Sautee Nacoochee Valleys;
The word "Sautee" comes from the name of a former Hitchiti-speaking Creek Indian village named Sawa-tee at the juncture of Sautee Creek and the Soque River. The name means "Racoon People." Soque" comes from the Muskogee language version of "Racoon People" - Sawa-kee. The word "Nacoochee" comes from the Cherokee pronunciation of a large Hitchiti-speaking town's name on the Chattahoochee River named Nokose (pronounced no-ko-she.) Nokose means "bear" in both the Hitchiti and Muskogee languages (branches of the Creek Indians.)
Early boosters of the Nacoochee Valley spread a fanciful Romeo-and-Juliet-like tale that Nacoochee was a beautiful Cherokee "princess," who fell in love with a Chickasaw warrior named Saute. When their love was forbidden by the Cherokee elders, Nacoochee supposedly jumped to her death on the cliffs of nearby Yonah Mountain. Actually, the Chickasaw Indians lived over 300 miles west of the Nacoochee Valley. The tale has no historical merit even though it is presented as fact on a State historical marker.