John Watts (Cherokee chief)

John Watts (or Kunokeski ), also known as Young Tassel, was one of the leaders of the Chickamauga Cherokee (or "Lower Cherokee") during the Cherokee-American wars. Watts became particularly active in the fighting after the murder of his uncle, Old Tassel, by militant frontiersmen who attacked a band of delegates traveling to a peace conference in 1788.

Watts was a "mixed-blood" son of a British trader (who was also named John Watts, and was the official British government Indian interpreter for the area — until his death in 1770). His mother was a sister of Old Tassel, Doublehead, and Pumpkin Boy. Watts' parents resided in the Overhill Towns along the Little Tennessee River. Wurte Watts, the mother of Sequoyah, may have been a sister of John Watts.

Although he withdrew from the Overhill Towns along with Dragging Canoe's band, Watts was, at first, only occasionally involved in the activities of Dragging Canoe and his Chickamauga warriors. He moved first to Running Water Town, and later to Willstown.

Watts eventually became Dragging Canoe's hand-picked successor.

Watts led his first major action of the Cherokee-American wars in 1786 against the forces of the State of Franklin over their incursions into the territory of the Overhill Towns. Warriors from the Valley Towns also joined in the attacks.

His next major action came in October 1788. Following Old Tassel's murder, he led a large war party into North Carolina's Washington District (now Tennessee). The band included The Ridge (known as Nunnehidihi, or Ganundalegi) going into his first battle. They captured and burned Gillespie's Station, killing its defenders and taking several prisoners. The Cherokee warriors then proceeded against White's Fort (modern day Knoxville, Tennessee), where they were repulsed. Afterward, the group made a semi-permanent camp along Flint Creek (in the area of the future Unicoi County, Tennessee), harassing, raiding, and attacking white settlers in the surrounding countryside. Their base was discovered (in January the following year) and they were attacked by a troop commanded by John Sevier.

...
Wikipedia