My late father was from the other side of the Smokies, near Maryville and Knoxville. He met my late mom in New York City while on leave from the Navy in the ‘40s. He was a John Wayne lookalike. My mother was an Italian girl from Manhattan. We used to spend the summers there. They were among the best times of my life. My grandpa was 1/4 Cherokee.
Well, then, he could have been a Harvard professor.
I am part Cherokee also...those Cherokee girls must have been really something.;-)
As an aside, marrying an indigenous native was usually acceptable--even admired--for members of an invading force.
The real Pocahontas is a prime example.