Unicoi Turnpike

Unicoi Turnpike. . From Trade Route , Long before people traveled the route, the trail was likely used by wildlife to migrate from teh southern Appalachians to the coastal plains of the Atlantic Ocean. Later, the Cherokee walked through this valley when travelling from their own town of Overhill, Tennessee to their steelements in the Carolinas and North Georgia. , By the mid-1700s, the trail was used by Indigenous groups and settlers to transport trade goods like deerskins and furs to Charleston and Savannah for shipment to Europe. During the American Revolution, the trail was used for raids between white settlers and the Cherokee Nation., To Toll Road , In the early 1800s, a charter was granted to James R. Wyly and a group consisting of Cherokee and white settlers to develop a toll road along the Unicoi Trail. The charter agreed to pay the Native Americans $160 per year for 20 years so they could collect tolls. However, the Cherokee never received the promised funds. The path transitioned from foot/horsepath to a wider path that was the first vehicle/wagon road in the area. , Along the route, inns, taverns, and trading posts sprang up. When gold was found in 1828 in nearby Duke's Creek, the Unicoi Trunpike was heavily used by prospectors and miners on their way to settle in the Nacoochee Valley. The turnpike was an essential part of the economy of the region. , Captions: , Early toll roads got their name from the long pole or "pike" which could be turned aside after the poll was paid. The road was cleared using only hand tools and animal power. The location of the stumps and rocks ofter determined the routing of the road., A similar toll road shows the pike system in use.