​Toccoa Falls History

Many of the early descendants of the Thomas family lived near Toccoa Falls.  Some settled above the falls along Toccoa Creek in what came to be know as the Bending Hickory area; others lived below the falls in the areas that are now part of Toccoa Falls Bible College campus. Of course these were relatively late comers to the area.  Some of the earliest recorded history locates a Cherokee town know by the name Taucoe. This town was classified as one of the lower towns of the Cherokee nation.  Two natural springs now named Indian Spring and Garnet Spring served the Cherokee; both are located on the college campus.

One of the earliest references to Taucoe can be found in the Spanish archives and is titled, "Archive Gener de Indias" which is dated March 31, 1569.  The manuscript was authored by Juan de la Bandera who was the notary that accompanied the explorer Juan Pardo and documented contact with the Indian nations in what are now the states of Georgia, South Carolina and parts of North Carolina and Tennessee.  Juan Pardo was the second Spanish explorer to visit the area; the first was De Soto around 1540.  The Pardo expedition travel the area around 1566.

Taucoe was attacked by the Creek Indian nation around 1750 and this ended the permanent occupation of the Falls area by any significant number of Cherokee.  Beginning in 1813 and by treaty the Cherokee nation worked with the state of Georgia to develop the Unicoi Turnpike. This major trade route passed just above the Falls as it made its way north. As noted in the Whitehead history Joseph Whitehead was born in the area about 1779.