Trail of Tears

remove themselves. These terms were rejected in October 1835 by the Cherokee gikjjbhjbhjbhjbhjbhjbjbhjbbhjbhjhbhjbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb Nation council. Chief Ross, attempting to bridge the gap between his administration and the Ridge Party, traveled to Washington with John Ridge to open new negotiations, but they were turned away and told to deal with Schermerhorn.

Meanwhile, Schermerhorn organized a meeting with the pro-removal council members at New Echota, Georgia. Only five hundred Cherokees (out of thousands) responded to the summons, and, on December 30, 1835, twenty-one proponents of Cherokee removal, among them Major Ridge and Elias Boudinot, signed or left “X” marks on the Treaty of New Echota. John Ridge and Stand Watie signed the treaty when it was brought to Washington. Chief Ross, as expected, refused. The signatories were violating a Cherokee Nation law drafted by John Ridge (passed in 1829) which had made it a crime to sign away Cherokee lands, the punishment for which was death.

Not a single official of the Cherokee Council signed the document. This treaty gave up all the Cherokee land east of the Mississippi. Despite the protests by the Cherokee National Council and principal Chief Ross that the document was a fraud, Congress ratified the treaty on May 23, 1836, by just one vote. A number of Cherokees (including the Ridge party) left for the West at this time, joining those who had already emigrated. By the end of 1836, more than 6,000 Cherokees had moved to the West. More than 16,000 remained in the South, however; the terms of the treaty gave them two years to leave.

Forced removal

Map of removal routes

The protests against the Treaty of New Echota continued. In the spring of 1838, Chief Ross presented a petition with more than 15,000 Cherokee signatures, asking Congress to invalidate the treaty. Many white Americans were also outraged by the dubious legality of the treaty and called on the government not to force the Cherokees to move. For example, on April 23, 1838, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote a letter to Jackson’s successor, President Martin Van Buren, urging him not to inflict “so vast an outrage upon the Cherokee Nation.”

Nevertheless, as the May 23, 1838 deadline for voluntary removal approached, President Van Buren assigned General Winfield Scott to head the forcible removal operation. He arrived at New Echota on May 17, 1838, in command of about 7,000 soldiers. They began rounding up Cherokees in Georgia on May 26 1838; ten days later, operations began in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Alabama. About 17,000 Cherokees — along with approximately 2,000 black slaves owned by wealthy Cherokees — were removed at gunpoint from their homes over three weeks and gathered together in camps, often with very few of their possessions. Another soldier, Private John G. Burnett later wrote "Future generations will read and condemn the act and I do hope posterity will remember that private soldiers like myself, and like the four Cherokees who were forced by General Scott to shoot an Indian Chief and his children, had to execute the orders of our superiors. We had no choice in the matter." They were then transferred to departure points at Ross’s Landing (Chattanooga, Tennessee) and Gunter’s Landing (Guntersville, Alabama) on the Tennessee River, and at Fort Cass (Charleston, Tennessee) near the Cherokee Agency on the Hiwassee River (Calhoun, Tennessee). From there, they were sent to the Indian Territory, mostly traveling on foot or by some combination of horse, wagon, and boat, a distance of around 1,200 miles (1,900 km) along one of the three routes.

Trail of Tears marker, Hwy 71, Fayetteville, Arkansas

The camps were plagued by dysentery and other illnesses, which led to many deaths. After three groups had been sent on the trail, a group of Cherokees petitioned General Scott for a delay until cooler weather made the journey less hazardous. This was granted; meanwhile Chief Ross, finally accepting defeat, managed to have the remainder of the removal turned over to the supervision of the Cherokee Council. Although there were some objections within the U.S. government because of the additional cost, General Scott awarded a contract for removing the remaining 11,000 Cherokees to Chief Ross. The Cherokee-administered marches began on August 28, 1838, and consisted of thirteen groups with an average of 1,000 people in each. Although this arrangement was an improvement for all concerned, disease still took many lives.

The number of people who died as a result of the Trail of Tears has been variously estimated. American doctor and missionary Elizur Butler, who made the journey with one party, estimated 2,000 deaths in the camps and 2,000 on the trail; his total of 4,000 deaths remains the most cited figure. A scholarly demographic study in 1973 estimated 2,000 total deaths; another, in 1984, concluded that a total of 6,000 people died.

During the journey, it is said that the people would sing “Amazing Grace”, using its inspiration to improve morale. The traditional Christian hymn had previously been translated into Cherokee by the missionary Samuel Worcester with Cherokee assistance. The song has since become a sort of anthem for the Cherokee people.

Aftermath

The entrance to the Cherokee Removal Memorial Park near Blythe's Ferry, one of the trail's departure points

Cherokees who were removed initially settled near Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The political turmoil resulting from the Treaty of New Echota and the Trail of Tears led to the assassinations of Major Ridge, John Ridge, and Elias Boudinot; of the leaders of the Treaty Party, only Stand Watie escaped his assassins. The population of the Cherokee Nation eventually rebounded, and today the Cherokees are the largest American Indian group in the United States.

There were some exceptions to removal. Perhaps 1,000 Cherokees evaded the U.S. soldiers and lived off the land in Georgia and other states. Those Cherokees who lived on private, individually owned lands (rather than communally owned tribal land) were not subject to removal. In North Carolina, about 400 Cherokees lived on land in the Great Smoky Mountains owned by a white man named William Holland Thomas (who had been adopted by Cherokees as a boy), and were thus not subject to removal. These North Carolina Cherokees became the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation.

The Trail of Tears is generally considered to be one of the most regrettable episodes in American history. To commemorate the event, the U.S. Congress designated the Trail Of Tears National Historic Trail in 1987. It stretches for 2,200 miles (3,540 km) across nine states.

In 2004, Senator Sam Brownback (Republican of Kansas) introduced a joint resolution (Senate Joint Resolution 37) to “offer an apology to all Native Peoples on behalf of the United States” for past “ill-conceived policies by the United States Government regarding Indian Tribes. The United States Senate has yet to take action on the measure.

Reference in popular culture

In 1971 the rock group Paul Revere and the Raiders issued a single that commemorated the forcible removal of the Cherokee Nation: "Indian Reservation (The Lament Of The Cherokee Reservation Indian)."

In 1974 John and Terry Talbot Mason Proffit wrote and recorded their song "Trail Of Tears" on the album "The Talbot Brothers".

Heavy metal band Manowar mentions the Trail of Tears in their song: "Spirit Horse of the Cherokee", on the 1992 album The Triumph of Steel.

Pop musician Tori Amos, herself part Cherokee, has also written about the events in her piece "Home On The Range - Cherokee Edition."

Finnish metal band, Nightwish, also references the Trail of Tears in their song, Creek Mary's Blood.

Swedish rock band Europe refers to the Trail of Tears in their song "Cherokee" on their album "The Final Countdown".

Popular US composer James Barnes published a tone poem for wind band entitled Trail of Tears (1989) that depicts the journey made by the Cherokee people. The piece includes the recitation of a mournful poem in the Cherokee language: Dedeeshkawnk juniyohoosa, Dedeeshkawnk ahyoheest, Dedeeshkawnk daynahnohtee (Let us mourn those who have died, Let us mourn those who are dying, Let us mourn those who must endure).

Oakland (CA) based thrash metal band Testament recorded a song called "Trail Of Tears" on their 1994 album Low.

Heavy Metal band W.A.S.P. recorded the song "Trail of Tears" as part of their 2002 album "Dying for the World" lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist Steven Duren a.k.a. Blackie Lawless being of Blackfoot Native American ancestry himself

The Firesign Theatre album "Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me The Pliers" has this partial commercial: "This is a line of Indians leaving beautiful Rancho Malario--to make room for YOU! Here's the beautiful Trail of Tears golf course (click)"

Billy Ray Cyrus wrote a song called the Trail of Tears.

See also

• Cherokee
• Chickasaw
• Choctaw
• Creek
• Seminole
• Indian Removal

References

• Anderson, William L., ed. Cherokee Removal: Before and After. Athens, Georgia: University of Georgia Press, 1991.
• Carter, Samuel. Cherokee Sunset: A Nation Betrayed. New York: Doubleday, 1976. ISBN 0-385-06735-6.
• Ehle, John. Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation. New York: Doubleday, 1988. ISBN 0-385-23953-X.
• Foreman, Grant. Indian Removal: The Emigration of the Five Civilized Tribes of Indians. Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, 1932, 11th printing 1989. ISBN 0-8061-1172-0.
• Prucha, Francis Paul. The Great Father: The United States Government and the American Indians. Volume I. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1984. ISBN 0-8032-3668-9.
• Remini, Robert V. Andrew Jackson and his Indian Wars. New York: Viking, 2001. ISBN 0-670-91025-2.
• Wallace, Anthony F.C. The Long, Bitter Trail: Andrew Jackson and the Indians. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993. ISBN 0-8090-1552-8 (paperback); ISBN 0-8090-6631-9 (hardback).

Documentary

• The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy (2006) -directed by Chip Richie; na by James Earl Jones

External links

Documents

• “Removal of the Indians” by Lewis Cass, January 1830
• Cherokee Indian Removal Debate U.S. Senate, April 15-17, 1830
• Elias Boudinot’s editorials in The Cherokee Phoenix, 1829-31
• Text of the Treaty of New Echota, 1835
• Winfield Scott's Address to the Cherokee Nation, May 10, 1838
• Winfield Scott's Order to U.S. Troops assigned to the Cherokee Removal, May 17, 1838
• Various documents from cherokee.org
• Status of Senate Joint Resolution 37.

Articles

• "Andrew Jackson v. the Cherokee Nation" (excerpt from Andrew Jackson and his Indian Wars) by Robert Remini at historynet.com
• "Cherokee Removal" from The New Georgia Encyclopedia
• "Gold Rush in North Georgia" from The New Georgia Encyclopedia
• Trail of Tears (entry in the New Georgia Encyclopedia)

Places and events

• Trail Of Tears National Historic Trail
• New Echota Historic Site
• Trail of Tears Commemorative Park, Hopkinsville KY
• Trail of Tears State Park, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri
• Port Royal State Park, Montgomery County, Tennessee
• Red Clay State Park, Bradley County, Tennessee
• Trail of Tears Commemorative Motorcycle Ride a yearly event which claims to be "the largest annual motorcycle ride in America", raises funds for college scholarships for Native American students
• See The Trail of Tears and the Forced Relocation of the Cherokee Nation for a lesson about the Trail of Tears from the National Park Service's Teaching with Historic Places.

Audio

• "Sarah Vowell and her sister follow the Trail of Tears in an episode of 'This American Life'"