| Name: ______________________________ | Date: ______________ |
Instructions
- Learn how the Cherokee connected with the land now called Cades Cove.
- Read each question carefully and use evidence from the facts you study.
- Remember that the Cherokee were living people with communities, traditions, and leaders—not just people from the past.
Example: Why was the area around Cades Cove important to the Cherokee?
Answer: It was part of their ancestral homeland and provided useful plants, animals, water, and travel routes.
Part 1: Land and Homeland
Complete each sentence with the best word.
1. The Cherokee homeland included parts of present-day Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and __________.
2. Cades Cove lies in the Great __________ Mountains.
3. The Cherokee used the land for hunting, gathering plants, farming, and __________.
4. The Cherokee language belongs to the Iroquoian language __________.
Part 2: Cherokee Connections
Choose the best answer for each question.
5. Why would the valleys and streams near Cades Cove have been useful to the Cherokee?
| ○ A. They provided water, plants, animals, and routes for travel. | ○ B. They were covered with paved roads. |
| ○ C. They contained large factories. | ○ D. They were completely empty of wildlife. |
6. What does the term ancestral homeland mean?
| ○ A. A place connected to a people's ancestors and history | ○ B. A newly built modern city |
| ○ C. A temporary campsite with no history | ○ D. A map made by a visitor |
7. Which statement is most accurate about Cherokee history in the Smoky Mountains?
| ○ A. The Cherokee had deep connections to the region before the park existed. | ○ B. The Cherokee first arrived after the national park was created. |
| ○ C. The Cherokee never traveled through mountain valleys. | ○ D. The Cherokee lived only on the coast. |
8. Which action shows respect when learning about the Cherokee?
| ○ A. Using accurate information and recognizing that Cherokee people still live today | ○ B. Calling the Cherokee a vanished people |
| ○ C. Treating all Native nations as exactly the same | ○ D. Repeating legends as if they were proven facts |
Part 3: History Check
Write True or False for each statement.
9. The Cherokee had connections to the land around Cades Cove before European-American settlers arrived. True / False
10. Cades Cove was the capital city of the entire Cherokee Nation. True / False
11. Cherokee people used knowledge of local plants and animals to live in the region. True / False
12. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park existed before Cherokee people lived in the area. True / False
13. The Cherokee are a living people today, not only a historical group. True / False
Part 4: Words to Know
Match each term with its meaning.
| 14. | ancestral homeland | __________ | A. History and knowledge passed through spoken stories and teaching |
| 15. | Cherokee | __________ | B. The forced movement of people from their homes to another place |
| 16. | Cades Cove | __________ | C. A Native American people with their own language, culture, and governments |
| 17. | removal | __________ | D. A mountain valley now located within Great Smoky Mountains National Park |
| 18. | oral tradition | __________ | E. A region connected to a people's ancestors and history |
Part 5: Think Like a Historian (optional challenge)
Answer each question in one or two complete sentences.
19. Give two reasons the Cades Cove area could have been valuable to Cherokee communities. |
20. Why should a historian avoid saying that the Cherokee simply disappeared from the Smoky Mountains? |
21. How can a national park preserve evidence of Cherokee history even when visitors do not see a large Cherokee town in Cades Cove? |
22. What is one respectful question you could ask when learning more about Cherokee history? |
Answer Key
| 1. | South Carolina |
| 2. | Smoky |
| 3. | travel |
| 4. | family |
| 5. | A (They provided water, plants, animals, and routes for travel.) |
| 6. | A (A place connected to a people's ancestors and history) |
| 7. | A (The Cherokee had deep connections to the region before the park existed.) |
| 8. | A (Using accurate information and recognizing that Cherokee people still live today) |
| 9. | True |
| 10. | False |
| 11. | True |
| 12. | False |
| 13. | True |
| 14. | E (A region connected to a people's ancestors and history) |
| 15. | C (A Native American people with their own language, culture, and governments) |
| 16. | D (A mountain valley now located within Great Smoky Mountains National Park) |
| 17. | B (The forced movement of people from their homes to another place) |
| 18. | A (History and knowledge passed through spoken stories and teaching) |
| 19. | It offered water, wildlife, useful plants, fertile land, and routes through the mountains. Any two of these are correct. |
| 20. | Many Cherokee people were forcibly removed, some remained or returned, and Cherokee communities and nations still exist today. |
| 21. | The park can preserve the landscape, archaeological evidence, historical records, place names, and information about Cherokee connections to the land. |
| 22. | Answers will vary. A strong question asks about Cherokee traditions, historic places, language, or the experiences of Cherokee people today. |