a. Guntersville is named after John Gunter. Gunter was the Tennessee Valley's first squatter ¹ to settle illegally on Indian land.
b. Little is known of Gunter's early life. It is thought that he was a Scotsman.
c. Gunter settled south of where the River Bridge now stands, and in 1784 he named the location Gunter's Village.
d. Upon his arrival, Gunter met Chief Bushyhead who offered John his daughter in exchange for salt. John accepted and married Ghe-to-he-li who later changed her name to Catherine. They had seven children who all became important in the history of Guntersville. Gunter's great grandson Will Rogers  became a famous American humorist.
e. John and Catherine opened a store named Gunter's Landing located where the Harbor House now stands. Gunter's Landing became a very important place of trade, and the town was eventually named Gunter's Landing because of the shop's success. The name of the town was not changed to Guntersville until 153 years ago, in 1847.