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Chota (Cherokee town)
Encyclopedia
Chota is a historic Overhill Cherokee
site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. For much of its history, Chota was the most important of the Overhill towns, serving as the de facto
capital of the Cherokee
people from the late 1740s until 1788. 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 Chota site developed adjacent to the Overhill town of Tanasi
, which preceded Chota as the unofficial Cherokee capital. The two sites share a listing on the National Register of Historic Places
, although Tanasi received its own archaeological site designation (40MR62) in 1972. Both sites are now mostly submerged by the Tellico Lake impoundment
of the Little Tennessee River
.
The Chota townhouse site was raised above the reservoir's operating levels and connected via 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 the chief Oconostota
, uncovered in the 1969 excavations, was re-interred next to the monument. The site is now managed by the Eastern Band of the Cherokee.
and flows for just over 50 miles (80.5 km) through parts of Blount
, Monroe, and Loudon counties before emptying into the Tennessee River
near Lenoir City
. Tellico Lake, created by the completion of Tellico Dam
in 1979, spans the lower 33 miles (53.1 km) of the river. The Chota site is located approximately 27 miles (43.5 km) above the mouth of the river, opposite a sharp bend in the river known as Bacon's Bend.
Both Chota and Tanasi are situated on a relatively flat terrace 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, elongate ridges and steep hills. The Great Smoky Mountains
and the Unicoi Mountains
, both part of 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.
, where Moytoy was chief.
When Moytoy died in 1741, his son, Amouskositte
, attempted to succeed him as emperor. Old Hop, the head man at Chota, began to consolidate power, and by 1753 Chota had usurped Great Tellico as 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 the Overhill towns. Virginia sent Major Andrew Lewis with 60 men to build a fort at Chota, which was completed in August of 1756, but never garrisoned. Later that year, South Carolina sent engineer William de Brahm with 300 men to build Fort Loudoun
, which was completed in March of 1757. By 1760, relations between the British and Cherokee had soured, and the Cherokee laid siege to Fort Loudoun. Spoils from the fort were taken to Chota.
After the fall of Fort Loudoun, the Overhill towns immediately sued for peace, which was granted in the Treaty of Long Island in 1761. Virginia dispatched a delegation led by Henry Timberlake
to solidify peace with the Overhill towns. Timberlake arrived at Chota in late December of 1761, accompanied by Ostenaco
(the head man at Tomotley
). At a ceremony inside the Chota townhouse, Ostenaco ceremoniously buried a hatchet, symbolizing peace between the British and Cherokee. 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's "Draught of the Cherokee Country" reported 52 dwellings and a townhouse at Chota. Kanagatucko (Old Hop) was listed as governor of both Chota and Tanasi. The 175 warriors available at Chota is the second-largest contingent among the Overhill towns, behind only Citico.
At the outbreak of the American Revolution
, the Cherokee aligned themselves with the British. In 1776, Dragging Canoe
(the head man at Mialoquo
) and Old Abraham of Chilhowee led an unsuccessful two-pronged attack against Fort Watauga
and Heaton's Station. In response, Virginia sent Colonel William Christian
with a small force to subdue the Overhill towns. Christian entered the Little Tennessee Valley unopposed, and negotiated a truce with Attakullakulla 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 the Overhill country in response to several attacks on American settlements by renegade Cherokees. Most of the Overhill towns, including Chota, were destroyed. Chota had been rebuilt by 1784, but it never recovered its former status. In 1788, Old Tassel— who had become the leader of the Overhill towns after the death of Oconastota— was murdered under a flag of truce at Chilhowee. Largely in response to this incident, the Cherokee capital was moved to Ustanali, near modern Calhoun, Georgia
.
In the late 1790s, the Duke of Orleans
paid a visit to the Tellico Blockhouse
while on a tour of East Tennessee. The duke witnessed over 600 Cherokees engage in a "ballplay" at Chota, and even bet 6 gallons of brandy on the outcome. By this time, only 5 dwellings remained in the town.
Cyrus Thomas, working for the Smithsonian Institution, conducted a mound survey of the Little Tennessee Valley in the 1880s. Thomas excavated a mound at the Chota site and uncovered several artifacts. In 1939, the University of Tennessee
, mainly under the auspices of Thomas Lewis and Madeline Kneburg, conducted excavations at the Chota site with the aide of the Works Projects Administration. 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 to build Tellico Dam in 1967, the University of Tennessee initiated a plan to conduct salvage 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 a pair of wire spectacles) as that of 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 (18.3 m) and another with a diameter of just over 50 feet (15.2 m). The smaller townhouse, which was slightly older, may have been the Tanasi townhouse. Other structures included a 48 feet (14.6 m) x 23 feet (7 m) summer pavilion flanked by a 100 feet (30.5 m) x 160 feet (48.8 m) village plaza, and 11 rectangular summer dwelling/circular winter dwelling pairings. Dwellings were spaced between 40 feet (12.2 m) and 100 feet (30.5 m) apart, and were located as far as 2000 feet (609.6 m) from the townhouse. One of the dwellings was classified as Early Mississippian
(c. 1000–1300 A.D.), while the others were Cherokee.
In 1986, the burials revealed at the Chota site were reinterred in a burial mound at the Sequoyah Museum, near Vonore. The exception were the remains of Oconostota, which were buried next to the Chota monument as desired by the Cherokee.
Overhill Cherokee
The term Overhill Cherokee refers to the former Cherokee settlements located in what is now Tennessee in the southeastern United States. The name was given by 18th century European traders and explorers who had to cross the Appalachian Mountains to reach these settlements when traveling from...
site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. For much of its history, Chota was the most important of the Overhill towns, serving as the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
capital of the Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
people from the late 1740s until 1788. A number of prominent Cherokee leaders were born or resided at Chota, among them Attakullakulla, Oconostota
Oconostota
Oconostota was the Warrior of Chota and the First Beloved Man of the Cherokee from 1775 to 1781.-Meaning of the name:...
, Old Hop, Old Tassel, Hanging Maw
Hanging Maw
Hanging Maw, or Uskwa'li-gu'ta in Cherokee, was the leading chief of the Overhill Cherokee from 1788 to 1794. They were located in present-day Tennessee...
, and Nancy Ward
Nancy Ward
Nanyehi , known in English as Nancy Ward was a Ghigau, or Beloved Woman of the Cherokee Nation, which meant that she was allowed to sit in councils and to make decisions, along with the other Beloved Women, on pardons...
.
The Chota site developed adjacent to the Overhill town of Tanasi
Tanasi
Tanasi is a historic Overhill Cherokee village site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The village is best known as the namesake for the state of Tennessee...
, which preceded Chota as the unofficial Cherokee capital. The two sites share a listing on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, although Tanasi received its own archaeological site designation (40MR62) in 1972. Both sites are now mostly submerged by the Tellico Lake impoundment
Tellico Reservoir
Tellico Reservoir, also known as Tellico Lake, is a reservoir in Tennessee, created by the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1979 upon the completion of Tellico Dam. The dam impounds the Little Tennessee River and the lower Tellico River...
of the Little Tennessee River
Little Tennessee River
The Little Tennessee River is a tributary of the Tennessee River, approximately 135 miles long, in the Appalachian Mountains in the southeastern United States.-Geography:...
.
The Chota townhouse site was raised above the reservoir's operating levels and connected via 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 the chief Oconostota
Oconostota
Oconostota was the Warrior of Chota and the First Beloved Man of the Cherokee from 1775 to 1781.-Meaning of the name:...
, uncovered in the 1969 excavations, was re-interred next to the monument. The site is now managed by the Eastern Band of the Cherokee.
Geographical setting
The Little Tennessee River enters Tennessee from its source in the Appalachian MountainsAppalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
and flows for just over 50 miles (80.5 km) through parts of Blount
Blount County, Tennessee
Blount County is a U.S. county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Its population was 123,010 at the United States Census, 2010. The county seat is at Maryville, which is also the county's largest city....
, Monroe, and Loudon counties before emptying into the Tennessee River
Tennessee River
The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...
near Lenoir City
Lenoir City, Tennessee
Lenoir City is a city in Loudon County, Tennessee, United States. Its population was 8,642 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Knoxville Metropolitan Area....
. Tellico Lake, created by the completion of Tellico Dam
Tellico Dam
Tellico Dam is a dam built by the Tennessee Valley Authority in Loudon County, Tennessee on the Little Tennessee River just above the main stem of the Tennessee River. It impounds the Tellico Reservoir....
in 1979, spans the lower 33 miles (53.1 km) of the river. The Chota site is located approximately 27 miles (43.5 km) above the mouth of the river, opposite a sharp bend in the river known as Bacon's Bend.
Both Chota and Tanasi are situated on a relatively flat terrace flanked by steep hills rising to the south. These hills are part of the Appalachian Ridge-and-Valley Physiographic Province
Ridge-and-valley Appalachians
The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division and are also a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending from southeastern New York through northwestern New...
, which is characterized by narrow, elongate ridges and steep hills. The Great Smoky Mountains
Great Smoky Mountains
The Great Smoky Mountains are a mountain range rising along the Tennessee–North Carolina border in the southeastern United States. They are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains, and form part of the Blue Ridge Physiographic Province. The range is sometimes called the Smoky Mountains or the...
and the Unicoi Mountains
Unicoi Range
The Unicoi Mountains are a mountain range rising along the border between Tennessee and North Carolina in the southeastern United States. They are part of the Blue Ridge Mountain Province of the Southern Appalachian Mountains. The Unicois are located immediately south of the Great Smoky Mountains...
, both part of 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.
Rise of Chota
Chota doesn't appear in historical records until around 1745. Tanasi is first mentioned much earlier in the century, namely as the base or destination of various traders and diplomats. Tanasi appears on multiple maps of the Overhill territory in the 1720s and 1730s, but Chota doesn't, which 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 North Carolina. In 1730, however, Moytoy of Tellico, with the help of flamboyant emissary Alexander Cuming, was crowned "Emperor of the Cherokee." This effectively shifted the capital to Great TellicoGreat Tellico
Great Tellico was a Cherokee town at the site of present-day Tellico Plains, Tennessee, where the Tellico River emerges from the Appalachian Mountains. Great Tellico was one of the largest Cherokee towns in the region, and had a sister town nearby named Chatuga. Its name in Cherokee is more...
, where Moytoy was chief.
When Moytoy died in 1741, his son, Amouskositte
Amouskositte
Amouskositte, or Amo-sgiasite, Prince of Chota , of Great Tellico was the son of Moytoy of Tellico and attempted to succeed him as "Emperor of the Cherokee", a title given his father by Alexander Cuming. Few Cherokee recognized him as their First Beloved Man, and by 1753 both he and Tellico had...
, attempted to succeed him as emperor. Old Hop, the head man at Chota, began to consolidate power, and by 1753 Chota had usurped Great Tellico as the "mother town" of the Overhill Cherokee. Around this time, on the eve of the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
, the Cherokee were reportedly leaning toward the French side, prompting the English colonies of Virginia and South Carolina to increase contact with the Overhill towns. Virginia sent Major Andrew Lewis with 60 men to build a fort at Chota, which was completed in August of 1756, but never garrisoned. Later that year, South Carolina sent engineer William de Brahm with 300 men to build Fort Loudoun
Fort Loudoun (Tennessee)
Fort Loudoun was a British colonial fort in present-day Monroe County, Tennessee, near the towns of the Overhill Cherokee. The fort was reconstructed during the Great Depression and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965.-History:...
, which was completed in March of 1757. By 1760, relations between the British and Cherokee had soured, and the Cherokee laid siege to Fort Loudoun. Spoils from the fort were taken to Chota.
Timberlake's visit, 1761-2
Henry Timberlake
Henry Timberlake was a colonial Anglo-American officer, journalist, and cartographer. He was born in Virginia in 1730 and died in England...
to solidify peace with the Overhill towns. Timberlake arrived at Chota in late December of 1761, accompanied by Ostenaco
Ostenaco
Ostenaco , who preferred to go by the warrior's title he earned at any early age, "Mankiller" , also known as Judd's Friend, who lived c...
(the head man at Tomotley
Tomotley
Tomotley is a prehistoric and historic Native American site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. Occupied as early as the Archaic period, the Tomotley site had the most substantial periods of habitation during the Mississippian period, likely when the earthwork mounds...
). At a ceremony inside the Chota townhouse, Ostenaco ceremoniously buried a hatchet, symbolizing peace between the British and Cherokee. 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
Citico (Tellico archaeological site)
Citico is a prehistoric and historic Native American site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The site's namesake Cherokee village was the largest of the Overhill towns, housing an estimated population of 1,000 by the mid-18th century...
the next day.
Timberlake's "Draught of the Cherokee Country" reported 52 dwellings and a townhouse at Chota. Kanagatucko (Old Hop) was listed as governor of both Chota and Tanasi. The 175 warriors available at Chota is the second-largest contingent among the Overhill towns, behind only Citico.
Decline
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, the Cherokee aligned themselves with the British. In 1776, Dragging Canoe
Dragging Canoe
Tsiyu Gansini , "He is dragging his canoe", known to whites as Dragging Canoe, was a Cherokee war chief who led a band of Cherokee against colonists and United States settlers...
(the head man at Mialoquo
Mialoquo
Mialoquo is a prehistoric and historic Native American site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The site saw significant periods of occupation during the Mississippian period and later as a Cherokee refugee village...
) and Old Abraham of Chilhowee led an unsuccessful two-pronged attack against Fort Watauga
Fort Watauga
Fort Watauga, more properly Fort Caswell, was an American Revolutionary War fort that once stood at the Sycamore Shoals of the Watauga River in what is now Elizabethton, Tennessee...
and Heaton's Station. In response, Virginia sent Colonel William Christian
William Christian (Virginia)
William Christian was an "Indian fighter", Continental soldier, militiaman and politician from Virginia who served in the era of the American Revolution. He was a signatory to the Fincastle Resolutions and founder of Fort William...
with a small force to subdue the Overhill towns. Christian entered the Little Tennessee Valley unopposed, and negotiated a truce with Attakullakulla and Oconastota. When Dragging Canoe
Dragging Canoe
Tsiyu Gansini , "He is dragging his canoe", known to whites as Dragging Canoe, was a Cherokee war chief who led a band of Cherokee against colonists and United States settlers...
refused to negotiate, however, Christian destroyed the towns of Great Tellico, Citico, Mialoquo, Chilhowee
Chilhowee (Cherokee town)
Chilhowee was a prehistoric and historic Native American site in Blount County and Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States...
, and Toqua
Toqua (Tennessee)
Toqua is a prehistoric and historic Native American site in Monroe County, Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. Along with the Overhill Cherokee village for which the site was named, Toqua was home to a substantial pre-Cherokee town that thrived during the Mississippian period...
.
In 1780, John Sevier
John Sevier
John Sevier served four years as the only governor of the State of Franklin and twelve years as Governor of Tennessee. As a U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1811 until his death...
, who had just returned from the Battle of Kings Mountain
Battle of Kings Mountain
The Battle of Kings Mountain was a decisive battle between the Patriot and Loyalist militias in the Southern campaign of the American Revolutionary War...
, led an invasion of the Overhill country in response to several attacks on American settlements by renegade Cherokees. Most of the Overhill towns, including Chota, were destroyed. Chota had been rebuilt by 1784, but it never recovered its former status. In 1788, Old Tassel— who had become the leader of the Overhill towns after the death of Oconastota— was murdered under a flag of truce at Chilhowee. Largely in response to this incident, the Cherokee capital was moved to Ustanali, near modern Calhoun, Georgia
Calhoun, Georgia
Calhoun is a city in Gordon County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 15,650. The city is the county seat of Gordon County.-Geography:Calhoun is located at , along the Oostanaula River....
.
In the late 1790s, the Duke of Orleans
Louis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
paid a visit to the Tellico Blockhouse
Tellico Blockhouse
The Tellico Blockhouse was an early American outpost located along the Little Tennessee River in Vonore, Monroe County, Tennessee. Completed in 1794, the blockhouse operated until 1807 with the purpose of keeping the peace between nearby Overhill Cherokee towns and early Euro-American settlers in...
while on a tour of East Tennessee. The duke witnessed over 600 Cherokees engage in a "ballplay" at Chota, and even bet 6 gallons of brandy on the outcome. By this time, only 5 dwellings remained in the town.
Archaeological findings
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
, mainly under the auspices of Thomas Lewis and Madeline Kneburg, conducted excavations at the Chota site with the aide of the Works Projects Administration. 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 to build Tellico Dam in 1967, the University of Tennessee initiated a plan to conduct salvage 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 a pair of wire spectacles) as that of Oconostota
Oconostota
Oconostota was the Warrior of Chota and the First Beloved Man of the Cherokee from 1775 to 1781.-Meaning of the name:...
. 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 (18.3 m) and another with a diameter of just over 50 feet (15.2 m). The smaller townhouse, which was slightly older, may have been the Tanasi townhouse. Other structures included a 48 feet (14.6 m) x 23 feet (7 m) summer pavilion flanked by a 100 feet (30.5 m) x 160 feet (48.8 m) village plaza, and 11 rectangular summer dwelling/circular winter dwelling pairings. Dwellings were spaced between 40 feet (12.2 m) and 100 feet (30.5 m) apart, and were located as far as 2000 feet (609.6 m) from the townhouse. One of the dwellings was classified as Early Mississippian
Mississippian culture
The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 CE to 1500 CE, varying regionally....
(c. 1000–1300 A.D.), while the others were Cherokee.
In 1986, the burials revealed at the Chota site were reinterred in a burial mound at the Sequoyah Museum, near Vonore. The exception were the remains of Oconostota, which were buried next to the Chota monument as desired by the Cherokee.