Dwarfs and Gnomes

By: Don & Diane Wells                                    
                                                                                                                          
The Folklore and Legends of many Native American Tribes and indigenous people from other countries include the stories of the Little People. The Little People live in the woods and are often thought to be hairy-faced dwarfs. Some are no higher than your knee; others are smaller. They build houses in the rock structures under the trees, along streams and sometimes in the trees. They hide from anyone coming into the forest. In the legends of the old countries, they are called Fairies, Brownies, Gnomes, Goblins, Leprechauns, and Pixies to name just a few. Each Native American Tribe has their own name for them. To the Iroquois, they are called Jogahoh; to the Comanche, they are called Nunnupi and to the Cherokee, they are the Yunwi Tsundi.

Do these Little People exist? There is little evidence that they do exist. In the 1830’s in Coshocton, Ohio, a graveyard was unearthed which contained the skeletons belonging to a pygmy race. The graves in the cemetery were just three feet long. Author Mary Joyce wrote a book called Cherokee Little People Were Real. In her book she states she has proof of their existence. Her book presents some of the information uncovered during the construction of the campus of Western Carolina University near Silva, NC in the 1930’s.

Joyce’s interest in the Cherokee Little People began when she interviewed the late Walter Middleton. In that interview, Middleton told her about finding little tunnels cut in the clay soil when they started the foundations for the buildings. Middleton described the tunnels as being arched and a few feet high. The workers at the construction site also found small bones and a small skull which had wisdom teeth indicating an older person. Also found on the campus property were what was believed to be two Indian Mounds. However, the old timers there said they were, “piles of dirt from digging the tunnels.”

Cindy Thorrington Haggerty of Indian heritage says the Little People are classified into three groups: the Dogwood People, the Laurel People and the Rock People. She said, “The Dogwood People are kind and always doing good things for people; the Laurel People are the ones always playing tricks and are mischievous; the Rock People are mean and should be avoided.”

Lula Owle, Cherokee Elder, told us about growing up on the Qualla Boundary of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians in Cherokee, NC. She said when she and her mother would go into the forest to gather chestnuts, berries and greens, her mother would always caution her to watch for the “Little People” because the mean ones might do something bad to them. Lula said, “I never seen no little people” but she minded her mother and kept a keen eye as she gathered in the forest. Fellow researcher, Lamar Marshall, was hiking some Cherokee trails in the forest one day using his hand-held GPS. He said all of a sudden he felt like he was tripped and down he went into a small creek. When he got up, he searched diligently for his GPS. He never found it. He said the "Little People” took it.

Some tribes believe that in order to keep the Little People happy, one should leave a gift for the Little People before entering the forest. Jerry Wolfe, Elder of the Eastern Band of the Cherokees told us it was important to sprinkle tobacco on the ground before entering the forest as a payment to enter.

Legend says that the Little People like music and especially drumming, singing and dancing. The Cherokee legend says, “Sometimes their drums are heard in lonely places in the mountains, but it is not safe to follow it, for they do not like to be disturbed at home. They will throw a spell over the stranger so that he is bewildered and loses his way, and even if he finally gets back to the settlement he will be like one dazed forever after.” The legend goes on to say if you find something in the forest such as knife or trinket, you must ask the Little People if you can have it. If you don’t ask, they may throw stones at you on your way home.
On the top of Oglethorpe Mountain is Eagle’s Rest Park. It has many rock structures and small places where the Little People may live. Some doorways to their houses can be found but no Little People have yet been seen. The children that come to the mountain to hike the trails with their parents and grandparents enjoy searching for the mystical dwarf people. Several times this year, the drummers and mountain flutists have come to play in hopes that the Little People will join in but so far none have been seen. When you come to the mountain, keep your eyes open. Watch for the tricksters. You don’t want to get tripped on the trails. Keep your eyes open and see if you can find their houses. More are showing up all the time.

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