Over the last few months, Chief, Dr. Christopher Spruell, has been researching the heirloom orchards and crops of the Chickamauga in East Tennessee, Northern Georgia, Northern Alabama, Kentucky, and along the Tennessee River basin. The results are astonishing to say the least. The orchards of the Chickamauga included peaches, apples, plums, persimmons, pears, berries, and a wide variety of nut trees including chestnut, walnut, and pecan. His research has also indicated that the number of trees and varieties of these orchards were named in different documents found in the National Registry.
While the Chickamauga were hunters, fishers, and gatherers, they were also ranchers and farmers with some of the most successful livestock and gardens in their regions. They were implementing agricultural best practices long before the idea of best practices was even discussed in academic circles. Our ancestors were brilliant in their uses of farm to table sustainability for their food sources.
One of the most incredible things Chief has found in the research is that the Chickamauga were implementing traditional French cooking methodology to their meals. As early as the mid-1700s the Chickamauga were dining in formal settings in their log or clapboard homes with fine pewterware, fine china, and linens. I often snicker when I hear someone say something as ignorant as the Chickamauga being, “Merciless, Indian Savages.”
Over the next few months we will be putting together lists of specific types of plants, fruits, and trees as well as livestock our ancestors had on their farms and ranches. We owe an incredible debt of gratitude to Chief, Dr. Christopher Spruell for all of his research in this area.
If you would like to get a head start on getting a couple of apple trees that were heirloom, you can start with the Arkansas Black Apple, which is a deep purple when it is mature. You may also want to try poached Pears with Cream or even Persimmon Bread made with persimmons instead of bananas which were both served by our ancestors as well.
(C) This document was produced at the request of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on July 18, 2019, to document the History, Anthropology, Culture, Religion, and Archaeology of The Chickamauga Nation.