Essential Question: How Did Dragging Canoe S Actions Affect the Watauga Settlers?
DraggingCanoe
Standards: 4.25, 8.21
Essential Question: How did Dragging Canoe’s actions affect the Watauga settlers?
DraggingCanoe,CherokeewarriorandleaderoftheChickamaugas,was bornin oneoftheOverhilltowns ontheTennesseeRiver,thesonoftheCherokeediplomatAttakullakulla.
HistorianshaveidentifiedDraggingCanoeas thegreatestCherokeemilitaryleader.EvenatanearlyageDraggingCanoewantedtobeawarrior.HeonceaskedhisfathertoincludehiminawarpartyagainsttheShawnees,butAttakullakullarefused.Determinedtogo,the boyhidin acanoe,wherethewarriorsfoundhim.Hisfathergavethe boypermissionto go--ifhecouldcarrythecanoe.Thevesselwas tooheavy,butundaunted, the boydraggedthecanoe.Cherokeewarriorsencouragedhisefforts,andfromthattime,hewasknownasDraggingCanoe.
As theheadwarrior oftheOverhilltownofMalaquo,DraggingCanoefoughtanumberofsignificantbattlesagainstwhitesettlers.Bythe1770s theincreasingencroachmentbysettlersonIndianlandconcernedDraggingCanoe,andheworkedtoachievetheirremoval.In1776fourteennortherntribessentenvoystotheOverhilltowns toofferanalliancewiththe Cherokees.DraggingCanoethoughttheopening oftheRevolutionaryWarprovidedtheperfectopportunityto striketheisolatedwhitesettlements.TheCherokeesplannedathree-prongedattack:OldAbramledacontingentagainsttheWataugaandNolichuckysettlements;warriorsundertheleadership oftheRavenstruckCarter'sValley;andDraggingCanoefoughtatthebattleofIslandFlats,wherehewaswounded.Thesettlerssufferedheavylossesinitially,butthearrivalofreinforcementsprovedtoomuchfortheCherokees,andtheyweredefeated.
ManyCherokeeleadersarguedagainstfurtherfighting,butDraggingCanoerefusedtosubmit.HefledtheOverhilltowns withlike-mindedCherokeesandestablishednewtownsonChickamaugaCreekin thewinter of1776-77.Thisgroup, whichincludeddiscontentedmembersofvarioustribes,cameto beknownas theChickamaugas.DraggingCanoeandhis warriorsfoughtthe1781"BattleoftheBluffs"nearFortNashboroughanddefeatedAmericanarmytroopswhentheyinvadedtheChickamaugatownsin 1788.
Asheaged,DraggingCanoemovedfromthepositionofwarrior tothat ofdiplomat.HeworkedtopreserveCherokeecultureandestablishanalliance withtheCreeksandShawnees.In1791afederationofIndianforcesdefeatedGeneralArthurSt.Clair,governor oftheNorthwestTerritory.ShortlyafteradiplomaticmissionwiththeChickasaws,DraggingCanoedied onMarch1,1792,in thetownofRunningWater,oneofthetownshehadhelpedtofound.