The Cherokee people : the story of the Cherokees from earliest origins to contemporary times

A history of the Cherokees from A.D. 1000 to the present describes changes in clothing, housing, social customs, health and medicine, religion, celebrations, and government.

• Preface p. ix
• Color Plates p. 1
• Chapter 1 Veiled mysteries - Origin and Settlement p. 17
• Parting the Veils
• The Cherokee Place, Its Climate and Natural Resources
• The Cherokee Language
• Earliest Settlements
• Major Culture Phases
• Life in the Pisgah Phase
• Life in the Qualla Phase
• Nacoochee and Peachtree Mounds
• Summary: Settlement and Formative Years
• The Cherokees: An Adaptable, Dynamic People
• Chapter 2 Physical Appearance, Material Culture, Games p. 41
• Daily Attire of Men, Women, and Children
• Headdress for Battle or Ball Game
• Building Houses
• House Furniture
• Winter Hothouses
• Town Council House
• Food and Drink
• The Manufacture of Goods
• Hunting
• Fishing
• Killing Eagles
• The Ball-play Game
• Other Diversions
• Summary
• Chapter 3 Life Cycle p. 71
• The Naming Ceremony
• Marriage
• Death, Mourning, and Purification
• Social Units
• The Towns
• The Household
• The Seven Clans
• The Plant and Animal Worlds
• Ceremonies of Corn and the Seasons
• Tobacco Ceremonies
• Chapter 4 Government and Warfare p. 85
• Early Cherokee Government
• The National Heptagon
• Town Council Houses
• A Dual Form of Government
• The White Organization
• The Uku Consecration Ceremony
• Crime and Punishment
• Cherokee Towns
• The Red Organization and War
• Color Symbolism
• War Practices
• Warriors
• Fighting Techniques
• The Sacred Ark, Prisoners, and Peace
• Summary: Government and Warfare
• Chapter 5 Healing and the Causes of Disease p. 117
• Healing
• Spirit People
• Superstitious Practices
• Purification
• Signs and Portents
• Dreams
• Uncleanness
• Prayer Formulas
• Myths
• Summary
• Chapter 6 Ancient Religious Beliefs p. 141
• Man, Mortality, and Mounds for Civic-religious Buildings
• The Uku and Eternal Punishment
• Th Priestly Office and Devoted Sons
• The Sacred Ark
• The Divining Crystals
• Conduct and Morals
• The National Heptagon and the Town Council House
• Uncleanness
• Clan Distinctions
• The Standards of the Uku
• Healing and the Causes of Disease
• Migration Myths
• The Loss and Regaining of the Sacred Fire
• The End Time
• Revisions and Additions
• Revision of the Mortality Legend
• Second Revision of the Mortality Story
• Origin of the Sun and the Moon
• Origin of Fire as Intercessor
• Origin of the Four Cardinal Directions
• Thunder
• The Morning Star
• The Old Corn Woman and the Woman of the East
• The Seven Stars
• Chapter 7 The Religious Festivals p. 161
• The Ancient Major Festivals
• Attending a Great National Festival
• The First New Moon of Spring
• The New Green Corn Feast
• The Ripe Green Corn Feast
• The Great New Moon Festival
• The Propitiation and Cementation Festival
• The Exalting, or Bounding Bush, Festival
• Ancient Minor Festivals
• Festival Modifications and the Ookah Dance
• The Ookah Dance
• Common to All Festivals
• The Essence of the Festivals
• Summary
• Chapter 8 Transformation of a Culture p. 189
• Early Expeditions to the Cherokees
• Causes of Change
• Opportunities to Capitalize
• The First Protestant Missionaries
• The Festivals
• The Republican Government
• Encroachment by White Settlers
• Summary
• Chapter 9 The Eastern Cherokees p. 223
• Decline of Cohesion
• The Sacrifice of Tsali
• Early Years: Settlement Along the Tuckaseegee
• 1860-1910
• 1910-1929
• 1929-1945
• Dances in the 1930s-1940s
• Dance Masks
• Sports
• The Eastern Cherokees Today
• A Beloved Woman
• Chapter 10 The Western Cherokees p. 265
• Getting Established in Indian Territory
• 1880-1890
• Cherokee Education
• The Keetowah Society
• 1890 to the Present
• Chapter 11 The Final Veil p. 289
• Barker Dry
• Lydia Sam McLure
• William Glory
• Sig Vann
• Jim Wolf
• Dance Grounds
• Archie Sam
• The Western Cherokees Today
• Epilogue: 1992 p. 341
• Appendix p. 343
• Bibliography p. 353
• Index p. 359
• Index of Illustrations p. 368