Thinking Question Describe your “home”. (Your house, neighborhood, city, etc.) What makes it your “home”? What makes it special? How do you feel about it?

United States History Monday, February 11, 2019

“Indian Removal” and the case of WORCESTER v. GEORGIA

The Southeastern Tribes; Early 1800s

Jefferson’s Advice to the Cherokee: "My friends and children, chiefly of the Cherokee Nation, …become farmers, learn the use of the plough and the hoe, enclose your grounds and employ that labor in their cultivation which you formerly employed in hunting and in war; …Go on, my children, in the same way and be assured the further you advance in it the happier and more respectable you will be."

Cherokee Adaptations to White Society Adopted the system of private ownership of land Developed a written language Adopted a Cherokee Constitution, modeled on the U.S. Constitution

Cherokee – U.S. Relations 1802 1828 1790s – Treaty between the Cherokee and U.S.; Cherokees cede some land in exchange for protection of the remainder 1802 – Georgia cedes western land claims to the U.S. in exchange for a promise to encourage the Cherokee to leave 1820s – Pressure on the Cherokee increases as more Georgia settlers move west 1828 – Gold is discovered on Cherokee lands in Georgia 1828 – Andrew Jackson is elected President 1790s

The Indian Removal Act (1830) Passed by Congress at the urging of President Jackson Required all Native Americans in the Eastern U.S. to relocate to lands west of the Mississippi River Most of present-day Oklahoma (the “Indian Territory”) was reserved for Native American settlement

Worcester v. Georgia (1832) The Facts: Worcester was a missionary working on Cherokee land; he refused to comply with a Georgia law mandating a license for whites working on Native lands Worcester is arrested, prosecuted, and imprisoned by the State of Georgia The Issue: Can Georgia enforce its laws on Cherokee lands?

Worcester v. Georgia The Court’s Decision: Georgia’s law is struck down; The Cherokee are sovereign on their lands President Jackson: “Justice Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it.” “John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it.”

The Trail of Tears Many Cherokees refused to leave their lands in Georgia 1838 – Federal troops forcibly removed the Cherokee at gunpoint The Cherokee were forced to march westward in the winter of 1838-9 More than a quarter of the tribe died during the journey west This journey became known as the “Trail of Tears” 1838

Writing Assignment: Imagine that you are a member of the Cherokee tribe in 1838. After years of resistance, you are being forced by the U.S. Army to leave your home and relocate to the “Indian Territory,” west of the Mississippi River. Write a one-page journal entry describing your thoughts, emotions, and actions.

Homework Textbook: Chapter 11,1 Sections 1 & 4 HW Quiz: Tuesday/Wednesday, February 19/20