Tahlequah, Oklahoma

Monument to John Ross

John Ross 1790-1866

Principal Chief of the Cherokee, 1828 - 1866

Born October 3, 1790 in Turkeytown, Alabama, the son of a one-quarter Cherokee maiden and a Scotsman, John Ross was elected as the first Principal Chief of the Cherokee Indians in 1828

The First Telephone

Here in September, 1885, the first telephone in Oklahoma was connected for service. It was the first telephone in the Mississippi Valley west of St. Louis. The company was organized by a group of Cherokees, namely, D.W. Lipe, L.B. Bell, R.M. Wolfe, J.S. Stapler, J.B. Stapler, and E.D. Hicks.

Cherokee National Prison

This sandstone building was erected in 1874 and originally had three stories. The third story was removed in 1925

Adams Corner Rural Village

Adams Corner Rural Village is a detailed reconstruction of a small crossroads community of 1875 - 1890, in the final years of the old Cherokee Nation. The Heritage Farm exhibits livestock commonly found on Cherokee farms along with endangered domestic breeds.

Cherokee Heritage Center

The Cherokee Heritage Center, operated by the Cherokee National Historical Society, is located three miles south of Tahlequah, on the original site of the Cherokee Female Seminary. This remote area, covered with dense underbrush, was cleared in the mid-1960