Post by blackcrowheart on Feb 11, 2006 12:38:20 GMT -5
Researchers hone in on Cherokees' lost history
www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/cherokee/stories/0209trail.html
By CHRISTIAN BOONE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/09/06
Except for the name, little remains to indicate that Cherokee Indians ever lived in Cherokee County. And no public marker explains why they're gone.
Only one official state designation is posted, at what used to be Fort Buffington, now Buffington Elementary School, to commemorate one of the stockades used by federal and state troops during the forced removal of roughly 15,000 Cherokees in 1838.
That government-endorsed effort to expel an entire Indian tribe and send them westward, under armed guard, became a sad chapter in American history known as the Trail of Tears.
Although the trail cut through northern Cherokee County, no markers indicate it. But that's expected to change now that two congressmen have introduced legislation to correct the matter.
When Congress first approved the trail as a historic site in 1987, routes winding through Georgia and North Carolina were omitted, despite the fact as many as three-quarters of the Cherokee started their trek from those states.
"It's unacceptable that such a critical part of our history remains a patchwork of missing pieces," Rep. Marion Berry (D-Ark.), a bill co-sponsor, told The Associated Press.
The bill won't provide money, but it lets the U.S. Secretary of the Interior designate the trail as an official historic site.
But members of the Georgia Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association said the National Park Service has virtually no funding to conduct the necessary research documenting local routes, leaving the task to a volunteer army of amateur sleuths, historic Hercule Poirots, if you will.
"Education is our main focus," said Linda Baker, secretary of the state chapter. "I live on land where the Cherokees lived. For me, this is a little bit about guilt and a lot about my love of history."
Baker is being assisted by members of the Cherokee County Historical Society.
"There's very little written or known about Cherokees within Cherokee County," said Stefanie Joyner, executive director of the historical society. "The information is there, but there's just so many resources to pore through."
Fortunately, they have a thorough guidebook to help with their research. The National Park Service and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Historic Preservation Division financed a study that recommended sites for certification by the park service's Long Distance Trails Office. "We're looking for anything associated with the [Cherokee] removal, whether it be roads, forts, cemeteries, taverns ..." Baker said. "Part of our job is to get the word out. Maybe someone will come forward who knows more than we do about it."
Few know more about the Cherokee County of yesteryear than Jack Richardson, a member the historical society. Richardson has located a copy of the original land survey of the county, conducted in 1832, which indicates one of the roads used to evacuate the Cherokees followed the same path now marked by Federal Road.
"It's most likely under the concrete," Richardson said. "We still don't know exactly what route was followed."
There remains debate as to where exactly the Fort Buffington stockade was. Some historians believe it's found at the site of the old New Harmony Church, but Richardson said the holding forts might have instead been stationed across Highway 20.
While there may be room for historical interpretation, time is a factor for the Trail of Tears project.
"If it's not done now, it'll never happen," Joyner said. Development is encroaching fast in northeastern Cherokee, and landowners have shown a reluctance to open up their property for historic excavations.
"A lot of people don't want anyone to know they have anything of importance on their land," Joyner said. "That is one of the puzzles we're having to deal with."
Still, there's optimism the identification process will lead to a more tangible recognition of Cherokee's native citizens.
"There's much work to be done, but there's enough people behind this effort that I think it will culminate in an increased awareness of the Trail of Tears in Georgia," Baker said. "Our primary goal in all this is to bring it back to life."
www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/cherokee/stories/0209trail.html
By CHRISTIAN BOONE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/09/06
Except for the name, little remains to indicate that Cherokee Indians ever lived in Cherokee County. And no public marker explains why they're gone.
Only one official state designation is posted, at what used to be Fort Buffington, now Buffington Elementary School, to commemorate one of the stockades used by federal and state troops during the forced removal of roughly 15,000 Cherokees in 1838.
That government-endorsed effort to expel an entire Indian tribe and send them westward, under armed guard, became a sad chapter in American history known as the Trail of Tears.
Although the trail cut through northern Cherokee County, no markers indicate it. But that's expected to change now that two congressmen have introduced legislation to correct the matter.
When Congress first approved the trail as a historic site in 1987, routes winding through Georgia and North Carolina were omitted, despite the fact as many as three-quarters of the Cherokee started their trek from those states.
"It's unacceptable that such a critical part of our history remains a patchwork of missing pieces," Rep. Marion Berry (D-Ark.), a bill co-sponsor, told The Associated Press.
The bill won't provide money, but it lets the U.S. Secretary of the Interior designate the trail as an official historic site.
But members of the Georgia Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association said the National Park Service has virtually no funding to conduct the necessary research documenting local routes, leaving the task to a volunteer army of amateur sleuths, historic Hercule Poirots, if you will.
"Education is our main focus," said Linda Baker, secretary of the state chapter. "I live on land where the Cherokees lived. For me, this is a little bit about guilt and a lot about my love of history."
Baker is being assisted by members of the Cherokee County Historical Society.
"There's very little written or known about Cherokees within Cherokee County," said Stefanie Joyner, executive director of the historical society. "The information is there, but there's just so many resources to pore through."
Fortunately, they have a thorough guidebook to help with their research. The National Park Service and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Historic Preservation Division financed a study that recommended sites for certification by the park service's Long Distance Trails Office. "We're looking for anything associated with the [Cherokee] removal, whether it be roads, forts, cemeteries, taverns ..." Baker said. "Part of our job is to get the word out. Maybe someone will come forward who knows more than we do about it."
Few know more about the Cherokee County of yesteryear than Jack Richardson, a member the historical society. Richardson has located a copy of the original land survey of the county, conducted in 1832, which indicates one of the roads used to evacuate the Cherokees followed the same path now marked by Federal Road.
"It's most likely under the concrete," Richardson said. "We still don't know exactly what route was followed."
There remains debate as to where exactly the Fort Buffington stockade was. Some historians believe it's found at the site of the old New Harmony Church, but Richardson said the holding forts might have instead been stationed across Highway 20.
While there may be room for historical interpretation, time is a factor for the Trail of Tears project.
"If it's not done now, it'll never happen," Joyner said. Development is encroaching fast in northeastern Cherokee, and landowners have shown a reluctance to open up their property for historic excavations.
"A lot of people don't want anyone to know they have anything of importance on their land," Joyner said. "That is one of the puzzles we're having to deal with."
Still, there's optimism the identification process will lead to a more tangible recognition of Cherokee's native citizens.
"There's much work to be done, but there's enough people behind this effort that I think it will culminate in an increased awareness of the Trail of Tears in Georgia," Baker said. "Our primary goal in all this is to bring it back to life."