Sequoyah, the Cherokee Chief that invented the Cherokee alphabet and syllabary system, was a very spiritually oriented individual and looked to the spirit of the great creator in times of hardships that he was faced with.

Many other Cherokees thought he had lost his mind because of the way he conducted himself while he was working on the development of the Cherokee alphabet. He had a habit of going into seclusion which irritated the other chiefs and thus created a lasting friction of characteristics. Sequoyah developed the alphabet which immediately changed the educaational system in the Cherokee schools. The schools all adopted his program to simplify the systems they had been using. The universities accepted and rapidly began using the system which was quickly spreading.

When Sequoyah disagreed with the other chiefs, it caused dissension among the Cherokees. Sequoyah gathered about 3,800 followers who migrated to Mexico. The entire group did not make it to Mexico. Several of the followers dropped out of the group along the way and established numerous Cherokee villages. The mothers in the families of the tribes planted crops and food as they adapted to the different areas in Texas. The villages of Onega, Tioga, Mingo, Watauga and Saginaw were established by these Cherokees who dropped out of Sequoyah’s group as they progressed to San Fernando, Mexico.

Sam Houston was not comfortable with the Cherokees who were beginning to align with Mexico and meant additional strength to the Mexicans.

Don’t forget to stop by and visit with the Cherokees in front of Dwayne Carrol’s Texas Tribal Headquarters during the Peanut Festival coming up the first Saturday in October.

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