About Chattanooga

About: Chattanooga, Tennessee

Chattanooga was Founded in 1839

December 20, 1839, the Tennessee General Assembly incorporated the Town of Chattanooga. In 1816, brothers John and Lewis Ross established the settlement of Ross’s Landing here, a trading post consisting of a warehouse, and ferry landing site.

The early residents met and voted to change the name of Ross’s Landing to Chattanooga in 1838.

chattanooga established Ross's Landing was re-named Chattanooga in 1839

How to Pronounce Chattanooga

[ chat-uh-noo-guh ]
Chat·​ta·​noo·​ga

The Meaning of the Name Chattanooga

Other than being derived from the Cherokee, historians are not in complete agreement on the origin of the name "Chattanooga". Some hold that it derives from a word describing nearby majestic Lookout Mountain as "rock coming to a point," some from the Indian word for "hawk's nest," and others from the Indian name "Tsatanugi".

As early as 1793, maps show an Indian village and creek named "Chatanuga" at the foot of Lookout Mountain.