Indian Removal and the Trail of Tears

“It is impossible to civilize Indians because they were essentially inferior to the Anglo-Saxon race”

Black Hawk War

• 1827 - US govt says all Native Americans must leave Illinois

• Chief Black Hawk of the Sauk refuses, saying no one can own land

• US settlers moved into village when they were away hunting

• After Sauk attacks, US troops drive out Indians

• You have taken me prisoner with all my warriors - I fought hard. But your guns were well-aimed. The bullets flew like

birds in the air, and whizzed by our ears like the wind through the trees in the winter. My warriors fell around me, it began to look dismal. I saw my evil day at hand.

Osceola Resists

• Seminoles in Florida led by Chief Osceola

• Helped by escaped slaves

• Takes 7 years to put down 2nd Seminole War

• Cost of 20 million dollars

Indian Removal Act• President Jackson pushes

Congress to force Indians to move west of the Mississippi

• Congress established Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) as the new Indian homeland

• US govt creates Bureau of Indian Affairs

John C. Calhoun

“One of the greatest evils to which they (Indians) are subject is the incessant (constant) pressure of our population.”

1) According to John C. Calhoun, why is the US government forcing the Native Americans to move off of their homelands?

2) What is wrong with this statement?

Cherokee Indians

• Lived peacefully in the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia and Tennessee

• Adopted culture of whites - wrote and spoke English

• Had own written language and newspaper

• Based their government on the U.S. Constitution

Cherokee Sue For Land

• Cherokee sued the government of Georgia for taking their land

• Worcester vs. Georgia - Supreme Court rules Georgia’s actions are illegal and that the Cherokee can stay

President Andrew Jackson

“Chief Justice John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it.”

1) What is the job of the Supreme Court?

2) What is the job of the President?

3) What should happen if a government official refuses to do his job?

Trail of Tears• Georgia govt. smashes

in Cherokee printing press

• US troops move 18,000 Cherokee at gunpoint 800 miles from 1838-1839

• 25% of Cherokee died - most elderly and children

Trail of Tears Assignment• Write a three entry diary about your experiences on

the Trail of Tears and how your life was/will be affected by the move from Georgia to Oklahoma.

• Entry One - Before you leave (court case)• Entry Two - On the Trail (struggles during the trip)• Entry Three - When you arrive in Indian Territory

(how life has changed)• Detail earns points - cover emotion, fears, pain,

successes with colorful adjectives and adverbs• Due next class