Sequoyah: The Artisan?

Sequoyah: The Artisan [image error] Sequoyah Statue at NSHC
 US public domainThe last time we visited upon Sequoyah we learned he was very close to his mother, who raised him without a father figure and was an affluent native trader. Wut-teh was a wonderful mother who deeply cared for her son. After her death in the beginning of the 19th century, Sequoyah had a hard time dealing with his mother's death and soon began to drown his sorrows with alcohol. He neglected his farm and the trade business, all of which he had inherited from his mother. Sequoyah had more days he was drunk than sober. When he ran out of money to buy alcohol in large quantities he began to plead with his friends for their aide.  He lead such a reckless life many of his friends began to call him "drunken Sequoyah." One by one his friends abandoned him. After awhile, Sequoyah began to realize the destructive path he was creating for his own life. He made the decision to no longer live the life of an alcoholic. Sequoyah was able to do this by taking up a new interest, blacksmithing.
Sequoyah had noticed as the white settlers moved closer to the lands in which his people lived, there were new iron implements being introduced in the trade markets. Eating utensils, hammers, tongs, and other objects made of iron would eventually break. Like other native groups who didn't have the white man's technology, his people would have to depend upon the European traders to provide and repair the new objects. Sequoyah began to think, "Why couldn't the Cherokee learn to create and repair these implements themselves? Why should the Cherokee have to depend upon the white man for something they could do for themselves if they had the right equipment and the knowledge?" Sequoyah quickly abandoned his alcoholism in order to bring the art of blacksmithing to his people. He built his own bellows, forge fires, hammers, tongs, and drills. His reputation as a drunkard was soon replaced with a reputation of a superb blacksmith. People came from all over just to buy the arrows, knives, hoes and other implements he made.  His trade house soon became not only a place to trade but a gathering place for the Cherokee people. He stopped selling alcohol and greatly encouraged the Cherokee to never allow it into their population. Sequoyah's efforts were affluent in the passing of the first prohibition law ever created in the United States, which was not done by the United States but by the Cherokee. While he was blacksmithing he also built up his trade business. Sequoyah would travel far and wide to trade furs he would bring back to his own trade house. In his travels, he often encountered several white people.
[image error] The Blacksmith by Capt' Gorgeous
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ben_salt...
After he perfected his blacksmithing skills, Sequoyah began to notice his people were sill dependent upon the white traders. The Cherokee were found of the silver ornaments such as arm-bands, broaches, and bracelets. If he could become a blacksmith then why couldn't he become a silversmith, too? Once again, Sequoyah's brilliant mind went to work. He taught himself silversmithing. His reputation soon spread even farther. He not only crafted silver ornaments but also combined his blacksmithing and silversmithing together by creating bridles and other pieces with silver laced in them. People came from all around to buy his silver laced bridles and bits. As he traded with the white man, he began to realize his blacksmithing and silversmithing was an art form. He was selling his art without having his mark on them! He sought out one of his friends to help him, a half-blooded Cherokee chief known as Charles Hicks. Since Charles knew how to write in English, Sequoyah asked him to teach him how to write his name. Charles agreed. Instead of writing the name Sequoyah, Charles wrote Sequoyah's white name and misspelled the last name, simply writing George Guess and not Gist. Sequoyah thank his friend, took the written form and made a die cast of the name. Every piece Sequoyah made in his blacksmithing and silversmithing since then have had the name GEORGE GUESS stamped to it. Who would have known a piece from the same time period with that name upon it would have been made by  Sequoyah's hands? The Father of the Cherokee language.

What is your favorite hobby?

Do you see Sequoyah as a good role model for the young?

Who is someone from the past that you would like to know more about?

Join me next time as we learn how Sequoyah went from artist to creating a written language.