Dragging Canoe
Dragging Canoe was a prominent Cherokee leader known for his staunch opposition to white encroachment on Native American lands, contrasting sharply with the peace-oriented approach of his father, Chief Attakullakulla. Following the controversial 1775 treaty that ceded vast territories to white settlers, Dragging Canoe foresaw the eventual displacement of the Cherokee people and refused to accept the terms, leading a dissident faction against the agreement. During the American Revolutionary War, he aligned with the British, conducting raids against settler communities in Tennessee with the support of British weaponry. Despite facing betrayal from within his ranks, he and his followers inflicted significant casualties on settlers, demonstrating his commitment to armed resistance. After the Cherokee were displaced from their lands in 1782, he established new settlements near Chickamauga, Tennessee, but continued to face violent retaliation from American forces who destroyed his villages. Dragging Canoe's resistance persisted until 1784, when he ultimately consented to a peace agreement, marking a significant moment in the conflict between Native Americans and white settlers during this tumultuous period. His legacy reflects the complexities of Cherokee leadership and the struggles faced by Indigenous peoples in the face of colonial expansion.
Subject Terms
Dragging Canoe
- Born: c. 1730
- Birthplace: Running Water Village on the Tennessee River (now in Tennessee)
- Died: March 1, 1792
- Place of death: Running Water Village, Southwest Territory (now in Tennessee)
Tribal affiliation: Cherokee
Significance: Cherokee leader Dragging Canoe violently opposed white expansion into Indian land
Unlike his father, Chief Attakullakulla, the peace leader for the Cherokee who sought accommodation with whites, Dragging Canoe was opposed to any form of white encroachment on Cherokee lands. Angered by the 1775 agreement through which the Cherokee sold all of Kentucky and part of Tennessee, he prophesied that the Cherokee would eventually be banished to some distant land. Dragging Canoe led a dissident group who refused to sign the treaty.
While Attakullakulla and most Cherokee sided with the Americans during the revolutionary war, Dragging Canoe sided with the British, using British-supplied weaponry to attack settlers in Tennessee. Although betrayed by his cousin Nancy Ward, who warned settlers of pending attacks, his band inflicted several white casualties. When the Cherokee were driven from the region in 1782, Dragging Canoe established a new home near Chickamauga, Tennessee, from which he continued to attack white settlers. In retaliation, the Americans destroyed all Chickamauga villages. As the Cherokee continued signing away their land, Dragging Canoe maintained his policy of armed resistance. In 1782, he again led his people to a new settlement downriver, though in 1784, these new villages were also destroyed. Afterward, Dragging Canoe finally agreed to peace.