The Indians
Of Sand Town
How Jim and Sally Woodpecker
returned fo tlieir homeland, and thckir
Indian village lived on for a while
anion£ the white men.
«!/ КЛИКАНА
S. WcKAi:
Cartoogechaye Creek in Macon
County twists and winds its way to the
Little Tennessee River, much as it did
two centuries ago. when the homes
along its banks were Indian log cabins,
and Cherokees tended the corn in the
rich, narrow valley.
Some say the name— unpronounce¬
able on first encounter— meant "the vil¬
lage beyond." Others insist its meaning
was "cornbread." Nobody knows for
sure.
The first settlers to venture into Ma¬
con County after the treaties of 1817 and
1819 found their way to Cartoogechaye
Creek. According to tradition, the ad¬
venturous young men. Jacob Siler and
William Brittain, held a conference
with a hostile chief named Santeetla un¬
der a large oak "pow-wow tree" near
the creek. Despite the chiefs displeas¬
ure. other Cherokees helped them build
a trading post there, and Jacob stayed,
later luring other members of his fam¬
ily to the promising new land. William,
like many another young frontiersman,
caught yet another case of wanderlust
and traveled on.
Some Cherokees Remained
Even after most of the surrounding
land was taken up by settlers, the Cher¬
okee Indians continued to live among
them. Some held reservations under the
terms of the treaties of
1817/19.
From all
accounts, the two peoples lived together
peaceably enough, though some of the
settlers cast covetous eyes on the Cher¬
okee reserves.
Among the reservees on Cartoo¬
gechaye Creek was Muskrat, whose
name lives on in Muskrat Creek, a
tributary' of the Cartoogechaye. When
the State of North Carolina settled with
the Cherokee reservees in 1829. the
heirs of Muskrat received $100 for their
rights in his reservation. His children
soon moved away, as did most of the
i6
Macon County Cherokees. to Tusquit-
tee. Shooting Creek, or other villages
in the shrinking Indian country.
It was a turbulent period for the
Cherokees. as they moved from village
to village within their once-great na¬
tion. or chose to make the long trek
westward to join members of the tribe
already in Arkansas or Oklahoma.
For some, moving was too painful.
Among them were a young man. Jim
Woodpecker or Chuttasottee. and his
future wife. Sally, or Kunstageh. They
continued to live in Cart<x»gechaye. and
ntade friends with a well-to-do land-
owner. William Siler, whose brother.
Jacob, had been the first white man to
settle permanently in the county.
Escape From Soldiers
When Gen. Winfield Scott’s soldiers
rounded up Western North Carolina’s
remaining Cherokee residents. Jim and
Sally were among those incarcerated in
nearby Fort Aquone, and then led for¬
cibly along the "Trail of Tears" to Okla¬
homa. Frequent illness disrupted the
march, and Jim and Sally were among
those who took advantage of the confu¬
sion to slip away, and return, on foot,
to their old homes. When a rag-tag
band, led by Jim Woodpecker, arrived
at Cartoogechaye. William Siler proved
his friendship, deeding a 200-acre plot
along Muskrat Creek to Jim. who
served as chief.
Jim and his wife built a cabin on their
land, and here they raised their family.
As time went by. other Indians joined
them, and the settlement on Muskrat
Creek became known as "Sand Town."
By 1850. more than 100 Cherokees
lived in the small village.
Jim Woodpecker served as the chief
of the Sand Town settlement for many
years, until his place was taken by
George Bushyhcad. who is listed as
"Indian Chief’ in the 1870 census. It
Chiel Chuitasoicc and his wife. Cunstagih. belief
known lo their neighbors as Jim and Sally Wood¬
pecker. rest in the wooded churchyard of Si. John's
Episcopal Church near Franklin The monument was
raised through the efforts of four local women, who
had fond memories of the old couple. (Photo by
Scott McRae)
was a diverse group. Woodpecker him¬
self was born in the village of Watauga,
north of preseni-day Franklin. His wife.
Sally, was a native of Cartoogechaye.
the only one. except for very small chil¬
dren. who appears on the census lists.
Others Join Village
Bushyhead was from Georgia, and
had lived at the Valley River before
moving to Sand Town. Seventy-eight-
year-old Billy was from Tennessee. The
patriarch of the tribe. Hogbite. or
Skulocoh. who was roughly 100 years
old in 1850. had been born in Buming-
lown. Others were from Tesquitla. Cul-
sagee. Deep Creek. Quallalmvn. Shoot-
THE STATE. February 1987