James Mooney James Mooney's main interest of study was the Cherokee people. Many say that Mooney wrote the most accurate accounts of the Cherokee culture and history. He spent years living with the Cherokee people in North Carolina, and was able to gain teir acceptance and trust, which allowed him to write more firsthand accounts. This made his work more reliable and very accurate.Mooney was a member of the first generation of professional anthropologists; he left behind a wealth of ethnographical and historical data. Read More Read Less