Chieftains Major Ridge House – Rome in Georgia
History on Chieftains
Major Ridge House
in Rome Georgia
Chieftains Museum/Major Ridge Home
Rome, Georgia
History of Chieftains
Chieftains Museum/Major Ridge Home is one of Georgia’s most significant Cherokee historic sites.
Located beside the Oostanaula River in Rome, the property preserves the former home and farm of
Major Ridge, an influential Cherokee warrior, statesman and political leader.
At the center of the present house is a two-story dogtrot-style log structure that served as the Ridge family’s home.
Major Ridge moved to the property around 1819 and established a farm of approximately 200 acres.
Later owners expanded and altered the building, creating the larger white frame residence visitors see today.
Major Ridge and Cherokee Leadership
Major Ridge was born around 1771 and rose from being a respected
warrior to becoming an important leader within the Cherokee Nation.
He supported education, economic development and selected aspects of European-American
culture while working to protect Cherokee sovereignty and land.The Ridge family became one of the most prominent
Cherokee families of the early nineteenth century.
Major Ridge’s son, John Ridge, was also a Cherokee political leader,
while his cousin Elias Boudinot became the first editor of the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper.
The home reflects the rapid changes experienced by Cherokee families during this period.
The property included agricultural land, family living spaces and a ferry operation that helped people cross the Oostanaula River.
The Treaty of New Echota
During the 1830s, the United States and Georgia increased pressure on the Cherokee Nationto surrender its
remaining land in the Southeast. Most Cherokee citizens, including Principal Chief John Ross, opposed removal.
Major Ridge eventually believed that removal had become unavoidable. In December 1835, he joined John Ridge,
Elias Boudinot and other members of a minority group known as the Treaty Party in signing the Treaty of New Echota.
The treaty surrendered the Cherokee Nation’s remaining southeastern lands in exchange for territory west of the Mississippi River.
The Cherokee National Council had not authorized the signers to make the agreement, and most Cherokee people rejected it.
Nevertheless, the United States Senate ratified the treaty in 1836. It was later used to justify the forced removal of thousands of
Cherokee people during the Trail of Tears. Major Ridge, John Ridge and Elias Boudinot were killed on June 22, 1839, after the removal.
Their deaths were connected to Cherokee law prohibiting unauthorized sales of the Nation’s communal land.
Architecture and Home Life
Although the building now appears to be a large nineteenth-century frame house, its historic core is the
earlier log home occupied by the Ridge family. Numerous additions made after Major Ridge left the property illustrate different periods
of Northwest Georgia architecture. The house and surrounding grounds help visitors understand Cherokee family life, agriculture,
transportation and political leadership during the years preceding removal. The property’s location beside the Oostanaula River also
demonstrates how waterways supported farming, trade and regional travel.
Preservation and Museum History
The historic house became a museum in 1971. It is operated by Friends of Chieftains, Inc., an organization dedicated
to preserving the property and interpreting nineteenth-century Cherokee history through the experiences of the Ridge family.
Chieftains is recognized as a National Historic Landmark and is a certified site on the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail.
The museum joined the National Park Service trail program in 2002.
What Visitors Can Experience
The museum contains permanent and temporary exhibitions about Major Ridge, John Ridge, the Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears.
Visitors can explore the historic home, walk across the riverside property and view interpretive signs explaining the site’s history.
The grounds also include the Major Ridge Demonstration Garden, a Three Sisters Garden, a small orchard, an archaeological area and a replica
of the type of ferry Major Ridge operated on the Oostanaula River. The property connects with Rome’s Riverwalk, providing access toward downtown Rome.
Why Chieftains Matters Today
Chieftains preserves a complicated and deeply important chapter of American history. It tells the story of Cherokee leadership,
family life and economic achievement while also examining land loss, political division and forced removal.
The site encourages visitors to consider Major Ridge’s difficult decisions, the opposition of most Cherokee people to the Treaty of
New Echota and the lasting consequences of the Trail of Tears. By preserving the house and its landscape, the museum helps ensure that
Cherokee history remains visible and understood by future generations.
Visitor Information
Address:
501 Riverside Parkway NE
Rome, Georgia 30161
Phone:
762-327-6124
Museum hours:
Wednesday through Saturday
10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Hours and admission may change for holidays or special events, so visitors should confirm current information before traveling.
Preserving Cherokee Heritage and the Legacy of the Ridge Family
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About Chieftains Major Ridge House in Rome Georgia
Chieftains Museum/Major Ridge Home
Rome, Georgia
History
Chieftains Museum/Major Ridge Home preserves the former home and plantation of
Major Ridge, one of the most influential Cherokee leaders of the early nineteenth century. The property stands beside the
Oostanaula River in Rome, Georgia, and tells an important story of Cherokee leadership, family life, economic achievement and forced removal.
Major Ridge and his family moved to the property after the War of 1812. At the center of the present building is a two-story, dogtrot-style log house.
The Ridge family improved the residence with clapboard siding, glass windows, shutters and porches.
Later owners greatly enlarged and altered the structure, creating the white frame mansion visitors see today.
The home became the center of Major Ridge’s approximately 280-acre plantation.
The property included crop fields, vegetable gardens, orchards and a ferry business that carried travelers across the Oostanaula River.
Enslaved African Americans also lived and worked on the plantation, making their experiences an important part of the site’s history.
Major Ridge and Cherokee Leadership
Major Ridge was born around 1771 and became a respected Cherokee warrior, statesman and political leader.
He supported the creation of a centralized Cherokee government and served as a councilor when the Cherokee Nation
established a constitutional government with three branches in 1827. His son, John Ridge, also became an important Cherokee political leader.
Together with relatives such as Elias Boudinot and Stand Watie, the Ridge family played a major role in debates over how the
Cherokee Nation should respond to increasing pressure from Georgia and the United States.
The Treaty of New Echota
During the 1830s, the federal government and the State of Georgia increased efforts to remove the Cherokee people
from their southeastern homeland. Most Cherokee citizens, led by Principal Chief John Ross, strongly opposed removal.
Major Ridge eventually concluded that relocation had become unavoidable. In 1835, he joined John Ridge, Elias Boudinot and
other members of the minority Treaty Party in signing the Treaty of New Echota. The agreement surrendered the
Cherokee Nation’s remaining eastern lands in exchange for territory west of the Mississippi River. It was not approved by the
Cherokee National Council and was rejected by most Cherokee people.
The United States nevertheless used the treaty to justify the forced removal of thousands of Cherokee people.
Beginning in 1838, Cherokee families were driven west along routes remembered collectively as the Trail of Tears.
Major Ridge, John Ridge and Elias Boudinot were killed in Indian Territory in 1839 because of their roles in signing the unauthorized treaty.
Their decisions and deaths remain among the most complex and debated chapters in Cherokee history.
Architecture and Home Life
The building shown today is not exactly the house that existed during Major Ridge’s lifetime. Its historic core is the earlier log residence, while later owners added rooms, wings, porches and architectural details. These changes allow visitors to see examples of Northwest Georgia architecture from several different periods.
The house and surrounding landscape help illustrate Cherokee domestic life, farming, river transportation and commerce before removal. The surviving property also shows how prosperous Cherokee families combined traditional community life with new agricultural and business practices.
Preservation and Museum
Community preservation efforts began during the twentieth century, and the site has been operated as a museum since 1969. Chieftains is recognized as a National Historic Landmark and is an official site associated with the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail.
Today, museum exhibits tell the story of Major Ridge, John Ridge, the Ridge family, Cherokee culture and the Trail of Tears. Visitors can tour the historic house, explore the riverside grounds and learn about the ferry, plantation and later history of the property.
The grounds also include demonstration gardens representing the food crops, orchards and medicinal plants once associated with Major Ridge’s agricultural operation.
Why Chieftains Matters Today
Chieftains preserves both the achievements and hardships of Cherokee life in nineteenth-century Georgia. It honors the leadership and influence of the Ridge family while presenting the painful consequences of land loss, political division and forced removal.
The site encourages visitors to examine Major Ridge’s controversial choices, understand the opposition of most Cherokee people to the Treaty of New Echota and remember those who suffered during the Trail of Tears.
Visitor Information
Address:
501 Riverside Parkway NE
Rome, Georgia 30161
Phone:
762-327-6124
Hours:
Wednesday through Saturday
10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Preserving Cherokee History and Honoring a Legacy of Leadership
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