Cherokee Path

The Cherokee Path (or Keowee path) was the primary route from Charleston to Columbia, South Carolina in Colonial America, connecting all of the Cherokee territories.

History

In the 17th century the Cherokee Path was used by English and French fur traders.^{[citation needed]}

The path was mapped in 1730 by George Hunter, the Surveyor-General of the Province of South Carolina. At that time it ran 130 miles (210 km) from Charlestown to the colonial settlement of Ninety Six, then to Fort Prince George and the Cherokee village of Keowee, the principal town of the Cherokee Lower settlements (in present day Oconee, Greenville, Pickens and Anderson counties).

From Keowee, the path branched out into the Unaka Mountains, usually following streams and valleys,^{[citation needed]} to Clayton, Georgia and up to Franklin and Murphy in North Carolina (the Middle settlements) and across to the Cherokee towns in Tennessee (the Overhill settlements).

Fort Loudoun, constructed by South Carolina troops in 1756, was along the path.^{[citation needed]} Cherokee Path was used as a military road during the American Revolution.^{[citation needed]}

Present-day

South Carolina Highway 11 (the Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway) traces some of the original path.

See also

• Cherokee history
• Trading Path

External links

• Information with photos and maps from the South Carolina Genealogical Society