Hunter’s Home

George M. Murrell, of Lynchburg, Virginia, married Minerva Ross, niece of principal chief John Ross of the Cherokee nation. The Murrells built their home in Park Hill starting in 1844. It became known as Hunter's Home, a social center for Cherokee nation leaders and Fort Gibson officers. After Minerva died, George married her younger sister, Amanda. During the Civil War, the Cherokee nation split. Murrell, a slave owner with strong family ties in Virginia and Louisiana, was married into the Ross family, which was led by strong unionists. Hunter's Home was one of the few in Indian Territory not burned by one side or the other. The homes of John Ross, leader of the pro-Union faction, and Gen. Stand Watie of the Confederates were both burned. Restoration of Hunter's Home is underway.