Cherokee Removal

A little background 2 approaches to the Native American Issue --Assimilation OR Removal In the 1790s the federal government recognized various tribes as separate nations; founding fathers hoped to assimilate and civilize them But since the Louisiana Purchase (1803) the solution to the “Indian problem” was to move them to the “Great American Desert” to make way for white settlement Then Andrew Jackson becomes president He and his Democrats are committed to westward expansion and favor a policy of “voluntary emigration” Some 94 removal treaties are signed during Jackson’s administration. “All preceding experiments for the improvement of the Indians have failed. It seems now to be an established fact they can not live in contact with a civilized community and prosper."

The Cherokee In accordance with white encouragement (especially missionaries) to assimilate, the Cherokee in the American Southeast (primarily Georgia) Settle into agriculture (many become cotton planters) and own private property (even African slaves) Establish schools (with the help of missionaries) and create a Cherokee alphabet Establish a written legal code Write a constitution which provides for 3 branches of government Publish a newspaper They are considered one of the Five Civilized Tribes. However...

In 1828 Georgia declares the Cherokee tribal council illegal In 1829 gold is found on their land In 1830 Georgia orders white residents to get a license from the Governor and take an oath of allegiance to the state if they move into the Cherokee territory And then in 1830 Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act Over 100,000 Native Americans east of the Mississippi would be relocated to Indian Territory And this included more than just the Cherokee

Worcester v. Georgia (1832) Missionaries violate the 1830 licensing law and move into Cherokee land They are found guilty of violating the law and sentenced to four years hard labor on a chain gang (they served 16 months) Plus, Georgia felt they were encouraging the Cherokee resistance movement Appealing to the Supreme Court that the law was unconstitutional, the Marshall Court ruled The Cherokee are an independent nation within Georgia who possess distinct sovereign powers and the state had no authority to trespass on them Indian nations were “distinct, independent political communities retaining their original natural rights” - Chief Justice John Marshall Jackson’s response “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it.” The Cherokee, and all other eastern tribes, would be removed from the East.

Cherokee claims This is their ancestral land The federal government has recognized the Cherokee as a sovereign nation entitled to this land in many previous treaties The Cherokee Nation had adopted and/or developed "white ways" - assimilated alphabet, written language, a newspaper, a constitution, laws The U.S. government is violating its own founding principles of justice, rights, and truth The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Cherokee using language supporting their legal claims to the land they occupied They real leaders of the tribe DID NOT sign the Treaty of New Echota

Federal Government's Claims Native Americans had savage habits and needed more guidance to become civilized Native Americans were occupants on U.S. soil Removal was a win-win-win: Native Americans- they would get their own land out West and would no longer have to worry about white encroachment or state authority; it's a good deal - $ and land States - they would no longer be at odds with the federal government over how to deal with Native Americans; they could hand that land over to white settlement Federal government - solves the "Indian problem" in the East once and for all; they won't have to argue with states any more over authority issues Removal is in the Treaty of New Echota

Trail of Tears In 1835 a group of self-appointed Cherokee representatives sign the Treaty of New Echota The tribe traded all land for $5 million, relocation costs, and compensation for lost property Chief John Ross and 16,000 Cherokee petition Congress By 1838 only 2,000 Cherokee have voluntarily moved 7000 U.S. soldiers are sent to assist the Cherokee in their relocation A forced march (1,200 miles) of 15,000 in the winter of Over 4,000 die on the journey By 1907, their Indian Territory became a state - Oklahoma