ᎤᎵᎮᎵᏍᏗ (Welcome)

Learn more about the history of the Overhill region and our Cherokee heritage. The intro above is written in text derived from the Cherokee Syllabary created Sequoyah.

Background

The Tennessee Overhill region takes its name from the Overhill Cherokee towns that were located in East Tennessee in the 1700’s. The term “overhill” referred to the Cherokee settlements that rested on the western slopes of the Appalachian Mountains – on the other side of the mountains from the Cherokee settlements in the Carolinas and Georgia. The Overhill towns were located primarily in the Little Tennessee, Tellico, and Hiwassee river valleys and tributaries. By the mid-1700’s the Overhill Cherokee Country was a hotbed of political intrigue. France and Britain were vying for the right to trade with the Cherokees and also for control of the continent. During the American Revolution, and later into the 1790’s, the Overhill towns were damaged repeatedly by attacks from colonial and territorial militia. Eventually many of the old Overhill towns were abandoned altogether. In the Treaty of 1819 the Cherokee ceded their lands from the Little Tennessee River south to the Hiwassee River, ending Cherokee control of the Overhill Country. Unfortunately, this did not quell the United State’s desire for more land and in 1838 the remaining Cherokee people were moved west on what is now known as the Trail of Tears.