Cherokee National Treasure is a distinction created in 1988 by the Cherokee Nation to recognize people who have made significant contributions to the preservation of the tribe's art, language, and culture.[1]
The tribe published a biographical overview of these cultural bearers, Cherokee National Treasures: In Their Own Words, co-edited by Shawna Morton-Cain and Pamela Jumper-Thurman in 2017.[2] [3]
| Name | Year Inducted | Birthday | Death Day | Reason for Induction | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex England | 1988 | September 3, 1903 | Before 2017 | Bow making[4] | |
| Todum Hair | 1988 | February 1, 1917 | 2010 | Gig making[5] | |
| 1988 | October 16, 1926 | March 3, 2012 | Pottery | ||
| Lyman Vann | 1988 (posthumously) | May 22, 1907 | June 15, 1985 | Bow making | |
| William Cabbagehead | 1989 | Blowgun/Darts | |||
| Stella Livers | 1990 | April 20, 1911 | 1994 | Basketry | |
| Knokovtee Scott | 1990 | February 10, 1951 | December 12, 2019 | Carving[6] | |
| Lucille Hair | 1990 | April 2, 1917 | October 11, 2012 | Weaving[7] | |
| Lorene Drywater | 1990 | June 19, 1932 | July 30, 2021 | Traditional clothing sewing[8] | |
| Mattie Wildcat Drum | 1990 | February 26, 1920 | 1991 | Weaving | |
| Rogers McLemore | 1990 | September 18, 1912 | Before 2017 | Weaving[9] | |
| Hester Chair Guess | 1990 | September 15, 1915 | Before 2017 | Weaving | |
| Ella Mae Blackbear | 1990 | August 23, 1930 | Basketry | ||
| Clarence Downing | 1990 | Carving | |||
| Ruth England | 1990 | Traditional clothing | |||
| Mary Foreman | 1990 | September 24, 1926 | Before 2021[10] | Basketry | |
| Sally Lacy | 1990 | September 11, 1920 | Before 2017 | Basketry | |
| Thomas Muskrat | 1990 | Carving | |||
| Jennie Sapp | 1990 | February 21, 1923 | Before 2017 | Basketry | |
| Maxine Stick | 1990 | Basketry | |||
| Hastings Shade | 1991 | May 20, 1941 | February 9, 2010 | Carving/Gig making, one-term deputy chief of the Cherokee Nation | |
| Wendell Cochran | 1991 | Traditional clothing | |||
| Alan Herrin | 1991 | Bow making | |||
| Dorothy Ice | 1991 | Weaving | |||
| Eunice O'Field | 1991 | Basketry/Weaving | |||
| Scott Rackliff | 1991 | May 29, 1923 | 1994 | Flintknapping/Carving | |
| Anna Sixkiller-Huckaby | 1991 | Basketry | |||
| Nancy Smith | 1991 | Turtleshell Shackles | |||
| Eva Smith | 1991 | Turtleshell Shackles | |||
| Betty Jo Smith | 1991 | March 26, 1931 | Traditional Cooking | ||
| Edith Catcher Knight | 1992 | 2016 | Traditional clothing[11] | ||
| Minnie Handle Jumper | 1992 | July 25, 1922 | Before 2017 | Doll making | |
| John Ketcher | 1992 | June 5, 1922 | October 17, 2011[12] | Weaving | |
| George Fourkiller | 1992 | December 8, 1907 | Before 2017 | Basketry | |
| Thelma Forrest | 1992 | Basketry | |||
| Betty Scraper Garner | 1993 | February 23, 1924 | June 1997 | Basketry | |
| Vivian Bush | 1993 | Turtle shell shackles | |||
| Jess Oosahwee | 1993 | Blowgun/Darts | |||
| David Neugin | 1994 | August 26, 1920 | Bow making | ||
| Luther "Toby" Hughes | 1994 | Carving | |||
| Tom Webber Wildcat | 1995 | August 11, 1922 | 2008 | Turtleshell Shackles[13] | |
| Vivian Garner Cottrell | 1995 | May 24, 1959 | Basketry[14] | ||
| Lena Blackbird | 1996 | Basketry | |||
| Richard Rowe | 1996 | Carving | |||
| William Foster | 1997 | August 13, 1920 | Bow making[15] | ||
| Nadine Wilbourn | 1997 | Basketry | |||
| Noel Timothy Grayson | 1998 | Bow making/Flintknapping | |||
| Lee Foreman | 1999 | October 19, 1928 | Marble making | ||
| Mildred Justice Ketcher | 1999 | November 26, 1922 | Basketry | ||
| Bessie Russell | 1999 | Basketry | |||
| Albert Wofford | 1999 | July 2, 1929 | Gig making/Carving | ||
| Wyona Dreadfulwater | 2000 | Loomweaving | |||
| Marie A. Proctor | 2000 | Basketry | |||
| Pollie Whitekiller | 2001 | September 18, 1917 | Before 2017 | Quilting | |
| Willie Jumper Sr. | 2001 (posthumously) | March 31, 1911 | August 1977 | Stickball Sticks | |
| Margaret Wilson | 2001 | Quilting | |||
| Wanna Lou Barton | 2002 | 2010 | Turtle shell shackles | ||
| Jim Buckhorn | 2002 | September 13, 1943 | September 28, 2020 | Bow making[16] | |
| Linda Lou Mouse Hansen | 2002 | March 25, 1925 | Before 2017 | Basketry | |
| Sam Lee Still | 2002 | January 28, 1925 | Before 2017 | Wood Carving | |
| Lizzie Jane Whitekiller | 2002 | Hand Sewn Quilting | |||
| Kathryn Kelley | 2003 | June 12, 1930 or December 6, 1930 | June 20, 2021 | Traditional basketry | |
| Rosie Chewie | 2003 | Basketry[17] | |||
| Kathy Mae VanBuskirk | 2004 | Basketry[18] | |||
| Perry Lynn VanBuskirk | 2004 | Bowmaking | |||
| Jane Osti | 2005 | Pottery | |||
| Shawna Morton Cain | 2006 | Basketry[19] | |||
| Rachel Michelle Dew | 2006 | Basketry | |||
| Roger Cain | 2007 | Masks | |||
| David Scott | 2008 | Languages | |||
| Bill Glass Jr. | 2009 | Sculpture | |||
| 2010 (posthumously) | November 18, 1945 | April 6, 2010 | First woman Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation | ||
| Ed Fields | 2010 | Language | |||
| Betty Christie Frogg | 2010 | Basketry | |||
| Edna Sue Thompson | 2010 | Language | |||
| Lisa Smith | 2011 | Turtle Shells | |||
| Bill Rabbit | 2011 | December 3, 1946 | April 9, 2012 | Artistry and preserving Cherokee culture[20] | |
| Durbin Feeling | 2011 | April 2, 1946 | August 19, 2020 | Advancing the Cherokee Language, Published first Cherokee-English dictionary[21] | |
| Victoria Vazquez | 2012 | Pottery[22] | |||
| Cecil Dick | 2012 (posthumously) | September 16,1915 | April 25, 1992 | Arts | |
| Tonia Weavel | 2012 | Traditional clothing | |||
| Martha Berry | 2013 | Beading[23] | |||
| Donald Vann | 2013 | Painting | |||
| Tommy Wildcat | 2013 | Blowgun and flute making | |||
| David Comingdeer | 2014 | Stickball sticks[24] | |||
| Clesta Manley | 2014 | November 23, 1924 | Painting | ||
| Eddie Morrison | 2014 | Sculpture | |||
| John Ross | 2014 | Language | |||
| Robert Lewis | 2015 | Storytelling | |||
| Dan Mink | 2015 | Graphic Design | |||
| Dennis Sixkiller | 2015 | Language | |||
| Richard Fields | 2016 | Bow making[25] | |||
| Demos Glass | 2016 | Metalsmithing | |||
| Vyrl Keeter | 2016 | October 28, 1931 | Flintknapping | ||
| Jesse Hummingbird | 2017 | February 12, 1952 | June 17, 2021 | Unique paintings and graphics[26] | |
| Mike Dart | 2017 | February 1, 1977 | Contemporary Basketry[27] | ||
| Troy Jackson | 2018 | Sculpture[28] | |||
| Lisa Rutherford | 2018 | Pottery | |||
| Loretta Shade | 2018 | Language | |||
| Annie Wildcat | 2018 | 1945 | 2018 | Clay Beads | |
| Candessa Tehee | 2019 | Weaving[29] | |||
| Choogie Kingfisher | 2019 | Storyteller | |||
| Lula Elk | 2019 | Shell Shaker | |||
| David Crawler | 2020 | Language[30] | |||
| Crosslin Smith | 2020 | Language | |||
| Traci Rabbit | 2020 | Painter | |||
| Dorothy Sullivan | 2020 | Painter | |||
| Danny McCarter | 2021 | Blowguns[31] | |||
| Cathy Abercrombie | 2021 | Weaving | |||
| Harry Oosahwee | 2021 | Artist and Stonecarver | |||
| Barbara Adair | 2022 | Basketry[32] | |||
| Weynema Smith | 2022 | Cherokee language preservation | |||
| Lena Stick | 2022 | Basketry | |||
| Diana Smith Cox | 2023 | Turtle shell shackles[33] | |||
| Steven Daugherty | 2023 | Traditional weapons |