Research trip

Laurie and I went on a little trip to do some research for a possible novel I want to write. We visited New Echota, the Chief Vann House, and the Hermitage. They were having a re-enactment at the Hermitage for the 4th of July, and I got this picture of a cannon firing.



We were impressed with all three sites. New Echota was the most surprising, of course. So often our mental image of Indians is wrong. The next picture is the Cherokee Council House, where the government met. It's a reconstruction, of course, but supposedly very accurate. A two-story log cabin, the ground floor is one room, with a raised bench on one side for the VIPs and a fireplace at one end.



The final picture is Chief Vann's tavern, moved from its location on the Chattahoochee River to New Echota. It's half log cabin and half vertical clapboards, with a central chimney. Chief Vann was a famous drinker and gambler, so including his tavern here seems appropriate. He was killed in a brawl at a tavern.



The Hermitage is a classy place, fitting for a presidential home. No pictures allowed inside the house though.

What was missing from the re-enactment? The Cherokee warriors and the slaves that would have accompanied the officers. The tour guides in the Hermitage were also in period costume, but no slave guides. I'm not trying to accuse or lay any blame, just wondering why those groups were not represented. The explanation could be as easy as lack of volunteers - all the volunteers were white.

All three sites are gems, little known and not that well visited. Definitely worth another trip if I decide to go forward with the novel.