colonial settlements. Wide-spaced homes replaced clustered homes. Homesteads with

log cabins became common. Introduction of commercial trade, slaves and fur led to the

further dispersion of pre-contact town clusters. The Cherokees began to look to European

agricultural practices to maintain economic viability when the fur trade declined in the

1750s. This meant that larger amounts of arable land were sought after and more

intensive agricultural practices were used. Families more commonly cultivated

individual and private plots and the communal form of farming and ownership

diminished. Some families had plantations by the end of this period. Woodlands

adjacent to the settlements continued to be an important source of fuel and game. This

area served as forage area for newly introduced domesticated livestock. They fenced

gardens and farms near the home to keep livestock out of them (Goodwin, 1977).

 Overall, a sedentary, intensive form of land-use and private ownership began to

replace the pre-contact communal ownership and cultivation of land, hunting and

gathering activities. Innovations introduced by the Europeans included metal tools and

equipment, new domesticated plant varieties, animal husbandry, guns for hunting and

warfare, private land ownership and sedentary agriculture. When the American

Revolution began Cherokee's used a variety of agricultural practices ranging from small-

scale communal farming to large-scale individually based intensive farming.

American Revolution to Removal: 1775- 1838

 The new American government forced Cherokees to cede their lands after the

American Revolution. Indians continued to lose lands to American farmers. After the

Constitutions creation in 1789, the Indian Intercourse Act in 1790 was passed to help

regulate and protect the purchase of Indian lands by treaties. However, the federal