Cherokee, North Carolina
We've visited the tourist destination of Cherokee, North Carolina before on GDB, take a look HERE and HERE. Cherokee is about 20 miles south off Pigeon Forge, and about 5 miles west of Maggie Valley - both places that we have also visited. But it's been a while, and I'm ready to buy some quality souvenirs, starting with this April 1964 pic. The hills aren't quite as lush and green as they would be in a few months, but I'm sure this still felt pretty great to folks from the Frozen North. "The Indian Store", with the twin tepees on top, was one of the more popular photo subjects, and it's no wonder. Zooming in, there are plenty of bows, arrows, and rubber-tipped spears for all of us. I wonder what else they had, further back in the shop? Blankets? Tom-toms? Bead-worked moccasins? "Peace pipes"? I'll bet I'm not too far off.
11 comments:
My mother married a pure Cherokee.......
So the store in the second pic is truly THE "Original Home of Old Fashioned Stick Candy" I don't know if I believe that. I supposed they invented horehound candy, too????
Thanks for the trip to Cherokee, Major!
Major-
Seeing the 'twin teepees' reminds me of the former twin teepee restaurant (actually, Clark's Twin T-P's Restaurant in Seattle). When it was acquired by [Walter] Clark in 1942, he employed a former war buddy, Col. Harland Sanders, who worked on his famous "Kentucky fried chicken" recipe in the Teepee's kitchen before establishing his own fast food empire. (In case you're wondering, the restaurant suffered two fires, the second one on June 1, 2000 forced it to permanently close its doors).
I'm betting 'junior's' red sweater has a zipper...
Thanks, Major.
Something you didn't mention is the baskets hanging from the eaves. I wonder if they were genuine Indian-made baskets or something you could get cheap at Newberry's? The sign claims that it IS genuine... Actually, the sign says "If Indians make it, we have it!". It doesn't say specifically that the goods were made by Indians.
Apparently, I'm in an anal mood tonight. ;-)
I really wonder if Mom bought that whip for her son, Charlie Bucket. And, if so, I'm wondering how many vases, lamps, dogs, cats, and people paid the price for it. I'm headed next door to get some "Old Fashioned Stick Candy". Cherry, grape, and root beer, for sure; plus others... Oh wait... Maybe they mean the candy is made from sticks!... Sticks boiled in sugar water. 8-\
These Saturday travelogues are always interesting and fun. Thanks, Major.
Now that I think of it, it was my father who married a pure Cherokee. And we never settled......went from town to town.
Thanks for the great pics, Major. My family went to Cherokee often in the 1960s and '70s during trips to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and I always made sure to get some sort of rubbery Indian weapronry from the roadside shops. "Hillbilly Taffy" is the candy I most remember. Another popular souvenir item in all those shops were small plushies of black bears which, back then, were stuffed with straw. There were, of course, also photo ops oustide the souvenir stands with men dressed in geographically inappropriate Plains Indians garb. Cherokee now has a casino which, while I'm sure is a welcome money-spinner for the community, changes the vibe of the place somewhat.
Cherokee! Mrs. Chuck and I have fond memories of this place from the ‘90s.
As a kid, I always wanted to sleep in a teepee, but now I’m not so sure. Roll out of bed in one of those in the first photo and you’d roll right off the roof.
I think the parking lot out front was where we saw a grandmother just completely lose it, scream at her grandson, aged about 10, yank down the back of his pants, and spank the tar out of his bare behind. He just stood there, looking a little embarrassed, and took it silently, while his grandfather and brother stood by, looking similarly embarrassed, and waited for the storm to pass. Must have been a relatively common occurrence for them all to react that way. It was very uncomfortable to watch.
The Quality Courts in the second photo evolved into today’s Quality Inn chain, although I think the current Quality Inn in Cherokee is in a different location today. I love that kid’s red sweater.
TM!, thanks for Chering that family story. Growing up, I’m sure it’s all you ever heard.
Thanks, Major!
What a splendid building! I love it!
I’m sure it’s chock-a-block with rubber tipped spears and pottery made in Hong Kong. Major, I’m glad you mentioned the spears, I had one, with a bamboo shaft and a cluster of feathers (of colors not found in nature) tied up near the spearhead. All forgotten till now.
I hope the kid didn’t get the whip, he would only be disappointed since cracking one is harder than it looks, same for swinging across Chasms.
I think we have visited Pigeon Forge with GDB before, as I was surprised that bird forgery was much of a problem, and here’s a whole city devoted to the practice.
Thanks Major!
JG
TokyoMagic!, ha ha, I was pretty sure you were referring to a certain song, but I had to look it up to make sure. I don’t think I’ve heard it in decades! I agree, it is hard to believe that nobody thought of stick candy before that store in Cherokee, North Carolina. But maybe it really was their idea??
Nanook, as you know, I dress like Colonel Sanders in my daily life - white suit, string tie, the whole deal. I also say things like, “Fiddle dee-dee!”, and “My land!”. So Kentucky Fried Chicken started in Seattle? I feel like I’ve read about the famous chicken before, but I didn’t remember that fact.
JB, I will never mention basket on GDB! NEVER! Ever since IT happened. I hope that Native Americans at least got to make some money crafting tourist goods, this was from before the days when they would have just outsourced everything to China. I seem to remember having a whip when I was a kid, I think it was braided leather, though it also had some cotton line in the braid, so that when you cracked it (which happened successfully once in a while), pieces of the cotton line would fly off. I’m sure my mom or dad wisely “disappeared” that toy.
TokyoMagic!, get your story straight!
Pegleg Pete, I wish my family had seen some of these iconic tourist destinations back in the day, you are lucky that yours did. “Hillbilly Taffy”, that scares me. Somehow I like the idea of the black bear plushies stuffed with straw. It really is telling that folks always wanted to see Indians with big headdresses, fringed leather, the whole movie thing. Im sure you’re right, the Casino probably brought prosperity to many, while taking away some of the original charm.
Chuck, it’s not too late, I think you should sell your home and move into a teepee. For one thing, it will make it easier to follow the buffalo herds. Mrs. Chuck will appreciate your practicality. Jeez, what did that kid do that made his grandmother scream at him? Maybe he said a bad word. I have seen parents spank their kids in public, but only rarely - it’s always a very odd thing. The Quality Inn signs show up in a surprising number of vintage tourist spots, I find them sort of comforting.
JG, all of the best genuine Indian arrows and spears had bamboo shafts. I’ve seen photos of such items in the hands of kids in Disneyland’s Adventureland, and yes, always with some brightly-dyed feathers. I can’t decide what would be worse for the kid, the whip, or tom-toms. I guess the tom-toms would be worse for the parents. If I ever go to Cherokee, NC, I will wonder if the pigeons are real, or forgeries!
TM!, thanks for Chering that family story. Growing up, I’m sure it’s all you ever heard.
Chuck, yes....but every night all the men would come around, and lay their money down.
TM!, thanks for Chering that family story. Growing up, I’m sure it’s all you ever heard.
Chuck, yes....but every night all the men would come around, and lay their money down.
But TM! That means your mom was a gypsy, not a Cherokee.
Thank you, Major, for a fun side trip to Cherokee, North Carolina.
But TM! That means your mom was a gypsy, not a Cherokee.
Sue, she was both! She was also the fortune queen of New Orleans, and she use to brush her cat in her black limousine! ;-)
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