The Cherokee are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in southwestern North Carolina, southeastern Tennessee, and the tips of western South Carolina and northeastern Georgia. The Cherokee language is a Southern Iroquoian language and part of the Iroquoian language family. Today there are three federally recognized Cherokee tribes: the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma, and the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma.
The Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, led by Chief Patrick Lambert, hosts over a million visitors a year to cultural attractions of the 100-square-mile (260 km2) sovereign nation. The reservation, the “Qualla Boundary”, has a population of over 8,000 Cherokee, primarily direct descendants of Indians who managed to avoid “The Trail of Tears”.
Attractions include the Oconaluftee Indian Village, Museum of the Cherokee Indian, and the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual. Founded in 1946, the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual is country’s oldest and foremost Native American crafts cooperative. The outdoor drama Unto These Hills, which debuted in 1950, recently broke record attendance sales. Together with Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Hotel, Cherokee Indian Hospital and Cherokee Boys Club, the tribe generated $78 million dollars in the local economy in 2005.
The Cherokee freedmen, descendants of African American slaves owned by citizens of the Cherokee Nation during the Antebellum Period, were first guaranteed Cherokee citizenship under a treaty with the United States in 1866. This was in the wake of the American Civil War, when the US emancipated slaves and passed US constitutional amendments granting freedmen citizenship in the United States.
Cherokee Tribe – Facts for Kids
NC WEEKEND | Unto These Hills | UNC-TV
Oconaluftee Replica Indian Village
CHEROKEE PRESERVING THEIR CULTURE
Amazing Grace Cherokee – PRAYER
Cherokee Teach Tourists in North Carolina