Daniel Ross , a young Scottish immigrant , came to the area in 1785 and worked at a trading post with John McDonald , the area 's first businessman . Ross married McDonald 's daughter and the two built a house in what was to become St. Elmo after the Wars . Their youngest son , John Ross , was the leader of the Cherokee Nation who would call for passive resistance to the federal Indian removal policies that led to the Trail of Tears in 1838
Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
St. Elmo Historic District (Chattanooga, Tennessee)