Please Help me!?

Question

I need help with a history thing!! PRONTO!=D

Trail of tears: Who was involved? What Happened?

try to include a link if possible!

Answer 1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_of_Tears
http://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1006020206674
http://ngeorgia.com/history/nghisttt.html
http://www.answers.com/Trail%20of%20tears
http://www.infoplease.com/search?fr=iptn&query=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.answers.com%2FTrail%2520of%2520tears&in=all&x=29&y=1
http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=Trail+of+tears%3A&btnG=Google+Search&meta=

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

The Trail of Tears refers to the forced relocation in 1838 of the Cherokee Native American tribe to the Western United States, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 4,000 Cherokees. In the Cherokee language, the event is called Nunna daul Isunyi—"the Trail Where We Cried." The Cherokees were not the only Native Americans forced to emigrate as a result of the Indian Removal efforts of the United States, and so the phrase "Trail of Tears" is sometimes used to refer to similar events endured by other Indian peoples, especially among the "Five Civilized Tribes." The phrase originated as a description of the earlier emigration of the Choctaw nation.

The Cherokee Trail of Tears resulted from the enforcement of the Treaty of New Echota, an agreement signed under the provisions of the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which exchanged Native American land in the East for lands west of the Mississippi River, but which was never accepted by the elected tribal leadership or a majority of the Cherokee people. Nevertheless, the treaty was enforced by President Martin Van Buren, who sent federal troops to round up about 17,000 Cherokees in camps before being sent to the West. Most of the deaths occurred from disease in these camps. After the initial roundup, the U.S. military played a limited role in the journey itself, with the Cherokee Nation taking over supervision of most of the emigration.

Answer 4

The other excellent answerers have given you links and the basics; I thought I could add some personal stories, as I have lived on or near the Trail of Tears most of my life.

In the winter, when many Cherokee were camped in Southern Illinois, hundreds died of freezing or starvation. Many local families took in the children who were orphaned, and their descendants still live in Southern Illinois.

Many Cherokee first located in Newton County, Arkansas. One of their chiefs, impressed by the kind way the European settlers treated them, named the county seat Jasper, for his white friends were "true as Jasper". Again, when the final relocation to Oklahoma was made, some stayed behind--my spouse's family was one of these. The Cherokees were looked upon as neighbors and basically left alone here.

Answer 5

Lots of great answers already for this

Answer 6

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_of_Tears

there are more links from there too.
hope it helps. good luck :)

Answer 7

I too have the same question

Answer 8

Hey here's a link but dunno if it'll help...=)





http://www.trailoftears.org/

Answer 9

The following lines are written in the attempt of clarifying the news that have been circulating in the past few days. There is really no easy way of telling this so I will try to explain to the best of my ability.

On the 26th of November Trail of Tears completed a 10 dates tour of Mexico, a tour which was in large parts ridden with organisational problems and resulted in a severe financial loss for everyone involved. As a result of this I was called to the band hotel in the morning of November 28th, asking for a meeting by the remaining members. Arriving to the hotel, I am instead given a message, lasting a mere two minutes, that because of the situation they have decided to end the band effective immidiately. The decision has been made entirely without my consultation and approval, and thus Trail of Tears is NOT dead and will continue in a new shape and formation.

Needless to say I am very disappointed by the decision and the way that this has been handled by the leaving members. I have tried my very best best reasoning with them, stressing that the timing could not be worse and that in fact they are violating future obligations with a decision made in a moment of frustration in the aftermath of this tour. I have even offered to cover the several thousand euros financial loss out of my own pockets in order for them not to worry about paying their bills and so that we can focus on our already agreed obligations towards label, tour organisors and the countless people involved. This was not accepted, however they made sure of giving me all their account numbers before running back to Norway.

I am truly ashamed by the lack of insight, understanding and responsability the leaving members have portrayed with this decision, with absolute disregard to the fans who have bought tickets for the upcoming tour, which we now have to cancel, and to all the parties involved who have invested a large amount of work and money in the upcoming release, "Existentia".
The decision to leave a band is an individual choice and I respect that to the fullest but it does under no circumstances justify the leaving members violating obligations and making decisions for other, going public with something that has not been approved.

Despite the situation, I want to thank the leaving members, each and every one of you, for the amazing times we have shared, I will always consider you my brothers, friends and family.
Great chapters have been written and more are in the making.

This is not the end!

this is a letter that one of them heres some links to trie good luck wrotehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_of_Tears and heres a site for info http://www.rosecity.net/tears/trail/tearsnht.html and more info A journey west. To settlers it meant expanding horizons. Hope. Dreams of riches and a new life. To the Cherokee Nation the journey west was a bitter pill forced upon them by a state and federal government that cared little for their culture or society, and even less about justice. It is a travesty and tragedy of both our Georgia history and our American heritage that forced the Cherokee west along a route they called "The Trail of Tears."
1835 was a pivotal year in Georgia history. Three years earlier, to solidify their claim to Cherokee land the state of Georgia held two land lotteries that divided the Cherokee Nation in 160 acre lots and gave them to any Georgian who had four dollars in their pocket and won a chance to buy the land. Unfortunately, the Cherokee never ceded the land to either the state or federal government and the Supreme Court (in Worchester v. Georgia) ruled that state did not have the power to make a treaty with a sovereign nation.

John Ross represented the vast majority of the Cherokee and had their complete support. With settlers moving into the Cherokee Nation Ross understood that making a deal for the land with the United States was his best option, since he was at risk of losing the entire nation to the state of Georgia. In early 1835 he and his group wanted to deed a portion of the land to the United States for an amount of money to be determined by Congress, with the rest of the property deeded to the Cherokee owners. The sticking point on the Ross deal was the requirement that the United States and the state of Georgia recognize Cherokee citizenship, including the right to vote and hold political office. Neither Georgia nor the United States would never agree to this.

To compensate the Cherokee for their loss without retaining some land and living a normal life among the settlers, Ross came up with the figure of 20 million dollars, or about 25% of the value of the land if sold separately to each settler. For this amount 17,000 men, women and children would leave voluntarily and relocate to the Indian Territory, now the state of Oklahoma. This comes to a payment of just under $1200 per person. This is roughly $4.34 per acre (the going rate for similar, nearby land sold in the state of Georgia in 1835 was between $18.00 an acre and $25.00 an acre.)

Ross enjoyed the backing of the Cherokee Nation, and both the original proposal (4.5 million dollars, land and citizenship) and the second proposal (20 million dollars) had been approved by the Cherokee council. A small group of radicals led by John Ridge and his cousin Elias Boudinot negotiated the corrupt Treaty of New Echota, giving up Cherokee lands for pennies on the dollar ($1.085 dollars per acre, or about 5% of the actual value of the land). This proposal had not been approved by the Cherokee council, in fact it was specifically declined.

On December 29, 1835 the Ridge (or Treaty) Party members filed one by one to sign the document that Major Ridge called his death warrant. The only hope now for the Cherokee was with the government of the United States. Unfortunately, Andrew Jackson's forces in the U. S. Senate (which is required to ratify all treaties) were too strong. The Treaty of New Echota was ratified the next year.

Wealthy Cherokee Leave

Major Ridge led a group of Cherokee west in 1836, blazing the land route for future parties. He stopped at Nashville to visit his old friend, Andrew Jackson, now merely a citizen. Jackson warmly welcomed Ridge, with whom he met for nearly a day. This party contained mostly mixed-blood Cherokee who had been successful in business and could afford to move to present-day Oklahoma on their own. John Ridge stayed in Georgia, actually leading one of the final parties west. Other wealthy Cherokee managed to get out to Oklahoma in smaller groups or on their own, such as Joseph "Rich Joe" Vann, who went west on his own steamship.

The Cherokee Nation's last stand

Cherokee hope did not fade. After the ratification, Ross attempted to petition the United States government to no avail. In May, 1838, the forcible eviction of the Cherokee Nation began. Government troops under the command of Winfield Scott, at times supported by the brutal Georgia Guard, moved across the state taking the helpless Cherokee from their homes. Within two weeks every Cherokee in North Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama had been captured, killed, overlooked or fled. Holding areas contained the Cherokee until they could be moved to one of the specially constructed forts further north.

With minimum facilities the forts were little more than rat-infested prisons for these Cherokee. The Cherokee began the move to one of two embarkation points: Rattlesnake Springs, near the Cherokee Agency in Tennessee, or Ross's Landing (now Chattanooga, Tennessee). Death rates on the first of the forced marches were very high. Ross went to Scott and requested that the Cherokee be allowed to lead the parties west later in the year. Scott granted his request. The first parties under Ross's left in October under a dual command. Scott rode to Nashville with one of the parties.

The Water Route

From the port on the Tennessee River (currently a city park near the Tennessee Aquarium), groups of Cherokee would leave by steamship to the Mississippi River (via a short journey on the Ohio River), then south on the Mississippi to the Arkansas River. They followed this river to Fort Smith, on the border between Arkansas and Indian Territory. From here they headed northwest to the area reserved for the Cherokee. This was the route which John Ross's wife died.

The Land Routes

There were roughly ten individual routes, with some overlapping between each of them. The route that is technically called the "Trail of Tears" began at the Cherokee Agency near Rattlesnake Springs and headed northwest to the vicinity of Nashville, Tennessee, then to Hopkinsville, Kentucky. From here the Cherokee headed to a crossing of the Ohio just northwest of the confluence of the Tennessee River. From here the Cherokee moved southwest, crossing the Mississippi near Cape Girardeau. From here the route headed south-southwest across the Ozark plateau to the Oklahoma Territory.

Along the Trail of Tears

In general the settlers who witnessed the Cherokee moving west were indifferent to their plight. While some did offer assistance, most did not. In a number of cases the settlers did not want the Cherokee in their towns, so the groups were forced to change their route. For example, at Cape Girardeau, Missouri, the Cherokee had been fording the Mississippi at a point near downtown. City fathers, who were unhappy with the long lines of Indians passing through town asked that they cross two miles north, at a more difficult crossing known as Moccasin Springs. Today a state park commemorates the site where Rev. Jesse Bushyhead lost his sister after crossing an ice-covered river.

Arrival at Arkansas

Fort Smith, on the border of Arkansas and Oklahoma was rebuilt in anticipation of the arrival of the Cherokee and the other Southeastern tribes (Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw and Seminole). Many Cherokee made it to the fort, but others simply continued west when they reached Arkansas.

Clash with the "Old Settlers"

The Cherokee from Georgia were not the only people relocated to the area of Tallequah, Oklahoma. A group of Cherokee from Arkansas known as the Old Settlers had moved there in the late 1820's. These Old Settlers had an established nation, but the influx of 13,000 Cherokee from Georgia created friction. When the Georgia Cherokee completed their journey they immediately formed the majority of the tribe. Issues of administration caused deep divisions within the tribe, especially as the Georgia Cherokee gained control of the nation. Once Ross had returned to power, the attention of the tribe turned to those who had betrayed the Cherokee in Georgia.

A new constitution was ratified, and Ross's position as Principal Chief was reaffirmed. The night of Ross's success his men spread out to carry out the final act of the Trail of Tears: the execution of the Ridge family. Major Ridge dies on a roadway, John Ridge is dragged from his house and stabbed in front of his children and wife, Elias Boudinot is surrounded after leaving Samuel Worchester's home. Stand Watie's life is saved by Worchester, who sends a messenger to warn him.

Additional information on the "Trail of Tears":

North Georgia Trail of Tears
Cherokee Forts
Trail of Tears Map



About the Author

Randy Golden has been writing since 1975, starting with his college newspaper. During his 25+ years he has written for a wide range of publications including newspapers and newsletters, magazines, web sites, and books including school textbooks. Topics he has written about include computers, travel, hiking (his GeorgiaTrails.com website is the leader in on-line information about hiking in the state of Georgia), book reviews, life in general, and of course, history.

He is considered an expert on North Georgia, the Cherokee Indians and The blah blah
The Trail of Tears is a tragic tale of force winning over decency and power winning over justice. While the focus today remains on the route traveled and the journey itself, for eight years prior to the event Cherokee were confronted with their future on a daily basis. Illegal stockades were built on Cherokee land, intended to house Cherokee people long before their forced journey on "The Trail of Tears."

Removal Forts in Georgia

As settlers moved into the area these forts were built for the express purpose of housing the Cherokee before their removal. Sources list the following forts (Counties are listed based on present political boundaries):


Fort Gilmer

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One hundred yards east is the site of Fort Gilmer, built in 1838 to garrison U.S. troops ordered to enforce the removal from this region of the last Cherokee Indians under terms of the New Echota treaty of 1835.
One of seven[sic] such forts erected in the Cherokee territory, Gilmer was the temporary headquarters of Gen. Winfield Scott, under whose command the removal was effected. The reluctant Indians were brought here and guarded until the westward march began

Pickens County

Fort Newnan (Talking Rock Fort)
Cherokee County
Fort Buffington (East of Canton)
Fort Sixes (Camp Hinar Sixes)
Forsyth County
Fort Campbell
Fort Scudders (Fort Eaton, Frogtown)
Lumpkin County
Fort Dahlonega (or Fort Embry)
Towns County
Fort Chastain
Walker County
Fort Cumming (LaFayette)
Murray County
Fort Hoskins
Camp (Fort) Gilmer
Gilmer County
Fort Hetzel (East Ellijay)
Gordon County
Fort New Echota (Fort Wool)
Floyd County
Fort Rome
Polk County
Fort Cedartown
Bartow County
Fort Means (Kingston)
Among the other Cherokee Removal Forts were Fort Red Clay, Fort Cass (about four miles south of present-day Charleston), Fort Marr in Old Fort, all in Tennessee and Fort Butler in Murphy, North Carolina.

Cherokee Forts are built

Earliest of the forts in Georgia, known as Camp Hinar Sixes, was built in September, 1830, shortly after the Congress passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830. This camp was used to house members of the infamous Georgia Guard who took it upon themselves to brutalize the Cherokee even though at this time the settlers were illegal immigrants. In one instance in 1830, during the construction of the camp the Guard, without provocation, destroyed equipment that Cherokee miners were using to extract gold. The Georgia Guard did not officially exist until December of that year.

After Cherokee Nation vs. Georgia, in which the Supreme Court refused to hear a case about Georgia extending its laws on the Cherokee, construction on the forts sped up. A year later the settlers were stunned when the Court ruled that Georgia could not extend its laws on a sovereign nation such as the Cherokee, but were again heartened by Andy Jackson's rumored statement (he probably never said it), "Well, John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it."

Georgia Settlers and Removal

Settlers were greatly divided on the issue of removal. Families that had lived in the Nation before the Georgia Gold Rush tended to be more supportive of the Cherokee. One reason for the strong bond was the acceptance of them by the tribe. White settlers were easily accepted into Cherokee society. The reverse was not true. In general, Georgians viewed the Cherokee as somewhat higher on the social level than slaves, but not much. Another reason that settlers were greatly divided was the support Cherokee had given struggling early settlers in their time of need.

Some settlers would taunt the Cherokee, telling them the forts were to be their new home. With great concern, Principal Chief John Ross and Whitepath, among others, journeyed to Washington to meet with Jackson. Jackson hypocritically told them "You shall remain in your ancient land as long as grass grows and water runs." In early 1835, before the Treaty of New Echota, work began on road improvements to move the Cherokee to the starting point for their removal.

Military Operations begin

After Major Ridge and other members of the Treaty Party sign the Treaty of New Echota, The Principal People hoped their leaders would get it modified so they might stay on their ancestral land. Even while a Cherokee delegation was in Washington Governor George Gilmer of Georgia and Secretary of War Joel Poinsett were plotting the invasion.

Local operations began on May 18, 1838, mostly carried out by Georgia Guard under the command of Colonel William Lindsey. The first Cherokee round-up under orders from United States General Winfield Scott started on May 25, 1838 with General Charles Floyd in charge of field operations.

General Scott was shocked during a trip to inspect Fort New Echota when he overheard members of The Guard say that they would not be happy until all Cherokee were dead. As a result, he issued meticulous orders on conduct and allowed actions during the action. Troops were to treat tribal members "with kindness and humanity, free from every strain of violence." Each Cherokee was to receive meat and flour or corn regardless of age. Scott's orders were disobeyed by most troops that were not directly under his control.

Occupying the Forts

Built to protect the settlers from the Cherokee in 1814, Fort Marr is the only remaining portion of a Cherokee Removal Fort. This blockhouse, built in each corner of the standard removal fort featured gunports drilled every two feet or so(inset).
Some Cherokee reported to the forts, not knowing the fate that awaited them, simply because John Ross had told them this is what they should do. Others stayed and were working in the fields when the soldiers came. The Georgia Guard had identified Cherokee homes. Aided by troops from Alabama, Florida, North and South Carolina, and Tennessee, Georgia militia would typically approach a home and enter the house. The resident(s) would then be forced to leave. The amount of time given residents to collect belongings varied greatly. Some were forced to leave immediately while others had enough time to sell valuables to local settlers at bargain rates. There are numerous instances where settlers attempted to intervene when the Guard was being particularly rough on a family.

Conditions at the forts were horrible. Food intended for the tribe was sold to locals. What little the Cherokee had brought with them was stolen and sold. Living areas were filled with excrement. Birth rates among the Cherokee dropped to near zero during the months of captivity. Cherokee women and children were repeatedly raped. Soldiers forced their captives to perform acts of depravation so disgusting they cannot be told here. One member of the Guard would later write, "During the Civil War I watched as hundreds of men died, including my own brother, but none of that compares to what we did to the Cherokee Indians."

Towards the Trail
For a number of reasons nothing seemed to go right during the removal. The round up that began in mid-May was completed on June 2, 1838. Some Cherokee were forced to live in these conditions for up to five months before the start on the journey whose name is "Nunna daul Tsuny (Trail Where They Cried)."

As many as one-third of the 4,000 deaths as a direct result of the removal can be attributed to conditions in the prisons. Unfortunately, many of the Cherokee Removal Forts are unmarked and lost to time.

Update, May 2003: Since this article first appear on About North Georgia in 1998, interest in the Cherokee Removal Forts has grown. This article was reprinted in the Trail of Tears Newsletter and members of the organization have been working on preserving sites in Georgia and other states.