Conflicts of ideals in the newly “freed” United States increased during the antebellum era, ultimately because of the long-driven question of freedom and liberty. Many people believed that to be free and have liberty was to be able to own land and property. This brought on the idea of the “freedom” to take the land that the Native Americans had been living on and the spreading of the institution of slavery. These issues both lead to an eventual division of the Union, causing the Civil War. Native Americans, namely the Cherokees, had been living on the lands of the eventual Americas without European contact for years until the 1700s. After contact was made and America had gained freedom, people like President Andrew Jackson, believed that the Cherokees should be removed from the land that was rightfully the United States’. President Jackson even hired Benjamin F. Curry of Tennessee to help with the removal of the Cherokees from east of the Mississippi River. Curry believed that his job was to try to drive the Cherokees to either want to leave without a second thought or sign a treaty agreeing to America’s terms. Curry’s actions led to the natives of the Cherokee nation’s objections of being removed so miserably. Many complained about how their significant others or children were either forcibly removed or held to get the natives to agree to leave. Some of the natives decided that they would try to fight their way out of being removed, but some, like Rebecca Neugin, a member of the Cherokee nation’s father were persuaded not to resist so that they or their families would not be harmed more than necessary. When some of the Americans, like Evan Jones, saw this, they tried to spread awareness of how the Cherokees were being treated,... ... middle of paper ... ... Foner, “Chronology of the Cherokee Removal” in Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History, Vol. 1, ed. Eric Foner (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2011), 176. Eric Foner, “The Trail of Tears: Enrollment” in Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History, Vol. 1, ed. Eric Foner (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2011), 161. Rebecca Neugin, “Recollections of Removal (1932)” in Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History, Vol. 1, ed. Eric Foner (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2011), 176. Eric Foner, “The Trail of Tears: Forced Removal” in Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History, Vol. 1, ed. Eric Foner (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2011), 163-4. Deborah Gray White, Mia Bay, and Waldo E. Martin Jr. Freedom On My Mind, (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013), 163. Eric Foner, The Story of American Freedom, (New York: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd., 1998), 64.
The Long, Bitter Trail: Andrew Jackson and the Indians was written by Anthony F.C. Wallace. In his book, the main argument was how Andrew Jackson had a direct affect on the mistreatment and removal of the native Americans from their homelands to Indian Territory. It was a trail of blood, a trail of death, but ultimately it was known as the "Trail of Tears".
“The decision of the Jackson administration to remove the Cherokee Indians to lands west of the Mississippi River in the 1830’s was [less] a reformulation of the national policy that had been in effect since the 1790’s [and more] a change in that policy.”
Franklin, J., Moss, A. Jr. From Slavery to Freedom. Seventh edition, McGraw Hill, Inc.: 1994.
The tragedy of the Cherokee nation has haunted the legacy of Andrew Jackson"'"s Presidency. The events that transpired after the implementation of his Indian policy are indeed heinous and continually pose questions of morality for all generations. Ancient Native American tribes were forced from their ancestral homes in an effort to increase the aggressive expansion of white settlers during the early years of the United States. The most notable removal came after the Indian Removal Act of 1830. The Cherokee, whose journey was known as the '"'Trail of Tears'"', and the four other civilized tribes, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole, were forced to emigrate to lands west of the Mississippi River, to what is now day Oklahoma, against their will. During the journey westward, over 60,000 Indians were forced from their homelands. Approximately 4000 Cherokee Indians perished during the journey due to famine, disease, and negligence. The Cherokees to traveled a vast distance under force during the arduous winter of 1838-1839.# This is one of the saddest events in American history, yet we must not forget this tragedy.
Morgan, Edmund S.. American Slavery, American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia. : George J. McLeod, 1975.
Brill, Marlene Targ. The Trail of Tears: The Cherokee Journey From Home. Brookfield, CN: Millbrook Press, 1995.
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! An American History. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2014. Book.
The trail of tears was a hideous harsh horrible time that the Native Americans will not forget the 1830s about 100,000 Native Americans peacefully lived on 1,000,000 and 1,000,000 of akers. They have been on this land generations before the wight men arrived. There was gold found in Gorga and the land was for ital. They used huge cotton plantations because the people would get rich off of them. In 1830 Andrew Jackson privily sinned the removal act. Te removal act gave the Government the power to trade the land for the land that the Native Americans were on. The Native Americans did not want to move, but the precedent sent troops to force the removal. Solders who looted there homes traveled 15,000 Cherokees, and gunpoint marched over 12,000
Russell B. Nye: Fettered Freedom: Civil Liberties and the Slavery Controversy, 1830-1860. East Lansing, Mich., 1949
The United States government's relationship with the Native American population has been a rocky one for over 250 years. One instance of this relationship would be what is infamously known as, the Trail of Tears, a phrase describing a journey in which the Native Americans took after giving up their land from forced removal. As a part of then-President Andrew Jackson’s Indian Removal Act, this policy has been put into place to control the natives that were attempting to reside peacefully in their stolen homeland. In the viewpoint of the Choctaw and Cherokee natives, removal had almost ultimately altered the culture and the traditional lifestyle of these people.
Weisbrot, Robert. Freedom Bound: A History Of America’s Civil Rights Movement. New York: Plume, 1991
Ellis, Jerry. Walking the Trail: One Man's Journey along the Cherokee Trail of Tears. New
Lowman, Michael R., George Thompson, and Kurt Grussendorf. United States History: Heritage of Freedom. Pensacola Christian College, 1998.
Natives were forcefully removed from their land in the 1800’s by America. In the 1820’s and 30’s Georgia issued a campaign to remove the Cherokees from their land. The Cherokee Indians were one of the largest tribes in America at the time. Originally the Cherokee’s were settled near the great lakes, but overtime they moved to the eastern portion of North America. After being threatened by American expansion, Cherokee leaders re-organized their government and adopted a constitution written by a convention, led by Chief John Ross (Cherokee Removal). In 1828 gold was discovered in their land. This made the Cherokee’s land even more desirable. During the spring and winter of 1838- 1839, 20,000 Cherokees were removed and began their journey to Oklahoma. Even if natives wished to assimilate into America, by law they were neither citizens nor could they hold property in the state they were in. Principal Chief, John Ross and Major Ridge were leaders of the Cherokee Nation. The Eastern band of Cherokee Indians lost many due to smallpox. It was a year later that a Treaty was signed for cession of Cherokee land in Texas. A small number of Cherokee Indians assimilated into Florida, in o...
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty. 3rd ed. Vol. Two. New York: Norton &, 2011. Print.