William Shorey Coodey

WILLIAM SHOREY COODEY (1806–1849) When the Cherokee who survived the Trail of Tears settled in the new Indian Territory in 1839, it was William Shorey Coodey who drafted the Cherokee Constitution uniting the former nations of East and West Cherokee. In the early 1840s a new combined Cherokee government began to function. William Shorey Coodey was elected to be the Senator from the Canadian district on the west side of the Arkansas River. There, he was elected President of the Senate. As such, he was Acting Principal Chief in 1846 during the absence of the Principal Chief and also the Assistant Principal Chief. He visited Washington often, staying with his close friend, Daniel Webster. He died of an unknown illness.