The Cherokee Indians pre-dated European settlers in the U.S. They continue on today, keeping alive the traditions and values of the original tribe. The Cherokee Indians today are made up of three main tribes located within the southern part of the United States.
History
The Cherokee can trace their history back over a thousand years. Until their contact with the Europeans, they primarily lived in small villages and based their society around hunting and agriculture.
In the 18th century, white settlers began to arrive in the Cherokee lands in large numbers. At this point, the natives began vigorous trading with these new transplants. The influx of settlers, however, brought disease with them. Decimated by disease and under pressure from the new settlers on what were, historically, their lands, the Cherokee were forced to sign away their rights, and they were quickly delegated to reservations.
Some Cherokee continued to live outside of reservations, protecting their traditional way of life. Unfortunately, in the 1800's, it was thought that gold could be found on Cherokee lands in Georgia. The Cherokee fell victim to the Indian Removal Act. The Cherokee tried to fight being removed from the few small pieces of land they had left. While the courts initially agreed with the Native Americans, ultimately they were forced from their homes. Under horrible conditions men, women and children were forced to walk to government mandated lands. Many Cherokee did not survive the trip and those that did reached their new home found it unsuitable for farming or hunting. This journey has come to be known as the Trail of Tears.
In recent years the Cherokee Nation has thrived thanks mostly to money from tourism and casino gambling. They have an annual budget of $420 million a year (some of which includes Federal money) and are the second largest tribe in the United States.
Size
Today, according to the most recent census reports, the Cherokee are the second largest tribe of Native Americans in the United States. The Cherokee nation has close to 300,000 recognized tribal citizens. About 120,000 of these Indians live within designated tribal lands.
Geography
Traditionally, the Cherokee land covered a large portion of what is today the southeastern part of the United States. Today, the Cherokee are split up among several different states and have headquarters in Oklahoma and North Carolina.
Features
The term Cherokee is something of a blanket term that was applied to dozens of smaller tribes all occupying the same basic geographical area and sharing common ancestry and rites.
Today the Cherokee have three main tribal divisions. There are the Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians (both of whom have headquarters in Oklahoma), and there is the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, who are located in North Carolina.
Time Frame
There are many conflicting ideas concerning when and how the Cherokee tribe began. In 1540, when Hernando De Soto first came to North America, he met a Cherokee tribe and wrote that they seemed to be well established. In the 1600's English settlers traded regularly with the Cherokee. The Cherokee tribe continues to flourish even today. 1995 marked the first time in over 200 years that full-blooded Cherokees took over the top positions of leadership in the Cherokee nation.
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