Will West Long

Will West Long

Artisans

Cherokee Indians

Handicraft

Manners and customs

Mask makers

Wood-carvers

Woodwork -- Appalachian Region, Southern

This undated photograph is of Will West Long (1870-1947) who served as an interpreter for ethnologists, James Mooney, Frank Speck, and Franz Olbrechts. Long was born in the remote western North Carolina community of Big Cove. Raised in the traditions of the Cherokee, Long attended Hampton Institute in Virginia when he was 25 years old. He lived off the Qualla Boundary until 1904, when he returned to Big Cove, where he remained for the rest of his life. For almost 30 years, Long served on Tribal Council, where he was instrumental in establishing the Cherokee Indian Fair, among other accomplishments. He recorded his knowledge regarding Cherokee medicine, carving, music and dance, and language with the hope of preserving tradition. An accomplished mask maker, Long died in 1947.

Unknown

Photograph Collection

Hunter Library Digital Collections, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 28723

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/

jpg;

photographs

StillImage

11051

https://southernappalachiandigitalcollections.org/object/11051

2009-01-27

All rights reserved. For permissions and use, contact Museum of the Cherokee Indian, Cherokee, NC 28719;

Qualla Boundary

Appalachian Region, Southern

4" x 5"(dimension)

Cherokee Traditions