Sautee Nacoochee (or Sautee-Nacoochee) is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

White County, Georgia White County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,003. The county seat is Cleveland. The county was created on December 22, 1857, formerly a part of Habers ...

, United States, near Sautee Creek in the Appalachian foothills of northeast Georgia, approximately north of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. The nearest incorporated town is the tourist destination of

Helen Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, ...

Geography

Sautee Nacoochee is located at longitude −83.68094, latitude 34.67994.

Origin of names

The meaning of Sautee Nacoochee's name is uncertain. A 1734 land grant between Great Britain and the Cherokee lists Nacoochee or Nagutsi as a Cherokee town. The South Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine. 19 (4): 157–161]. The meaning of this Cherokee placename is unknown. "Sautee" is an anglicized version of a Cherokee placename "I-tsa-ti" that was used to describe several Cherokee places. James Mooney indicates that common anglicized forms of the name include Echota, Chota, and Chote. I-tsa-ti is a significant placename for the Cherokee as it was the name of their ancient capital, an important "peace town" and it is the name that was used for their new capital, established in the 19th century, New Echota Others speculate that this placename combines two place names of

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsNative Americans, known as the Sawate, which means "Raccoon People." ''Nacoochee'' could be the anglicization of the Cherokee pronunciation of the Muscogee word, ''Nokose'', which means "bear." However, James Mooney also thought it might have some connection with the name of the Yuchee Indians. A state historic marker states that the location was visited by Hernando de Soto in 1540 AD. However, a study of the route taken by De Soto by a team of Southeastern university professors in the 1980s placed his route far to the north. Nearby

Yonah Mountain Yonah Mountain (commonly referred to as "Mount Yonah" or, by older Georgians, "Yonah Bald") is a mountain ridge located in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest in Georgia, United States. It is between the cities of Cleveland and Helen. Yon ...

is the site of a folktale where a beautiful Cherokee maiden named Nacoochee fell in love with the

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classif ...

warrior Sautee. When their love was forbidden by the tribal elders, a war party followed the eloping lovers and threw Sautee off the mountain, with Nacoochee then jumping to her death, a ''

Lover's Leap Lover's Leap, or (in plural) Lovers' Leap, is a toponym given to a number of locations of varying height, usually isolated, with the risk of a fatal fall and the possibility of a deliberate jump. Legends of romantic tragedy are often associated w ...

''. This "Lover's Leap" story is identical to the story in

Lookout Mountain Lookout Mountain is a mountain ridge located at the northwest corner of the U.S. state of Georgia, the northeast corner of Alabama, and along the southeastern Tennessee state line in Chattanooga. Lookout Mountain was the scene of the 18th-cen ...

's Rock City attraction. Although he did not invent the legend, George Williams, the son of one of the original white settlers, popularized it in his 1871 ''Sketches of Travel in the Old and New World''.

Sautee Valley Historic District

* The Sautee Valley Historic District (adjacent to the

Nacoochee Valley Historic District The Nacoochee Valley Historic District is in White County, Georgia. The valley is enclosed by Mount Yonah, and Sal Mountain. Manmade objects in the valley span centuries. The most obvious Native American artifact is the Nacoochee Mound at the wes ...

) is a historic district centered on the community of Sautee Nacoochee. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1986 and has agricultural, architectural, and historic significance. The district includes the location of pre-historic villages and more recent buildings and structures from after American settlers came to the area. Spanish explorers sought gold in this valley, as did settlers who were seeking their fortune in the

Georgia Gold Rush The Georgia Gold Rush was the second significant gold rush in the United States and the first in Georgia, and overshadowed the previous rush in North Carolina. It started in 1829 in present-day Lumpkin County near the county seat, Dahlonega, an ...

. The center point of the Sautee Valley Historic District is the intersection of

Georgia State Route 255 State Route 255 (SR 255) is a S-shaped state highway located in the North Georgia mountains section of the U.S. state of Georgia. It travels through White and Habersham counties. Route description SR 255 begins at an intersecti ...

and Lynch Mountain Road.

Sautee Nacoochee Center

Sautee Nacoochee is most noted for the Sautee Nacoochee Center, a cultural and community center housed in the restored Nacoochee schoolhouse. The center was founded by the Sautee-Nacoochee Community Association (SNCA), which was also responsible for getting both Sautee and Nacoochee Valleys placed on the

. In September 2006, the

Folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

Pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

Museum of Northeast Georgia opened on the grounds of the Sautee Nacoochee Center. The Pottery Museum's new facility, designed by

architect Robert M. Cain, features a main exhibit floor that houses more than 150 vessels on permanent display and has space for additional temporary exhibits. The numerous cultural programs at the Sautee Nacoochee Center led to Sautee Nacoochee being designated as one of "The 100 Best Small Arts Towns in America" in a book by the same name written by John Villani.

Nearby towns

Helen, Georgia Helen is a city in White County, Georgia, United States, located along the Chattahoochee River. The population was 531 at the 2020 census. History Helen was platted in 1912, and named after the daughter of a lumber official. The town was incorp ...

Cleveland, Georgia Cleveland is a city in White County, Georgia, located northeast of Atlanta and southeast of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Its population was 3,410 at the 2010 census (up from 1,907 in 2000). It is the county seat of White County. Cleveland is home to ...

References

Resources

*2005 In the Shadow of Yonah: A History of White County, Georgia. Garrison Baker, Brasstown Creek Publications, Cleveland, GA. *c1922 Mrs J. E. Wickle, Clarksville, Georgia "A History of the Early Settlers of Nacoochee Valley March 10, 1822" in "Habersham County, Geoegia History" at Georgia Genealogy Trails, presented by the Georgia Genealogy Trails Group.

External links

Images from the Nacoochee ValleySautee Nacoochee CenterFolk Pottery Museum of Northeast GeorgiaSautee Nacoochee Valleys Associations

{{authority control Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) Geography of White County, Georgia Census-designated places in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in White County, Georgia