The Trail Of Tears : American History

Most Americans have at least some vague image of the Trail of Tears, but not very many know of the events that led to that tragic removal of several thousand Indians from their homeland. Indian lands were held hostage by the states and the federal government, and Indians had to agree to removal to preserve their identity as tribes. Trail of Tears is an excellent snapshot of a particular situation and will be eye opening to those who are not familiar with the story of the southern tribes and their interactions with the burgeoning American population. The Trail of Tears has become the symbol in American history that signifies the callousness of American policy makers toward American Indians in 1839 and 1839.

supported a man by the name of Andrew Jackson who was running for President of the

Currently, when the losses suffered by the Cherokee Nation as a result of their forced removal are discussed, there is a focus on the loss in numbers. However, Russell Thornton’s “Cherokee Population Losses During Trail of Tears: A New Perspective and a New Estimate” clearly presents a new, suitably researched perspective that argues the focus should not be only on those that died, but also on those that never lived. Thornton is a professor at UCLA in the Anthropology department. He has a number of degrees related to this study, including a Ph.D. in Sociology and a postdoctoral in Social Relations from Harvard, and specializes in Native American studies. He is clearly appropriately acquainted with this field, and his knowledge of the subject matter is evident in this piece. However, he also cites a number of papers and books by other authors, so as not to rely purely on his knowledge.

The “Trail of Tears,” was an unmitigated disaster-at least for the Native American Tribes involved. – (Page 269) “As the population grew, white citizens demanded that their governments, at both the state and national levels, do something about the Native American tribes in their midst who held claims to land …” – (Page 249) “The United States had recognized the Cherokee as a nation in a number of treaties, and in 1827 delegates of this tribe initiated action to draft a constitution that would more formally recognize this status.” – (Page 249). This caused a problem with the constitution, because new states could not be established in pre-existing state. “Georgia, where most of the Cherokee lived, opposed the plan and called for the removal of all Native American.” – (Page 249). In fact, the Cherokee nation fought back. “The case reached the United States Supreme Court, Cherokee Nation v. Georgia.” – (Page 250). The Cherokee lost; but a year later Chief Justice John Marshall “ruled that the state had no right to extend sovereignty over the Cherokee within its borders.” Andrew Jackson disagreed with the chief justice, and wanted for the chief justice to enforce his decision.

The Trail of Tears played a part in what is known as the Manifest Destiny, which was the expansion of the colonists to the west. Gold was found on the Cherokee land during the Georgia Gold Rush. The greed that it created was one of the leading causes of the Trail of Tears where thousands of Native Americans were forcibly relocated from their native lands (Cherokee.org). Little did the Native Americans realize that the new nation that was going to be forming around them would affect not only their lives but the lives of their descendants. Even though the Cherokee made efforts to keep their land through the court system and even attempted to assimilate to the American way of life it was to no avail. They tried to agree to treaties with the United States Government. Even though, they were eventually forced to leave their lands. By forcing the Native Americans to abandon their homes, robbing their lands, taking their freedom, and forcing them to adapt and to assimilate into a new land and culture showed how vindictive President Andrew Jackson was regarding the Native Americans. The Trail of Tears was an instance of the United States Government committing genocide against the Native Americans

With the discovery of the New World came a whole lot of new problems. Native American Indians lived in peace and harmony until European explorers interrupted that bliss with the quest for money and power. The European explorers brought with them more people. These people and their descendants starting pushing the natives out of their homes, out of their land, far before the 1800s. However, in the 1800s, the driving force behind the removal of the natives intensified. Thousands of indians during this time were moved along the trail known as Nunna dual Tsung, meaning “The Trail Where They Cried” (“Cherokee Trail of Tears”). The Trail of Tears was not only unjust and unconstitutional, but it also left many indians sick, heartbroken, and dead.

1812 - During the War of 1812, African Americans thought that if the U.S. was defeated, they wouldn't be able to kick African American tribes out of their lands. As a result, they joined the war while aiding the British, hoping that the U.S. lose control of their tribes. 1838 - Because the U.S. wanted to expand their country further into the West, the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek,  Seminole and Cherokee tribes were forced to march to reservations. This march was nicknamed the "Trail of Tears" due to the deaths of many African Americans who suffered through the journey.

The Trail of Tears was a route that the Cherokee Indians had to travel on when they were forcibly removed from their homes in the southern Appalachian Mountains. They were made to travel miles and miles away from their homes, so the residents of Georgia could begin looking for gold. All of this began because in 1829 when someone found gold on Cherokee land. The Cherokee were going to be forced out of their homes so they decided to take their case to court. The case went all the way up to the supreme court and was then voted on in the Cherokee's favor, but President Andrew Jackson went against the courts ruling and allowed the Cherokee to be removed from their homes. The Trail of Tears is a terrible route where over 2,000 Cherokee lives were lost, and many became sick and injured. Even though the Cherokee had the rights to the land and they even had their own constitution, still Jackson ignored this and allowed them to be removed. This was a terrible time in American history because it showed how malicious one of our presidents was in allowing these peaceful Indians to be taken away from their homes, just so we could find some gold.

Having little knowledge of the Cherokee removal and the history that took place in this moment in America’s past, the book Trail of Tears: Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation by John Ehle, offers an insight to the politics, social dynamics and class struggles the Cherokee Nation faced in the late 1830s. The book was very comprehensive and the scope of the book covers nearly 100 years of Native American History. Ehle captures the history of the Native American people by showing the readers what led to the events infamously known as the Trail of Tears. The author uses real military orders, journals, and letters which aid in creating a book that keeps

People from all walks of life are drawn to the seducing curves of the Dragon at Deal’s Gap, also known as US Hwy 129. They make their pilgrimage to test their skills, or in some cases, to be bitten by the Dragon.

The Trail of Tears is a historical title given to an event that happened in 1838.In this event, the Cherokee community of Native Americans was forced by the USA government to move from their native home in the Southern part of the contemporary America to what is known as the Indian territories of Oklahoma. While some travelled by water, most of them travelled by land. The Cherokees took 6 months to complete an 800 miles distance to their destination.

Most Americans have at least some vague understanding of the Trail of Tears, but not many know about the events that led to that tragic removal of thousands of Indians from their homeland. Indian lands were held hostage by the states and the federal government. The Indians had to agree to removal to maintain their tribe identities. Trail of Tears is an excellent example of a particular situation and will be eye opening to those who are not familiar with the story of the southern tribes and their interactions with the rapidly growing American population. The Trail of Tears has become the symbol in American history that indicates the callousness, insensitivity, and cruelty of American government toward American Indians in 1839 and 1839.

The Trail of Tears started back in the 1800s, white people began to settle in the Native American lands leaving them with nothing in the end. People who lived on the western frontier feared the Natives, to them the natives wanted what the whites wanted and disserved, George Washington though the only way to solve this problem to get what each wanted was to “civilize” the Indians. This idea was to make the Indians as much like the whites as possible, meaning they would have to convert to Christianity, learn to speak English and to be civilized and not live like savages. However what Washington didn’t take into consideration is that they have been living this way for generations long before the whites came to their

Trail of tears is a very devastating story. It's about Indians who were driven out of their homes. Not just by any soldiers but by the federal government. On the other hand, they've been planning to take them out for a long time. This story is sad because it's a battle that the Native Indians completely lost.

However, after the lectures and the film, Trail of Tears, they provided me a new perception of the US Cavalry troops. The removal of Indians from their land east of Mississippi river cast a dark shadow in the American history. Although the Indians reach their new home west of Mississippi river, it was marred with abuse, hardship, and death. The Indians were subjected to abuse by the government under President Andrew