The Plight of Native Americans, 1830s
& 1840s
• The War of 1812 was a disaster for most
American Indians
• After 1812, it was clear that the whites could
not be held back from expansion
• Additionally, the Indians had lost all of their
European allies
• The Cherokee had fought for the British in the
French & Indian War, but clashed with all
whites over disputed lands
The Cherokee
• By the 1800s, the Cherokee were centered in
Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas
• After failed conflicts with Anglos in 1700s,
Cherokee would take a more practical,
compromising path in the 1800s
• Around 1810, the Cherokee leadership
strongly advocated acculturation; they would
adopt Anglo-style education, agriculture,
religion, etc.
• Cherokee drafted a
Constitution modeled
after the US in 1827
• Sequoyah develops
Cherokee alphabet
• Capitol established in New
Echota in northwest
Georgia
• Establish newspaper called
the Cherokee Phoenix.
Why do you think they
chose this name?
• Georgians wanted control over Indian land
within state boundaries, but legally they had
to respect the rights of the Cherokee Nation
• Jackson, along with most whites, sided with
Georgia; also promoted the idea that it was in
the Cherokees best interest to relocate
• Gold discovered in GA in 1829, state
legislature passed laws to annex Indian lands
• Indian Removal Act signed in 1830
Indian Removal Act of 1830
• Allowed the president to force Indians from
several tribes to resettle west of the
Mississippi River
• Seen as a land swap: US would take Indian
land in the southeast, but give the tribes land
in Oklahoma
• Congress provided $500,000 for
transportation and an allowance for the
Indians once they arrived
Worcester v. Georgia
• GA passed laws requiring whites living on
Cherokee lands to obtain a license
• Sam Worcester is arrested w/o a license, and he
sues Georgia
• Supreme Court rules in 1832 that Cherokee
Nation is sovereign, & Georgians may not enter it
or pass laws governing it
• Jackson famously claims he will not enforce the
ruling
• Cherokees initially elated by ruling, but soon saw
it was meaningless
Samuel Worcester was a
missionary living on
Cherokee land in GA w/o
a license. He was
arrested, but sued.
John Marshall argued that
the Cherokee Nation was
a sovereign state, and that
Georgia laws could not
effect it. He also argued
that Georgia, as a state,
could not negotiate with a
foreign power. Who can?
Major Ridge
• Born a mixed-race Cherokee in 1771
• Participated in raids against white
settlers in the ‘80s and ’90s, but fought
for Jackson during the Creek War and
Seminole War
• After the Indian wars, Ridge became a
wealthy planter & slave-owner in GA
• A strong Cherokee patriot, but became
convince by the 1830s that removal was
inevitable
• Sided with the Treaty party & in 1835
signed what he called his “death
warrant” – the Treaty of New Echota
• Assassinated in June 1839, so was his
son & nephew
John Ross
• Born in Turkeytown, AL; he was 1/8 Cherokee
& 7/8 Scottish
• Very “Americanized,” first language was
English, spoke Cherokee poorly
• Served with Jackson in Creek War, founded a
tobacco plantation with 20 slaves
• Became Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation
in 1827, oversaw drafting of Constitution
• Very popular w/ Cherokee, very skilled in
diplomacy; despite this, he could not stop the
Removal Act
• Lost his wife in the Trail of Tears; died in 1866
as chief
The Treaty of New Echota
• Treaty Party: argued that Cherokees should take
the best deal from the US
• National Party: argued that Cherokee should stay
and continue to plead their case to the US
government
• While members of the National Party were gone,
War Dept rep John Schermerhorn negotiates with
the Treaty Party in New Echota in 1835
• The Treaty “officially” sold all Cherokee land to
the US for $5million, & gave the Cherokee 2 years
to move west
Trail of Tears Routes