John Jolly, (in Cherokee Ahuludegi); (also known as Oolooteka), was Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation—West when the 1828 constitution was adopted. He was a friend and protector of a young Sam Houston.
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Jolly was headman of Cayuga town (on Hiwassee Island in present-day Hamilton County, Tennessee), after his brother, Tahlonteeskee's, departure for 'the west' in 1809. He eventually followed his brother to the Arkansaw Territory. There, Jolly was elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation—West upon the death of his brother, in 1819.
When the young Sam Houston came to live with the Cherokee on Hiwassee Island in 1809, Jolly adopted him and acted as his father in the Cherokee Nation. Jolly gave Houston the Cherokee name of Ka'lanu, meaning 'the Raven'. Houston later returned to his family in Maryville, Tennessee, but he lived once again with the Cherokee in the west during the late 1820s and early 1830s.
In 1828, during Jolly's term of office, the Cherokee Nation—West adopted a constitution establishing a tripartite government, much like that previously adopted by the Cherokee Nation—East (1827). That same year, most of the western Cherokee were moved from Indian Reserve areas in the Arkansas Territory to the newly established Indian Territory (in present-day Oklahoma). Jolly served as Principal Chief until his death in December 1838. He was succeeded by John Looney, who had been his assistant principal chief.
Hiwassee Island, at the mouth of the Hiwassee River where it meets the Tennessee, used to be commonly known as "Jolly's Island" after the Cherokee leader. Residents in the area sometimes still call it that.
| Preceded by Tahlonteeskee |
Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation West 1819–1838 |
Succeeded by John Looney |