John Looney (Cherokee chief)
Encyclopedia
John Looney was the last person elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation West by the whole tribe, and that was his second election to that office. He was first elected to succeed John Jolly
after the latter died 28 December 1838 and was deposed 22 April 1839 after the tribe elected John Brown
to effect a union with the Latecomers from the Cherokee Nation East after the Cherokee removal
of 1838-1839.
He was elected to the office again in July when Brown and his officers were deposed for having failed to accomplish that task, only to leave office again the next month when the reunited Cherokee Nation elected John Ross
, with Joseph Vann
as his assistant principal chief.
A dissident group of former members of the Cherokee Nation West elected John Rogers
as their principal chief in October, but their efforts to maintain a separate organization fell apart the following year.
Looney was married to Betsy, daughter of Will Weber, the mixed-blood headman of Willstown during the Chickamauga wars
. He was also the father-in-law of Stand Watie
.
John Jolly
John Jolly, ; , was Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation—West when the 1828 constitution was adopted...
after the latter died 28 December 1838 and was deposed 22 April 1839 after the tribe elected John Brown
John Brown (Cherokee chief)
John Brown, formerly judge of the Chickamauga District of the Cherokee Nation East, was elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation West 22 April 1839, after the Old Settlers decided to elect new officers to strengthen their position vis-a-vis the Latecomers under John Ross, in place of then...
to effect a union with the Latecomers from the Cherokee Nation East after the Cherokee removal
Cherokee removal
Cherokee removal, part of the Trail of Tears, refers to the forced relocation between 1836 to 1839 of the Cherokee Nation from their lands in Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, Alabama, and North Carolina to the Indian Territory in the Western United States, which resulted in the deaths of approximately...
of 1838-1839.
He was elected to the office again in July when Brown and his officers were deposed for having failed to accomplish that task, only to leave office again the next month when the reunited Cherokee Nation elected John Ross
John Ross (Cherokee chief)
John Ross , also known as Guwisguwi , was Principal Chief of the Cherokee Native American Nation from 1828–1866...
, with Joseph Vann
Joseph Vann
Joseph H. Vann was a Cherokee leader who owned Diamond Hill , many slaves, taverns, and steamboats that he operated on the Arkansas, Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee Rivers. He born at Spring Place, Georgia on February 11, 1798...
as his assistant principal chief.
A dissident group of former members of the Cherokee Nation West elected John Rogers
John Rogers (Cherokee chief)
John Rogers was the last elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation West, elected 11 October 1839 by the faction of Old Settlers who rejected the unity constitution of September 1839. The rejectionist faction gained no further adherents and the effort died the next year. Rogers was the nephew...
as their principal chief in October, but their efforts to maintain a separate organization fell apart the following year.
Looney was married to Betsy, daughter of Will Weber, the mixed-blood headman of Willstown during the Chickamauga wars
Chickamauga wars
The Chickamauga Wars were a series of raids, campaigns, ambushes, minor skirmishes, and several full-scale frontier battles which were a continuation of the Cherokee struggle against encroachment by American frontiersmen from the former British colonies...
. He was also the father-in-law of Stand Watie
Stand Watie
Stand Watie , also known as Standhope Uwatie, Degataga , meaning “stand firm”), and Isaac S. Watie, was a leader of the Cherokee Nation and a brigadier general of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
.