Sequoyah was Cherokee and lived in the Georgia area. He was a blacksmith, silversmith and trader. However his greatest accomplishment was the creation of the Cherokee syllabary. Sequoyah noticed that white populations had an advantage because of their "talking leaves." He determined to make something similar. Because of his determination and passion people started to think he was unstable. He noted 86 different syllables in the Cherokee language and created symbols for each. When he finished, people accused him of witchcraft. However he taught his daughter to read when she was six. When people saw this they were convinced it was something good. The Cherokee nation adopted the syllabary in 1825. The syllabary quickly became very popular among the Cherokee. Soon the Cherokee were more literate than their white neighbors. It allowed the Cherokee to have their own newspaper. Sequoyah moved to Okalahoma with the forced removal of the Native Americans from the East. He passed away while he was trying to reunite the C herokee, looking for tribal members in Mexico.
information taken from Notable Native People by Adrienne Keene.
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