Where did the Cherokee Indians live before white settlers came to America?
Before the white settlers came to North America, the Cherokee Indians
lived primarily in the Blue Ridge Mountains area. Everywhere the
routines and rhythms of life followed the wheel of the seasons.
For the Cherokee,
gogi(
the warm season between April and October), was the time to travel, to make war, to plant and to harvest. The cold
gola,
from October to April, was the time to collect nuts, to hunt for deer,
black bears, wild turkeys and other game, and to gather inside to tend
the fires and retell the stories.
Where did the Cherokee Indians live after the white settlers claimed the Southeast territories?
Eventually, a great number of Cherokee Indians were forced to move West
by the white man to Oklahoma. This is known as the Trail of
Tears because many Cherokee Indians died due to cold weather
conditions, little food, and other hardships.
Where
now are our grandfathers, the Delawares? We had hoped the
white man would not be willing to travel beyond the mountains; now that
hope is gone. They have passed the mountains, and have
settled on Cherokee lands...The remnant of the Ani-Yunwiya, the Real
People, once so proud and formidable, will be obliged to seek refuge in
some distant wilderness.
~Dragging Canoe, Cherokee, 1768 |
However, there were many Cherokee Indians that remained in the East,
primarily in North Carolina & Georgia. They were able
to assimulate into white man's society by adopting white man's names,
wearing white man's clothing, and working in white man's industries.
Where do the Cherokee Indians live today?
The majority of the Cherokee Indians still live in Oklahoma, North
Carolina and Georgia. While the world is getting smaller as
people can travel easier, the Cherokee Indian heritage is being
preserved by the Cherokee people through powwows, on reservations, and
through passing in down from generation to generation.
