountains were the Cherokee Indians. The Cherokee used the word Shacorage meaning “blue, like smoke” to describe the mountain region. The “smoky” mountains were bountiful for providing the Cherokee with natural resources. The area provided hundreds of species of plants used for food, medicines, and crafts. The wide variety of trees provided fuel, weaving fibers, twine, medicinal barks and the framework and covering of dwellings.
The Cherokee Indians used the Great Smoky Mountains as hunting grounds. The nearby area of Gatlinburg, TN was once hunting grounds to the early Native Americans and Cherokee Indian Tribe. The region was teaming with wildlife which provided hunting of animals that were then used for food, clothing, shelter, and medicine to the Cherokee. A footpath through the mountains called Indian Gap Trail was the way to reach the bountiful hunting grounds the Native Indians hunted for food. US 441 almost follows the same route today.
It is unknown exactly how long the Cherokee have lived in Western North Carolina. Found artifacts indicate people lived here more than 11,000 years ago. Ancient Cherokee tales describe the hunts of the long ago tribes that once foraged here.
By the 1500’s, the Cherokee were settled, agricultural people living in villages consisting of 30 to 60 houses and a large council house. In the early 1800’s, the Cherokee adopted their government to a written constitution and established their own courts and schools. In the 1830’s, the federal government no longer needed the Cherokees as strategic allies. The land was for plantations and especially for the gold that had been discovered in nearby North Georgia. In 1838, the government forced the removal of the Cherokees in the East to Oklahoma. Over 16,000 Cherokee began the long march, with one quarter to half dying along the way of the “Trail of Tears.”
The Cherokees in Western North Carolina today are the descendants of those Cherokees: those who were able to hold on to land they owned; those that hid out in the mountains; or those that were able to return to the land. Today, the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians is a sovereign nation of 100 square miles, with more than 13,000 enrolled members. Cherokee is a place where modern people respect and preserve the history of their people.
Harrah’s Casino Cherokee…