John Walker (abt. 1801 - 1834)

Born about 1801 in Wachowee, Cherokee Nation (now Polk County, TN)

Ancestors

Husband of Emily (Meigs) Walker — married 10 Jan 1824 in Tennessee

Descendants

Died 10 Sep 1834 at about age 33 in Cherokee Nation (now Bradley County, TN)

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Biography

John was Cherokee.

John Walker Jr. was born about 1801 in the town of Wachowee, on the Hiawassee River in the Cherokee Nation (now Tennessee). His paternal great-grandmother was Nancy Ward and his mother, Elizabeth Lowery and his father John Walker Sr. were both Cherokee. ^[1] John Walker Jr. was educated in New Jersey. On January 10, 1824, he married Emily Stanfield Meigs, granddaughter of Colonel Return J. Meigs. The marriage was performed by Thomas Cox. The Walkers had four children, Timothy, Elizabeth, Minerva, and John. He also had a plural wife, Nancy "Nannie" Bushyhead. Her brother, Jesse Bushyhead, was a noted Cherokee teacher and preacher. Nancy had two children by Walker, named Ebenezer and Sara E. Walker. In the 1820's, Walker had been a civil officer in the Cherokee Nation. John and his father were opponents of Chief John Ross. The younger John was a supporter of what became known as the "Treaty Party" of the Cherokee, supporting the move to Indian Territory. He was assassinated 10 September 1834 while returning home from a council meeting. He may be buried at Northside Presbyterian Church in Cleveland, TN. ^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ Starr, Emmet. History of the Cherokee Indians. Oklahoma Yesterday Publications edition, Tulsa, OK. 1979, p. 350
2. ↑ Hampton, David K. Cherokee Mixed-Bloods. Arc Press of Cane Hill, Lincoln, Arkansas. 2005. p. 135

The events of John's life were researched by [[Goodman-1428 | . Biographical information was added by Stuerke 2017.

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Judy Goodman for creating Walker-10676 on 3 Sep 13.