History
While the origins of the name-place have long been debated and remain unclear, it is believed to come from a distortion of the nearby Cherokee village resting in present day Jonesborough, TN called (roughly) Na’na-tlu gun’yi, which has been interpreted “Spruce-Tree Place.” Others argue that it actually means "Rushing Water(s)" or "Dangerous Water(s)". Local guides like to insist upon the menacing "River of Death", although that name is actually associated with the Chickamauga (which also happens to be a contested name-place itself). Perhaps the 'true' meaning remains elusive, and yet the river's life-nourishing stream has established itself again as a sacred space, demanding reverence for its awesome power.
The Nolichucky is considered to be a fairly famous and historic stream in Tennessee, being in and associated with the part of the state that was the subject of the first extensive white settlement - nearby Jonesborough, (see above) being Tennessee's oldest town. The state's first governor, John Sevier, was known by the nickname "Nolichucky Jack", a reference to this stream.
Most of the history of the Nolichucky River Valley has been largely forgotten, even since European settlers moved into the territory. Up until that time, for thousands of years, Native Americans inhabited along the banks and in the surrounding woodlands. "Here, in 1776, militiamen built Fort Lee near the confluence of the Big Limestone Creek and the Nolichucky River. Future Tennessee Governor John Sevier, then a lieutenant, was in charge of constructing and garrisoning the fort, built to defend the frontier settlers of Upper East Tennessee (then North Carolina) against an invading Cherokee army during the Revolutionary War... The Cherokees burned Fort Lee in July 1776. The site of the fort is believed to be in the vicinity of the David Crockett Birthplace State Park... the park preserves the site of the original farm of John Crockett; his son David (aka Davy Crockett) was born at this property in 1786."
Read more about this topic: Nolichucky River
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