Sequoyah

Sequoyah was a Cherokee scholar who earned himself a place in history as an inventor of a writing system. He was born in 1776 near Tuskegee, Tennessee to the niece of a Cherokee chief and a white fur trader. It was during the Battle of Horseshoe Bend that Sequoyah realized it was necessary to establish a means of writing for his people. Sequoia’s dedication to the development of the ‘talking leaves’ syllabry helped the Cherokee become the leaders of the Indian nations.

Sequoyah was born in Tennessee; however, he fled, with his family, to Georgia as a youth because of the white men closing in on their territory. His inspiration to develop a writing system came while he was working as a silversmith. A buyer suggested he sign his work, but because he was unable to write, he sought help from a wealthy farmer who wrote English. It was at that point he toyed with the idea of the Cherokee alphabet. After twelve years of hard work, he developed the Cherokee alphabet. After using his daughter as an example, he traveled around the country, teaching anyone who would listen. In 1821, the Cherokee nation adopted Sequoia’s syllabry as their phonetic system. In the months to follow, many Cherokee became literate.

The history books offer conflicting reports on Sequoyah’s life. However, every source gives him credit for his invention of the Cherokee alphabet. Though Sequoyah became crippled after a hunting accident (some sources say he was crippled from birth), he did not take time to feel sorry for himself. Instead he worked toward helping the future of his people. One source said it best: ‘perhaps the most eloquent praise paid to Sequoyah was by H. A. Scomp, member of Emory College faculty, when he said “…perhaps the most remarkable man who has ever lived on Georgia soil was neither a politician, nor a soldier, nor an ecclesiastic, nor a scholar, but merely a Cherokee Indian of mixed blood. And strange to say, this Indian acquired permanent fame, neither expecting or see.’