Artists & Educators
Sequoyah Guess
Traditional storyteller
Sequoyah Guess is a full blood member of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians of Oklahoma. He is a traditional storyteller in the true custom of his people. He received the position as the family Storykeeper from his Great Aunt, Maggie Turtle before she passed on at the age of 98. For the past 25 years, he has gathered and told stories shared with him from other Elders of the Cherokee and Keetoowah people. He holds the myths and legends of his people the oldest of which tells of the migration of his ancestors. Sequoyah is a 6th generation descendent of the original Sequoyah who developed the Cherokee writing system in the mid-1800s. He speaks, reads and writes in the language of his people. In addition to being a storyteller, Sequoyah is author of eight books. In 2002 and 2005, Sequoyah was nominated as a Living Treasure by the Cherokee Heritage Museum and the Cherokee Nation. But his greatest honor came when he was asked to tell stories at an Intertribal Elder’s Conference in Oklahoma City.
Visit http://www.texasfolklife.org/programs/powwows.htm for more information.
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