Cherokee in Swain County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

America's Sharpest Notes

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, June 10, 2023

1. America's Sharpest Notes Marker

Caption: Right: Charles Mingus Jr. circa 1970s. According to the 1880 Swain County census, his father Charles Sr. was fort to Danield and Clarinda (a white woman, granddaughter of Dr. John Mingus) in 1877. Below: Charles Mingus Jr.'s son Eric has followed in his father's footsteps as a jazz bassist and a conscious song writer, writing and performing music that confronts social and racial issues in America.

Inscription. Legendary jazz musician Charles Mingus Jr. has roots here in the Smokies, just as the genre of jazz traces strands of its origins to the multicultural music of Appalachia. Jazz is a uniquely American art form; the Mingus family experience in America hit some of the country's sharpest historical notes.
Mingus Jr. performed his 300+ musical compositions around the world with jazz greats like Louis Armstrong, Herbie Hancock and Duke Ellington. His music embodied the spirit of his own life story, and the struggles of Black Americans in the early Civil Rights era. His father, Charles Mingus Sr., served in the military during the Spanish-American War (1898) and as a Buffalo Soldier on the western frontier.
His grandfather, Daniel Mingus, was a highly-regarded craftsman, formerly enslaved on the property that included Mingus Mill.

"The air, the way it moves around, I can breathe easier her. It feels like home. I am not saying that home is comfortable, but i have a space to explore my history."
Eric Mingus, son of Charles Mingus Jr.

Erected by National Park Servicel.

Topics. This historical marker is listed

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in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music.

Location. 35° 31.252′ N, 83° 18.552′ W. Marker is in Cherokee, North Carolina, in Swain County. It can be reached from Mingus Creel Trail near Newfound Gap Road (U.S. 441). The marker is located at Mingus Mill. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Cherokee NC 28719, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Carolina’s Mountains and specifically in the Great Smoky Mountains.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Mingus Mill (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, June 10, 2023

2. Mingus Mill

marker also named Mingus Mill (about 300 feet away); Cut and Run (approx. 0.3 miles away); Fish Tales (approx. 0.4 miles away); Civilian Conservation Corps (approx. half a mile away); Mountain Farm Museum (approx. 0.6 miles away); The Meathouse (approx. 0.6 miles away); Apple House (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cherokee.

Also see . . . Charles Mingus, Biography. One of the most important figures in twentieth century American music, Charles Mingus was a virtuoso bass player, accomplished pianist, bandleader and composer. Born on a military base in Nogales, Arizona in 1922 and raised in Watts, California, his earliest musical influences came from the church-- choir and group singing-- and from "hearing Duke Ellington over the radio when [he] was eight years old." (Submitted on November 3, 2024, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.)

Credits. This page was last revised on November 3, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 3, 2024, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 162 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 3, 2024, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.