The Cherokee Removal The Cherokee Removal
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The Cherokee Removal
This section will help you meet the following objective: 8.3.05 Compare and contrast different perspectives among North Carolinians on the national policy of Removal and Resettlement of American Indian populations.
As you read, look for: • reasons why the government wanted to move the Native Americans west of the Mississippi River • vocabulary term Trail of Tears In the early 1800s, North Carolina actually included part of another nation, the area where the Cherokee lived. The largest Native American group in the state still had a sizable population, despite the destruction of its villages during the War for Independence. About 4,000 Cherokee lived in the deepest part of the North Carolina mountains. The rest of the 16,000 members of the Nation lived in Tennessee and northern Georgia.
The Cherokee in the Southeast
Above: Cherokee Chief John Ross fought the federal government’s plan to remove the Cherokee from their lands. He lost that fight, but he became chief of the united Cherokee when the tribe finally reached Indian Territory.
228
The Nation adapted to the times of the new nation. Many Cherokee in Georgia had begun to farm and live in frame houses, like the white settlers of the region. Some of the wealthiest Cherokee owned slaves. Many Cherokee became educated to read in their own language. Sequoyah, a member of their Nation, invented an syllabary (alphabet) that imitated their spoken sounds. The Cherokee in the North Carolina mountains, however, kept many of the old traditions of hunting, gathering, and village life. These Cherokee also claimed to be citizens of North Carolina. In 1817 and 1819, the state had signed treaties with them, and they had given up large tracts of their land in return for reservations. At the end of the War of 1812, residents of southern states rushed to get the best lands available west of the Blue Ridge. They found that Native Americans still owned many of those lands. Beginning in the 1820s, whites began to harass the Cherokee and other Native American groups to give up their property. Many whites argued that all Indians should be moved
Chapter 7: North Carolina Finally Awakens
By 1830, over 90 percent of the Cherokee could read and write.
across the Mississippi River, away from white settlement. Some Cherokee even took up that offer and moved to what became the state of Arkansas.
Above: President James Monroe recommended the removal of all Native Americans to west of the Mississippi River. Andrew Jackson carried out the policy, resulting in the Trail of Tears.
The Trail of Tears
Most of the Cherokee, led by Chief John Ross of Georgia, did not want to be sent away from their traditional lands. Ross and others fought the idea in the United States courts. By the 1830s, however, President Andrew Jackson had convinced some Cherokee to sign a treaty calling for removal to the West. Jackson then arbitrarily ordered that “the Cherokee removal” begin, even though most of the Nation did not want to go. This federal policy, started in 1838 after Jackson left the presidency, forcibly pulled families out of their homes and fields and sent them on their way. Some Cherokee were actually taken away with only the clothes on their backs, with no provisions to help them on the journey west. In one case, an old woman stunned the soldiers by demanding that she be allowed to feed her dog before she would walk away. They let her do it, but refused to let the dog come along. Because many of the Cherokee in North Carolina lived deep in the mountains, they hid in caves and eluded the soldiers. These Cherokee
Section 2: The Cherokee Removal
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Map 21 The Trail of Tears Map Skill: Through which states did the Cherokee have to travel to reach their new home?
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suffered greatly. The wife and children of Yonaguska, the chief, starved to death on the Nantahala mountainside. Despite Cherokee claims that the treaties with North Carolina allowed them to stay in the state, federal soldiers continued to corral the Cherokee in wooden stockades on the Tennessee River. In the midst of the removal, however, an incident occurred that helped some of the mountain Cherokee stay in their traditional homes. A Cherokee named Tsali and his sons escaped and hid in the mountains. But while escaping, they killed a soldier and mortally wounded another. The general in charge of the removal decided that continuing to search for so many Cherokee was not working. Instead, he proposed a compromise. The soldiers would stop looking if Tsali and his sons would surrender and admit to committing murder. Other Cherokee who wanted to stay in the mountains actually brought Tsali in. One tradition among the Cherokee is that Tsali willingly gave himself up to allow his people to stay in their homes. Tsali and all of his sons, except one who was very young, were executed by their fellow Cherokee. During 1838 and 1839, more than 15,000 Cherokee were forced to move to the west, to what was being called Indian Territory (later the state of Oklahoma). So brutal were the methods of the soldiers that Chief John Ross convinced the federal authorities to allow the Cherokee to police themselves on the journey. There was not enough food or shelter along the way. Some Cherokee were forced to sleep outside in the snow without cover. No one is exactly sure how many of the Cherokee died, but estimates go as high as 8,000. The Cherokee would remember this ordeal as the Trail of Tears.
Chapter 7: North Carolina Finally Awakens
The Eastern Cherokee With the help of William H. Thomas, a white who had been adopted into the Cherokee Nation, about 1,000 Cherokee were allowed to remain in North Carolina. Because North Carolina refused to recognize the Cherokee as citizens, Thomas spent both federal and personal funds to buy land for them. Thomas continued to hold the property in his name to protect the Native Americans from whites who wanted the land. He became the chief of the settlement along the Oconaluftee River, at the edge of the Smoky Mountains. The principal Cherokee community there was the Qualla village. Later in the 1800s, this became the reservation of the Eastern Cherokee Nation. Most of North Carolina had only indirect knowledge, or concern, with the Cherokee removal. During the late 1830s, state leaders generally worked to promote the almost forgotten plans of Archibald Murphey. Since the mountains were still isolated from much of the state, development was centered east of the Blue Ridge.
Above: The outdoor drama Unto These Hills tells the story of the estimated 1,000 North Carolina Cherokee who managed to escape into the mountains of western North Carolina. The escapees and others known as the Qualla Indians formed the Eastern Band of Cherokee, which exists to this day.
It’s Your Turn 1. About how many Cherokee lived in North Carolina in the 1830s? 2. What was Sequoyah’s great contribution to the Cherokee Nation? 3. How did North Carolinians react to the Cherokee removal?
Section 2: The Cherokee Removal
231
The Cherokee Removal
This section will help you meet the following objective: 8.3.05 Compare and contrast different perspectives among North Carolinians on the national policy of Removal and Resettlement of American Indian populations.
As you read, look for: • reasons why the government wanted to move the Native Americans west of the Mississippi River • vocabulary term Trail of Tears In the early 1800s, North Carolina actually included part of another nation, the area where the Cherokee lived. The largest Native American group in the state still had a sizable population, despite the destruction of its villages during the War for Independence. About 4,000 Cherokee lived in the deepest part of the North Carolina mountains. The rest of the 16,000 members of the Nation lived in Tennessee and northern Georgia.
The Cherokee in the Southeast
Above: Cherokee Chief John Ross fought the federal government’s plan to remove the Cherokee from their lands. He lost that fight, but he became chief of the united Cherokee when the tribe finally reached Indian Territory.
228
The Nation adapted to the times of the new nation. Many Cherokee in Georgia had begun to farm and live in frame houses, like the white settlers of the region. Some of the wealthiest Cherokee owned slaves. Many Cherokee became educated to read in their own language. Sequoyah, a member of their Nation, invented an syllabary (alphabet) that imitated their spoken sounds. The Cherokee in the North Carolina mountains, however, kept many of the old traditions of hunting, gathering, and village life. These Cherokee also claimed to be citizens of North Carolina. In 1817 and 1819, the state had signed treaties with them, and they had given up large tracts of their land in return for reservations. At the end of the War of 1812, residents of southern states rushed to get the best lands available west of the Blue Ridge. They found that Native Americans still owned many of those lands. Beginning in the 1820s, whites began to harass the Cherokee and other Native American groups to give up their property. Many whites argued that all Indians should be moved
Chapter 7: North Carolina Finally Awakens
By 1830, over 90 percent of the Cherokee could read and write.
across the Mississippi River, away from white settlement. Some Cherokee even took up that offer and moved to what became the state of Arkansas.
Above: President James Monroe recommended the removal of all Native Americans to west of the Mississippi River. Andrew Jackson carried out the policy, resulting in the Trail of Tears.
The Trail of Tears
Most of the Cherokee, led by Chief John Ross of Georgia, did not want to be sent away from their traditional lands. Ross and others fought the idea in the United States courts. By the 1830s, however, President Andrew Jackson had convinced some Cherokee to sign a treaty calling for removal to the West. Jackson then arbitrarily ordered that “the Cherokee removal” begin, even though most of the Nation did not want to go. This federal policy, started in 1838 after Jackson left the presidency, forcibly pulled families out of their homes and fields and sent them on their way. Some Cherokee were actually taken away with only the clothes on their backs, with no provisions to help them on the journey west. In one case, an old woman stunned the soldiers by demanding that she be allowed to feed her dog before she would walk away. They let her do it, but refused to let the dog come along. Because many of the Cherokee in North Carolina lived deep in the mountains, they hid in caves and eluded the soldiers. These Cherokee
Section 2: The Cherokee Removal
229
Map 21 The Trail of Tears Map Skill: Through which states did the Cherokee have to travel to reach their new home?
230
suffered greatly. The wife and children of Yonaguska, the chief, starved to death on the Nantahala mountainside. Despite Cherokee claims that the treaties with North Carolina allowed them to stay in the state, federal soldiers continued to corral the Cherokee in wooden stockades on the Tennessee River. In the midst of the removal, however, an incident occurred that helped some of the mountain Cherokee stay in their traditional homes. A Cherokee named Tsali and his sons escaped and hid in the mountains. But while escaping, they killed a soldier and mortally wounded another. The general in charge of the removal decided that continuing to search for so many Cherokee was not working. Instead, he proposed a compromise. The soldiers would stop looking if Tsali and his sons would surrender and admit to committing murder. Other Cherokee who wanted to stay in the mountains actually brought Tsali in. One tradition among the Cherokee is that Tsali willingly gave himself up to allow his people to stay in their homes. Tsali and all of his sons, except one who was very young, were executed by their fellow Cherokee. During 1838 and 1839, more than 15,000 Cherokee were forced to move to the west, to what was being called Indian Territory (later the state of Oklahoma). So brutal were the methods of the soldiers that Chief John Ross convinced the federal authorities to allow the Cherokee to police themselves on the journey. There was not enough food or shelter along the way. Some Cherokee were forced to sleep outside in the snow without cover. No one is exactly sure how many of the Cherokee died, but estimates go as high as 8,000. The Cherokee would remember this ordeal as the Trail of Tears.
Chapter 7: North Carolina Finally Awakens
The Eastern Cherokee With the help of William H. Thomas, a white who had been adopted into the Cherokee Nation, about 1,000 Cherokee were allowed to remain in North Carolina. Because North Carolina refused to recognize the Cherokee as citizens, Thomas spent both federal and personal funds to buy land for them. Thomas continued to hold the property in his name to protect the Native Americans from whites who wanted the land. He became the chief of the settlement along the Oconaluftee River, at the edge of the Smoky Mountains. The principal Cherokee community there was the Qualla village. Later in the 1800s, this became the reservation of the Eastern Cherokee Nation. Most of North Carolina had only indirect knowledge, or concern, with the Cherokee removal. During the late 1830s, state leaders generally worked to promote the almost forgotten plans of Archibald Murphey. Since the mountains were still isolated from much of the state, development was centered east of the Blue Ridge.
Above: The outdoor drama Unto These Hills tells the story of the estimated 1,000 North Carolina Cherokee who managed to escape into the mountains of western North Carolina. The escapees and others known as the Qualla Indians formed the Eastern Band of Cherokee, which exists to this day.
It’s Your Turn 1. About how many Cherokee lived in North Carolina in the 1830s? 2. What was Sequoyah’s great contribution to the Cherokee Nation? 3. How did North Carolinians react to the Cherokee removal?
Section 2: The Cherokee Removal
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