Hanging Maw, or ''Uskwa'li-gu'ta'' in Cherokee, was the leading chief of the

Overhill Cherokee Overhill Cherokee was the term for the Cherokee people located in their historic settlements in what is now the U.S. state of Tennessee in the Southeastern United States, on the western side of the Appalachian Mountains. This name was used by 1 ...

from 1788 to 1794. They were located in present-day southeastern Tennessee. He became chief following the death of

Old Tassel Old Tassel Reyetaeh (sometimes Corntassel) (Cherokee language: ''Utsi'dsata''), (died 1788), was "First Beloved Man" (the equivalent of a regional Cherokee chief) of the Overhill Cherokee after 1783, when the United States gained independence from ...

, and the abandonment of the traditional capital at Chota after raids by European Americans.

Early life and education

''Uskwa'li-gu'ta'' was born into his mother's family and clan, as the Cherokee had a

matrilineal Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance ...

system. Accordingly, his maternal uncle would have taught him men's ways and guided him into the men's societies. He was a descendant of Moytoy III.

Marriage and family

His wife Betsy was the sister of the chief ''

Attakullakulla Attakullakulla (Cherokee”Tsalagi”, (ᎠᏔᎫᎧᎷ) ''Atagukalu''; also spelled Attacullaculla and often called Little Carpenter by the English) (c. 1715 – c. 1777) was an influential Cherokee leader and the tribe's First Beloved ...

''.

Adult years

Representing his mother's clan, Hanging Maw was on the tribal council for some time. Although Hanging Maw claimed the title of First Beloved Man by right as the chief headman of the Overhill Towns, the rest of the nation had chosen Little Turkey when they moved the seat of the council south to ''Ustanali'' on the

Conasauga River The Conasauga River is a river that runs through southeast Tennessee and northwest Georgia. The Conasauga River is longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 27, 2011 an ...

following the murder of Old Tassel. ''Uskwa'li-gu'ta'' was a descendant of

Moytoy of Citico Moytoy of Citico was said to be a Cherokee leader or war chief living in Virginia during the time of the Anglo-Cherokee War (1759–1761), but there is little evidence that he existed or that this name is correct. Earliest References The earliest ...

. They both exerted power for some time. Hanging Maw took part in the

Cherokee–American wars The Cherokee–American wars, also known as the Chickamauga Wars, were a series of raids, campaigns, ambushes, minor skirmishes, and several full-scale frontier battles in the Old Southwest from 1776 to 1794 between the Cherokee and American se ...

(1776–1794), including various attacks against settlers in Tennessee and Kentucky, including the capture of Daniel Boone's daughter, Jemima in 1776. In February 1786 in Middle Tennessee, approximately 20 miles southeast of Lafayette, he led a party of 60 men in a skirmish with a surveying party, made up of John and Ephraim Peyton, Squire Grant, and two other white men. Outnumbered, the white men escaped the area, but lost their horses, game, and surveying instruments to the band of Cherokee. The stream at the site of the skirmish became known as "Defeated Creek." In 1793, a diplomatic party from the Lower Cherokee (as the Cherokee still at war with the United States were by then called) was attacked by colonial militia while traveling to

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

, then capital of the

Southwest Territory The Territory South of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Southwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1790, until June 1, 1796, when it was admitted to the United States a ...

. The militia pursued the Cherokee to Chota on the

Little Tennessee River The Little Tennessee River is a tributary of the Tennessee River that flows through the Blue Ridge Mountains from Georgia, into North Carolina, and then into Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. It drains portions of three national ...

. The town was much reduced since the capital had been moved to Unstanali, near present-day

Calhoun, Georgia Calhoun is a city in Gordon County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,949. Calhoun is the county seat of Gordon County. History In December 1827, Georgia had already claimed the Cherokee lands that be ...

. When the militia could not capture the diplomatic party, they attacked the people of the town, wounding Hanging Maw and killing his wife Betsy. The Cherokee retaliated with an invasion of the

Holston River The Holston River is a river that flows from Kingsport, Tennessee, to Knoxville, Tennessee. Along with its three major forks (North Fork, Middle Fork and South Fork), it comprises a major river system that drains much of northeastern Tennessee ...

settlements. They gathered the largest force of Indians to that point, more than 1,000 warriors from both the Cherokee and the Upper Muskogee, led by John Watts, the chief of the Lower Cherokee. Some warriors killed a European-American family at a small fortified settlement known as Cavett's Station, although Watts had promised them safe passage. The Cherokee became divided over this incident.

References

* * {{Authority control 1790s deaths 18th-century Cherokee people Year of birth unknown People from Chota (Cherokee town) 18th-century Native Americans