Ch. 23: Tennessee Leaders Vocabulary: Andrew Jackson, Sam Houston, James Polk, Sequoyah, David Crockett, Nancy Ward

Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767-June 8, 1845) Joined the Revolutionary War at 13. Moved to Tennessee after the Revolution. Became Tennessee's first congressman. Then a senator, then served on the Supreme Court. Fought against the Red Sticks during the Creek War. Fought in the War of 1812 in New Orleans, Louisiana. People said he was “as tough as old hickory” which is where he got the nickname Old Hickory. In 1828 Jackson was elected as president of the United States.

Sam Houston (March 2, 1793-July 26, 1863) Moved to Tennessee as a teenager. Two-years later he ran away from home and was adopted by a Cherokee village. His Cherokee name was “Raven.” Fought with Jackson against the Red Sticks during the Creek War. After the war, became the attorney general of Nashville, Tennessee. Later elected as congressman, then as governor. In 1832 he moved to Texas and became the first president, before Texas was a state. When Texas joined the Confederacy, Houston did not want to leave the Union; he was kicked out of being governor of Texas.

James K. Polk (November 2, 1795-June 15, 1849) Got started his career as a congressman from Tennessee. Andrew Jackson thought he would make a good congressman and helped him get elected. Later, elected as the 11 th president of the United States. Polk was the president that purchased more than one-million square miles in California from Spain. He was the first president to only have one-term and not run for re- election.

Sequoyah (born somewhere between 1760 and ) Born in Tuskegee, Tennessee. Early on, Sequoyah was raised by his Cherokee mother, who was a member of the paint clan. He did not speak English as a child. When he moved to Alabama he liked the way English could be written down. The Cherokee called it “Talking Leaves.” After he learned how to write his name he started working on a way to write down the Cherokee alphabet and words. Over 12 years, Sequoyah invented an alphabet for the Cherokee language that was made of 85 symbols. It is still used today among Cherokee speakers..

David Crockett (August 17, 1786-March 6, 1836) Born near the Nolichucky River in Tennessee. He wrote in his memoir that he killed 105 bears in 9 months when he was a boy. He was a famous hunter, trapper, cattle driver, and wagon driver by the time he was 19. He became a congressman for Tennessee and supported the rights of squatters (People who wanted land out west, but had no land back east.) In 1835, he learned that Texas was interested in breaking away from Mexico and becoming its own country. He thought this was a good idea and went to San Antonio to try to help out. He died in the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution.

Nancy Ward ( ) Nancy Ward’s name in Cherokee is Nanye-hi. During a fight between the Cherokee and the Creek Nancy helped her husband fight. When he was killed, she picked up his gun and kept on fighting. She led the Cherokees to victory against the Creek. Because of her bravery, the Cherokee made her a ghighau (Beloved Woman). She believed that the Cherokee could peaceably live alongside American settlers. She was often involved in peace talks between the two groups. Later on, because of the Trail of Tears, Ward’s title of Beloved Woman was removed and she was forced to move south near the Ocoee River.

Questions about Chapter 23 1.Why did Sam Houston get fired as governor of Texas? 2.Which famous battle did Davy Crockett die during? 3.Why did Andrew Jackson have the nickname “Old Hickory?” 4.What name did the Cherokee give to the written English language?