Funeral Services And Cemeteries in Fort Payne

“Amy was incredibly kind and professional in the passing of my mother and in the planning of her funeral services. Thank you to everyone at Wilson Funeral Home - it was a fitting tribute for mom.“

“Sunday March 2nd, Tony and I while exploring Fort Payne happened across this cemetery. It is part of the Trail of Tears Historic Trail. There is not much literature or information at this site. It also feels like it is in someone's back yard. There is no parking lot but it is fenced in and free to explore. It is not very large. History: On the northeastern edge of the city of Fort Payne, Alabama, can be found a historic Native American and pioneer cemetery marking the site of the Wills Town Mission. Authorized by the American Board of Missions as part of its effort to bring education and Christianity to the Cherokee Indians, the mission was established in the Cherokee settlement of Wills Town in 1823. While the effort was well-intentioned, it bears note that one of the greatest Native American scholars of all time had lived in Wills Town during the years prior to the establishment of the mission. It was here between 1818 and 1821 that Sequoyah developed the Cherokee alphabet, bringing a written language and literacy to thousands of members of his tribe. Born in around 1770 at the Cherokee village of Taskigi in Tennessee, Sequoyah was an interested observer of how the whites used a written language to communicate and advance their culture through books and literature. He became convinced that a similar written alphabet could be developed for the Cherokee. Sequoyah moved to Wills Town in 1818 and perfected his 86-character Cherokee Alphabet over the next three years. He demonstrated it in 1821 and the impressed leaders of the nation eventually approved his efforts. The Cherokee became the only Native American tribe to develop and use a written language of their own. Sequoyah left Wills Town in 1823, the same year as the establishment of the Christian mission. He relocated to Arkansas and eventually to present-day Oklahoma where his log cabin home still stands. Although he died while on a trip to Mexico in 1843, Sequoyah's alphabet remains in use today and his statue stands in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.“

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