Chota Monument
Chota Monument is a historic site in Tennessee, at a modelled elevation of 250 m. Rockstack stands 1,335 m to the south-southeast, 13 miles off. The nearest named place is Tanasi Monument, a historic site 0.5 miles away. Cherohala Skyway passes 12 miles off.
The story
Chota (also spelled Chote, Echota, Itsati, and other similar variations) is a historic Overhill Cherokee town site in Monroe County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. Developing after nearby Tanasi, Chota (Cherokee: ᎢᏣᏘ, romanized: Itsati) was the most important of the Overhill towns from the late 1740s until 1788. It replaced Tanasi as the de facto capital, or 'mother town' of the Cherokee people. A number of prominent Cherokee leaders were born or resided at Chota, among them Attakullakulla, Oconostota, Old Hop, Old Tassel, Hanging Maw, and Nancy Ward. The former Chota and Tanasi sites are listed together on the National Register of Historic Places; Tanasi also has an archaeological site designation (40MR62) assigned in 1972. Since 1979, both sites have been mostly submerged by the Tellico Lake impoundment of the Little Tennessee River. Archeological excavations were conducted before the dam was completed. During the excavations, the site of the Chota townhouse was found. Major Cherokee towns were centered around a large townhouse or council house, the site of community meetings of hundreds of people. These were usually built on top of an existing platform mound in the center of the town. These earthworks had typically been built by ancestral peoples of the South Appalachian Mississippian or earlier cultures. Prior to the flooding of Tellico Reservoir, the Chota townhouse site was raised above the reservoir's operating levels and connected via a causeway to the mainland. The Chota monument, situated directly above the ancient townhouse site, consists of eight pillars —one for each of the seven Cherokee clans, and one for the nation. The grave of Chief Oconostota, found in the 1969 excavations, was re-interred next to the monument. This site is now managed by the federally recognized Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, based in Cherokee, North Carolina.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q5105371, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What to expect
- Access
- Yes
How to reach it
- 11.8 mi off the Cherohala Skyway, National
- 12.9 mi off the Indian Lakes Scenic Byway
- 28.6 mi off the Nantahala Byway
Overlooks nearby
- Stratton Ridge · 16 mi
- Whig Cove · 17 mi
- Haw Knob · 18 mi
- Santeetlah Overlook · 18 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Harrison Branch Recreation Area: 2.3 mi
- Citico Recreation Area: 2.9 mi
- Toqua Recreation Area: 3.5 mi
- Tallassee Recreation Area: 3.7 mi
- McGee Carson Peninsula State Historic Park: 4.3 mi
- Buzzard Roost: 2.8 mi
- Short Mountain: 3.7 mi
- Citico Mountain: 4.0 mi
- Flagpole Hill: 4.0 mi
- Butler Mountain: 4.1 mi
- Lower Falls: 11.4 mi
- Wildcat Falls: 11.5 mi
- Aiken Branch Falls: 13.4 mi
- Bear Creek Falls: 13.8 mi
- Bear Creek Falls (Cheoah): 13.9 mi
- Turkeypen Bluff: 4.8 mi
- Bolden Knight Bluff: 5.9 mi
- Crowder Bluff: 7.2 mi
- Morton Bluff: 7.5 mi
- Morton Bluff: 7.5 mi
- Tanasi Monument: 0.5 mi
- Fort Loudoun: 4.9 mi
- McGhee: 5.8 mi
- Morganton: 8.1 mi
- Tucker Springs Historical Marker: 16.0 mi
- Greenback Castle: 4.9 mi
- Tree of Shame: 13.4 mi
- Maryville Greenbelt Amphitheater: 16.5 mi
- The Lost Sea: 16.9 mi
- Caboose: 17.4 mi
- Sequoyah Birthplace Museum: 5.0 mi
- Greenback Heritage Museum: 7.6 mi
- Charles Hall Museum: 16.0 mi
- Cades Cove Preservation Association & Cades Cove Museum: 16.9 mi
- Carmichael Inn Museum: 17.3 mi
- Look Rock Picnic Area: 12.0 mi
- Cades Cove Covered Picnic Shelter: 20.5 mi
- Cades Cove Picnic Area: 20.5 mi
- Saratoga Pavillion: 20.8 mi
- Poplar Spring: 15.5 mi
- Ebb and Flow Spring: 18.5 mi
- Hardin Spring: 18.5 mi
- Herron Spring: 23.2 mi
- Calderwood: 9.0 mi
- Proctor: 23.5 mi
- Cheeyo Park: 11.4 mi
- Sam Houston Statue: 16.1 mi
- Cherohala Skyway restroom/trail head: 18.8 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 13.2 miles of Chota Monument. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rockstack | SSE 149° | 1,335 m | 12.7 mi |
| Big Fodderstack | SSE 149° | 1,321 m | 11.5 mi |
| Ikes Peak | SSE 160° | 1,155 m | 12.6 mi |
| Ikes Peak | SSE 160° | 1,155 m | 12.6 mi |
| Little Fodderstack | SE 138° | 1,137 m | 9.7 mi |
| Cold Spring Knob | SE 136° | 1,056 m | 12.8 mi |
| Flats Mountain | S 171° | 1,013 m | 12.0 mi |
| Parson High Top | E 100° | 991.928 m | 12.5 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:41 | 19:15 | 19:49 |
| June solstice | 06:22 | 20:18 | 20:56 |
| September equinox | 07:25 | 19:01 | 19:35 |
| December solstice | 07:43 | 16:48 | 17:28 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Apr–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 38 | 42 | 49 | 57 | 64 | 71 | 74 | 73 | 68 | 58 | 48 | 41 |
| Precip in | 5.4 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 5.5 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Tapoco, 13 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
National Register of Historic Places, reference 73001813OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidataOpenStreetMap element way/1230019027
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