Museum of the Cherokee People

Cherokee History & Stories
2026-10-05 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-09-07 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-08-03 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-06 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-06-01 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-04 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-04-06 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-03-02 17:00 - 18:00 (America/Kentucky/Monticello)

Books on the Boundary
2026-08-19 17:00 - 19:00 | Museum of the Cherokee People, 589 Tsali Blvd, Cherokee, NC, 28719, United States
Museum of the Cherokee People’s reading circle continues its journey through the literary world of Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) literary world with our first double feature. This time, we’ll see how her stories and themes build from one book to the next by diving into both Warrior Girl Unearthed and Sisters in the Wind.

Whether you read one or both books, you’re welcome to join the conversation. We’re looking forward to another engaging discussion and seeing everyone there. Happy reading!

The Way We See the World: Annual Indigenous Pop Culture Celebration
2026-08-07 18:00 - 21:00 | Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort, 777 Casino Dr, Cherokee, NC, 28719, United States
Since 2022, MotCP’s annual The Way We event highlights Native pop culture and showcases timely perspectives for Cherokee people, primarily by Cherokee people. These community-centered events put Native self-representation in the spotlight and uplift creative work that explores identity through artistic expressions in film, music, visual art, and more.
Film submissions are closed for 2026’s event. Stay tuned for this year’s lineup!

Museum Closed
2026-06-10

Opening Reception - Didanisisgi Gadagwatli: A Showcase of Pottery from the Mud Dauber Community Workshop at the Museum of the Cherokee People
2026-06-05 18:00 - 19:30 | Museum of the Cherokee People, 589 Tsali Blvd, Cherokee, NC, 28719, United States
McCoy developed her pottery workshop three years ago when she noticed a decline in practicing ceramic artists in the Cherokee community. Compelled to do her part in ensuring that there are future generations of Cherokee potters, she developed a three-month intensive workshop that invites aspiring potters from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and other federally recognized tribes to learn all facets of Cherokee ceramics.

Cherokee Language Workshop with Ogadudala
2026-05-27 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-25 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-20 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-18 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-13 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-11 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-06 17:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-04 17:00 - 18:00 | Museum of the Cherokee People – Education Wing
Every Monday and Wednesday in the month of May, come practice your Cherokee with Ogadudala, with Cherokee Language Master Apprentice Program (CLMAP) graduates Dreyton Long, Madison Hye Long, Elvia Walkingstick, and Meshay Long and Dadiwonisi graduate Jack Cooper.No registration is required, and language workshops at MotCP are free of charge.

Big Cove to Boarding Schools: Educational Journeys of the Nick-Swayney-Bird Family
2026-05-07 16:30 - 18:00 | Museum of the Cherokee People – Education Wing
David Armenti will share genealogical research about 11 ancestors from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indian community, who attended either Hampton Institute’s “Indian School” (Virginia) or Carlisle Indian Industrial School (Pennsylvania). Nearly all of these individuals had multi-racial ancestry, which impacted their experiences and unique perspectives. Some ran away multiple times or endured unhealthy conditions at these off-reservation boarding schools, all saw their cultural identities evolve and took diverse paths after their time at Hampton or Carlisle. Presentation will include research supported by collections from the Carlisle Indian School Digital Resource Center Collections, NARA, Hampton University Archives, Museum of the Cherokee People, and Ancestry.com.
David Armenti (EBCI) is the Vice President of Education & Engagement at the Maryland Center for History and Culture, where he has worked since 2013. David is a Baltimore City native, who received his B.A. in American History and American Studies from the University of Maryland, College Park. He also holds a Masters of Arts in Teaching degree from Loyola University Maryland. Before joining MCHC, he served as a research archivist for the Maryland State Archives’ Legacy of Slavery Project. He specializes in using primary source collections to guide inquiry based learning on topics including African American history, Indigenous history, and the Revolutionary War era.
Image: Studio portrait of Bessie Nick, Chiltoski Nick, Minnie Nick, and Hattie Woodfin. C. 1897, Cumberland County Historical Society.

Artist Talk with Karen Sixkiller (Cherokee Nation)
2026-04-24 16:30 - 17:30 | Museum of the Cherokee People – Education Wing
Karen Sixkiller (Cherokee Nation) explores the aspects of magical realism and symbolism that combine her larger-than-life water beetle with the faceted geometric “mud” he perches on. Follow the technical journey of Karen Sixkiller’s simple clay maquette through the process of becoming a large bronze piece of public art.

Karen Sixkiller is a contemporary sculptor residing on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state. Sixkiller creates sculptures using metal, ceramic, glass beads, leather/suede and fabric. As a Cherokee Nation citizen much of her work is informed by Native American understandings or stories. Cherokee Nation has purchased many of Karen Sixkiller’s ceramic and mixed media sculptural pieces for display in official buildings. She has permanent public art installations in Tahlequah OK, Olympia and Port Angeles WA, and now Asheville NC; as well as several temporary installations in Coeur d’Alene ID, Olympia WA and Lake Oswego OR. Her work has been featured at multiple Indigenous and non-Indigenous art shows.

Sculpt Your Own Water Beetle with Karen Sixkiller (Cherokee Nation)
2026-04-23 15:00 - 17:00
Many of our oldest Cherokee stories feature small, humble creatures who accomplish the most important things! Learn a little more about the Grandmother Spider bringing fire and Water Beetle creating earth stories while we celebrate spiders and insects by learning how to sculpt your own.
All supplies provided. Space is limited. Registration is open to all aged 8 and up.
To Register:
Registration opens at 3pm EST Friday, April 10. Space is limited, and advance registration is required via online form.
A link will be posted to the Museum’s social media accounts and on motcp.org/community-learning.
Workshops fill quickly: if you are unable to complete the online registration form, the workshop is full. To be added to the waitlist, email dakota.brown@motcp.org with subject line “Waitlist: Beetle Workshop.” We encourage interested folks to set an alarm/reminder to sign up!

Books on the Boundary: Firekeeper's Daughter
2026-04-15 17:00 - 18:30
This event is free and all are welcome. Registration is not required.
With four starred reviews, Angeline Boulley’s debut novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, is a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community.
Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team.
Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.
Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source. But the search for truth is more complicated than Daunis imagined, exposing secrets and old scars. At the same time, she grows concerned with an investigation that seems more focused on punishing the offenders than protecting the victims.
Now, as the deceptions–and deaths–keep growing, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go for her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.

Confluence: A WCU Litfest Panel
2026-04-09 12:30 - 15:00
Hear four bright Indigenous voices in contemporary literature Thursday, April 9 at 12:30pm at Confluence: A WCU Litfest Panel.
Writers Vanessa Lillie (Cherokee Nation), Debora Taffa (Quechan [Yuma] Nation, Laguna Pueblo), and Shane Hawk (Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma) join our own Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians) in conversation.
Presented by the WCU Department of English Studies and the Museum of the Cherokee People with support from North Carolina Arts Council and South Arts, this event is a part of Western Carolina University’s Spring Literary Festival, an annual event dedicated to bringing established and emerging literary talent to the WCU campus and region.
Confluence: A WCU Litfest Panel is free of charge and open to all. Registration is not required.
Western Carolina University’s annual Spring Literary Festival has a long tradition of bringing established and emerging literary talent to our campus and region. It reflects WCU’s commitment to providing the best humanities education possible to its students and to bringing the best of the arts to the mountains.
The festival grew out of Western Carolina University’s Visiting Writers Series, the oldest such series in North Carolina. While the area has a rich literary heritage all its own, the festival seeks to secure that heritage’s place on the nation’s literary stage by bringing local and national writers together.

RESCHEDULED: 2026 James A. Cooper Memorial Lecture in Cherokee Studies
2026-03-20 17:00 - 20:00 | Museum of the Cherokee People – Education Wing
The James A. Cooper Memorial Lecture in Cherokee Studies is pleased to present ‘The Future of Tribal Sovereignty, Powered by the Past‘ by Stacy Leeds (Cherokee Nation), Willard H. Pedrick Dean, Regents Professor and Foundation Professor of Law at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University on March 20 at 5pm in the TJ Holland Education Room of Museum of the Cherokee People. A reception will follow.
Dean Leeds is leading scholar of Indigenous law and policy, with extensive experience in law, higher education, economic development, and conflict resolution. Leeds holds law degrees from the University of Wisconsin (LL.M.) and the University of Tulsa (J.D.), an M.B.A. from the University of Tennessee, and a B.A. in history from Washington University in St. Louis.
As the first Indigenous woman to serve as a law school dean, Leeds led the University of Arkansas School of Law (2011–2018) and later became the university’s inaugural Vice Chancellor for Economic Development (2017–2020). She has held faculty and leadership roles at the University of Kansas, the University of North Dakota, and the University of Wisconsin. She is an elected member of the American Law Institute and the American Philosophical Society. She is a past recipient of the ABA’s Spirit of Excellence Award and the Cherokee National Statesmanship Award.
Leeds is a former Cherokee Nation Supreme Court Justice. She has served as a trial and appellate court judge in many jurisdictions and as a commercial arbitrator.
The James A. Cooper Memorial Lecture is free and open to all. Registration is not required.

Opening Reception - Unrelenting: Cherokee People and the American Revolution
2026-03-17 16:30 - 18:30 | Museum of the Cherokee People, 589 Tsali Blvd, Cherokee, NC, 28719, United States
A pivotal moment for Cherokee sovereignty, the American Revolution marked a change for Cherokee government, land base, community, and family structure. Featuring historic objects in conversation with works by contemporary Cherokee artists, Unrelenting delves into 250 years of Aniyvwiya innovation, adaptability, and resistance, centering Native voices, perspectives, and creativity in response to the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

Unrelenting Art Market
2026-03-17 12:00 - 18:00 | Museum of the Cherokee People, 589 Tsali Blvd, Cherokee, NC, 28719, United States
Shop art, handmade goods, and more from Native vendors at the Unrelenting Art Market!

Interested in vending? Apply here: weblink.donorperfect.com/unrelenting

On Tuesday, March 17, Museum of the Cherokee People (MotCP) opens ‘ᏧᏂᏲᏍᎩ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ: ᏣᎳᎩ ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎯ ᏃᎴ ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏁᎦ ᏓᏂᎦᏘᎴᎬ ᎠᏰᎵ ᎤᏙᏒᎲᎢ Unrelenting: Cherokee People and the American Revolution,’ a first-of-its-kind exhibition centering Native voices, perspectives, and creativity in response to the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
On view through December 30, 2026, the exhibition features historic objects in conversation with works by Cherokee artists, merging cultural heritage, military history, and contemporary art for a nuanced examination of a pivotal moment in Cherokee and American history.

Fingerweaving Fridays
2026-03-13 14:30 - 16:30, 2026-03-06 14:30 - 16:30
Bring a current project or begin a new one using the Museum’s supplies.
