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| Indian Removal Act: Congress passed this act in 1830. The act called for the government to negotiate treaties with the Native Americans that would force them to move west. Jackson immediately supported the act and enforced it. He thought that the Indian Removal Act was just and fair and would allow the Native Americans to keep their way of life. However, the act caused much hardship for the Native Americans, and their way of life would be changed forever. | Indian Removal Act: Congress passed this act in 1830. The act called for the government to negotiate treaties with the Native Americans that would force them to move west. Jackson immediately supported the act and enforced it. He thought that the Indian Removal Act was just and fair and would allow the Native Americans to keep their way of life. However, the act caused much hardship for the Native Americans, and their way of life would be changed forever. | ||
| Many Native Americans resisted the Indian Removal Act. In 1838, an old Cherokee farmer named Tsali and his family fought against the U.S. soldiers. They killed a soldier and fled to the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. There they found other Cherokees hiding. The U.S. Army sent a message to Tsali. If he and his family gave themselves up, the other Cherokees could stay. They surrendered and all except the youngest son were shot. Their sacrifice allowed some Cherokees to stay in their homeland. Other Southeast Tribes also resisted relocation. In 1835, the Seminoles refused to leave Florida. This led to the Second Seminole War. The most important leader in the war was Osceola. Osceola led the Seminoles in their fight against removal. Hiding in the Everglades of Florida, Osceola and his band used surprise attacks to defeat the U.S. Army in many battles. In 1837, Osceola was tricked into capture when he came to negotiate peace during a truce. He died in prison. The Seminoles continued to fight. Some traveled deeper into the Everglades. Others moved west. The Second Seminole War ended in 1842. The United States won. Some tribes north of the Ohio River also resisted relocation. The Shawnee, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox were removed to the Indian Territory. In 1832, a Sauk chief named Black Hawk led a band of Sauk and Fox back to their lands in Illinois. The U.S. Army and Illinois militia defeated Blacks Hawk and his army. | Many Native Americans resisted the Indian Removal Act. In 1838, an old Cherokee farmer named Tsali and his family fought against the U.S. soldiers. They killed a soldier and fled to the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. There they found other Cherokees hiding. The U.S. Army sent a message to Tsali. If he and his family gave themselves up, the other Cherokees could stay. They surrendered and all except the youngest son were shot. Their sacrifice allowed some Cherokees to stay in their homeland. Other Southeast Tribes also resisted relocation. In 1835, the Seminoles refused to leave Florida. This led to the Second Seminole War. The most important leader in the war was Osceola. Osceola led the Seminoles in their fight against removal. Hiding in the Everglades of Florida, Osceola and his band used surprise attacks to defeat the U.S. Army in many battles. In 1837, Osceola was tricked into capture when he came to negotiate peace during a truce. He died in prison. The Seminoles continued to fight. Some traveled deeper into the Everglades. Others moved west. The Second Seminole War ended in 1842. The United States won. Some tribes north of the Ohio River also resisted relocation. The Shawnee, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox were removed to the Indian Territory. In 1832, a Sauk chief named Black Hawk led a band of Sauk and Fox back to their lands in Illinois. The U.S. Army and Illinois militia defeated Blacks Hawk and his army. | ||
| The Indian Removal Act caused great hardship for Native Americans. Many Native Americans died from violence, disease, and the elements. A quarter of the Cherokee tribe died. Many more died while fighting. The harsh journey of the Cherokee from their homeland hundreds of miles west to the Indian Territory was called the |
The Indian Removal Act caused great hardship for Native Americans. Many Native Americans died from violence, disease, and the elements. A quarter of the Cherokee tribe died. Many more died while fighting. The harsh journey of the Cherokee from their homeland hundreds of miles west to the Indian Territory was called the “Trail of Tears" | ||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
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The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was a law passed by the United States Congress and signed by President Andrew Jackson to force the removal of 60,000 members of Native American tribes in the United States living east of the Mississippi River to lands farther west. The law was enacted on May 26, 1830.
The act was passed surrounded by controversy. Since the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, America's policy had been to allow Native nations to remain east of the Mississippi as long as they became "civilized." They were to settle in one place, farm the land, divide communal land into private property, and adopt democracy. In 1830, the only tribes still living east of the Mississippi had taken these measures. They were the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole, and Cherokee tribes. The Cherokee in particular had gone to great lengths to become "civilized," even adopting Christianity and a system of writing their language, developed by Sequoyah. (See Five Civilized Tribes.)
The "Five Civilized Tribes," then, had complied with U.S. policy and were entitled to remain on their lands in the eyes of the government. In spite of this, many white settlers wanted the land. Andrew Jackson and other candidates of the new Democratic Party made Indian Removal a major goal in the campaign of 1828. In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act and President Jackson signed it into law. One of the opponents of the law was Congressman David Crockett of Tennessee.
When the federal government began seizing their tribal land, the Cherokee fought them in court. The Supreme Court of the United States under Chief Justice John Marshall affirmed the right of the civilized tribes to remain in two cases, Worcester v. Georgia and Cherokee Nation v. Georgia. They declared the Indian Removal Act unconstitutional. However, Indian Removal was so popular a cause that Jackson continued it despite the Court's decision. He is reported to have said, "John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it!" knowing that the U.S. Constitution gives the Court no power to enforce its decisions.
So the five tribes were resettled in the new Indian Territory in modern-day Oklahoma and parts of Kansas. The Native American inhabitants called the area "the Nations." The Cherokee were forcibly driven to Oklahoma in what became known as the Trail of Tears. Many of them died along the way.
With this act, the last of the native tribes of Eastern North America were taken from their ancestral lands and placed onto reservations.
More about the Indian Removal Act
Indian Removal Act: Congress passed this act in 1830. The act called for the government to negotiate treaties with the Native Americans that would force them to move west. Jackson immediately supported the act and enforced it. He thought that the Indian Removal Act was just and fair and would allow the Native Americans to keep their way of life. However, the act caused much hardship for the Native Americans, and their way of life would be changed forever. Many Native Americans resisted the Indian Removal Act. In 1838, an old Cherokee farmer named Tsali and his family fought against the U.S. soldiers. They killed a soldier and fled to the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. There they found other Cherokees hiding. The U.S. Army sent a message to Tsali. If he and his family gave themselves up, the other Cherokees could stay. They surrendered and all except the youngest son were shot. Their sacrifice allowed some Cherokees to stay in their homeland. Other Southeast Tribes also resisted relocation. In 1835, the Seminoles refused to leave Florida. This led to the Second Seminole War. The most important leader in the war was Osceola. Osceola led the Seminoles in their fight against removal. Hiding in the Everglades of Florida, Osceola and his band used surprise attacks to defeat the U.S. Army in many battles. In 1837, Osceola was tricked into capture when he came to negotiate peace during a truce. He died in prison. The Seminoles continued to fight. Some traveled deeper into the Everglades. Others moved west. The Second Seminole War ended in 1842. The United States won. Some tribes north of the Ohio River also resisted relocation. The Shawnee, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Sauk, and Fox were removed to the Indian Territory. In 1832, a Sauk chief named Black Hawk led a band of Sauk and Fox back to their lands in Illinois. The U.S. Army and Illinois militia defeated Blacks Hawk and his army. The Indian Removal Act caused great hardship for Native Americans. Many Native Americans died from violence, disease, and the elements. A quarter of the Cherokee tribe died. Many more died while fighting. The harsh journey of the Cherokee from their homeland hundreds of miles west to the Indian Territory was called the “Trail of Tears"