Qualls, Oklahoma
Encyclopedia
Qualls is a small community in Cherokee County, Oklahoma
, west of Lake Tenkiller
. The Qualls Post Office existed from January 20, 1909, until August 31, 1942. The first postmaster was William A. Qualls. One story is that sometime after the arrival of the Ross Party who traveled the Trail of Tears
due to the ethnic cleansing
Indian relocation in 1838, a cabin owned by a family named Qualls was burned to the ground by the Cherokee Lighthorse police and that event gave birth to the area name "Qualls Burnt Cabin". Sometime between World War 1 and World War 2, that original name was shortened in common usage to the present "Qualls". Qualls Road and Burnt Cabin Road remain on the present maps of the area to memorialize that history. The name is further memorialized in Burnt Cabin Ridge State Park on the shores of Tenkiller Lake. Today, 'downtown' Qualls is defined by Jincy's Kitchen, a home-cooking diner now operating in a building formerly used as a set in two movies, including "Where the Red Fern Grows".
Cherokee County, Oklahoma
Cherokee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2000, the population was 42,521. Its county seat is Tahlequah.Cherokee County was established in 1907.-Geography:...
, west of Lake Tenkiller
Tenkiller Ferry Lake
Tenkiller Ferry Lake, or more simply, "Lake Tenkiller," is a reservoir in eastern Oklahoma formed by the damming of the Illinois River. The earth-fill dam was constructed between 1947 and 1952 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers for purposes of flood control and hydroelectric power...
. The Qualls Post Office existed from January 20, 1909, until August 31, 1942. The first postmaster was William A. Qualls. One story is that sometime after the arrival of the Ross Party who traveled the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...
due to the ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
Indian relocation in 1838, a cabin owned by a family named Qualls was burned to the ground by the Cherokee Lighthorse police and that event gave birth to the area name "Qualls Burnt Cabin". Sometime between World War 1 and World War 2, that original name was shortened in common usage to the present "Qualls". Qualls Road and Burnt Cabin Road remain on the present maps of the area to memorialize that history. The name is further memorialized in Burnt Cabin Ridge State Park on the shores of Tenkiller Lake. Today, 'downtown' Qualls is defined by Jincy's Kitchen, a home-cooking diner now operating in a building formerly used as a set in two movies, including "Where the Red Fern Grows".