History: The Indian Removal Act Essay

The Cherokee Indians on the other hand faced conflicts that were not like any of the above Indian tribes. They were the last tribe to fight for their land which was in the Appalachian Mountains. The Cherokees were basically became their own country. They had a developed Republican Government, and their own Constitution. They had many conflicts with America though. For example, they had the same land claimed as Georgia causing a big problem that ended up in the Supreme Court. In this case the judges could not decide who had claim of the disputed land. After this, Andrew Jackson persuaded a small group of the Cherokees to sign the Treaty of New Echota. This allowed the American Government ownership to the Cherokee territory, in return America gave them new land west of the Mississippi River

In 1830, gold was found in Western Georgia. Unfortunately, The Cherokee had lots of land there. Settlers ignored that and began to invade western Georgia. President Andrew Jackson then decided to sign the Indian Removal Act, because he believed that assimilation wouldn’t work. This act gave him power to order the removal of any tribe at any time. In 1835, The Treaty of New Echota was signed, which said that the Cherokee would leave their land and walk to Oklahoma. They refused to leave so after two years, they were forced out. Andrew Jackson and the U.S. Government had many reasons for the removal of the Cherokee people, but the Cherokee also had many reasons for why it shouldn’t have happened. Eventually, their removal had devastating effects on the Cherokee culture.

In the years leading up to the Indian Removal Act, which was the initial cause of the Trail of Tears, the United States was in a shift. The country was seeing an unrivaled influx of European settlers looking for careers and land. This caused population to skyrocket, in fact in the years 1790-1840, the United States saw a 350% increase in population. In other words, the need for fertile land and viable property was high. At the same time, attempts at assimilation of Indians into American society were proving to be futile. Americans saw the Indians as “noble savages”, who were uncivilized but able to be fit for society if they were converted to Christianity and adopted Anglo-European culture and behavior. With the growing need for land and the rise in tension between Natives and fearful white settlers, something needed to be done in the eyes of the American people. These two things combined is what really set up the foreground for what would become the Indian Removal Act. President Andrew Jackson, in

The Indian Removal act of 1830 was passed by President Jackson. President Jackson wanted the Natives land so he made false treaties with them in order to speed up the process of taking their land. Some of the Natives agreed to go to Indian territory on their own but, the majority of them didn’t like the idea of leaving their home. Many of the natives fought and raided the settlers many of the natives tried to make peace with the white men. Soon many of the Natives grew weary and finally decided to cede their land and move to Indian Territory. Still many Natives had to be forced to make the journey. Many of the natives didn’t survive the journey. The Five Tribes that were removed were the Choctaw,Creek,Chickasaw,Cherokee, and the Seminole.

The government attempted to uphold relations with the Indians on the condition that they establish themselves in the beliefs and values of the United States people (Jackson, First Annual Message to Congress, 2). They wanted the Indians to be of the Christian faith and to learn their practices, such as their agricultural lifestyle and techniques, to help civilize and assimilate the Indian people. This really just rooted the settler’s supremacist temperament into place. The Supreme Court did back the Indians temporarily in the Worcester v. Georgia trial, in which the United States Supreme Court held that “the Cherokee Indians constituted a nation holding distinct sovereign powers” (Garrison, Worcester v. Georgia, 1). While it seemed a concerted effort, it eventually led to the forced signing of the Cherokee people at the “Cherokee capital of New Echota”, and furthermore, to the Trail of Tears and the downfall of the Indian nation (Garrison, Worcester v. Georgia, 1). The Americans ultimately made a frail attempt at civil dealings with the Indian people and their tribes, but when the Indians refused, the government used unnecessary force and aggression to get what they

“I fought through the civil war and have seen men shot to pieces and slaughtered by thousands, but the Cherokee removal was the cruelest work I ever knew”, remarked a Georgia soldier who had participated in the removal of Indian Natives during the mid-1800’s. As a result of the Indian Removal Act, Indian natives have been perceived as mistreated and cheated throughout history. The Indian Removal Act was passed during the presidency of Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830. This act granted authorization to the president to exchange unsettled lands west of Mississippi for Indian lands residing in state borders. Initially, the Indian Removal Act of 1830 was passed to expand the Southern United State for farmland and to aid the government in furthering our development as a nation. With this plan in mind, the government provided money to establish districts in the west of the Mississippi River for the Indian natives, ensured trade and exchange in those districts, allowed Native Indian tribes to be compensated for the cost of their removal and the improvements of their homesteads, and also pay one years’ worth subsistence to those Native Indians who relocated to the west.

The Indian Removal Act signed by the president of the United States, Andrew Jackson, caused controversy and the brutal and merciless suffering of the Native Americans during The Trail of Tears. The beginning of the 1830’s was a time when the Native Americans occupied The Deep South. This, however, was problematic for the white farmers who were in need of farmland in order to increase their production of cotton. Nevertheless, Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, coerced the Native Americans to relocate their civilizations to lands west of the Mississippi. A close examination at the tribes that were compelled to move west would show that they were civilized. Thus, Andrew Jackson was not justified in his policy towards

In Document J, he said, “Surrounded by the whites with their arts of civilization, which, by destroying the resources of the savage, doom him to weakness and decay, the fate of the Mohegan… is fast overcoming the Choctaw, the Cherokee, and the Creek…. Humanity and national honor demand that every effort should be made to avert so great a calamity.” and “...I suggest for your consideration… setting apart an ample district west of the Mississippi, and (outside) the limits of any state or territory now formed, to be guaranteed to the Indian tribes as long as they shall occupy it, each tribe having a distinct control over the portion designated for its use….”. It is evident that Jackson understood how much devastation white men have unleashed upon the various Indian tribes and that he intended to prevent any further disaster which is what the people wanted. Jackson proposed his solution, the Indian Removal Act to Congress which set aside guaranteed territory for the Indian tribes.

The Indian Removal act occurred due to the boom in the cotton industry causing Southerners to desire for more land and gold lying upon Indian’s land. Jackson labeled them as savage and ransome and stated their taking up land for white settlers. The Indian Removal act caused many white settlers to encourage Indians into signing removal treaties in order to gain the land they want. Many tribes declined this treaty

The indian removal act was justified because the whites needed the land more than the indians because they had bigger settlements and they had a bigger population and they needed the land to expand the settlement. They also needed it for farmland because they needed more crops to feed the people in settlements. The first piece of evidence from document 5 that supports that the indian removal act was justified is “They are barbarous people, depending for subsistence upon the scanty and precarious supplies furnished by the chase [and] cannot live in contact with a civilized community.” This piece of evidence proves that the native americans were barbarous people who cannot live in contact with a civilized community. They rely on supplies that the whites needed more than them. The last piece of evidence that supports the indian removal act was justified is, “Shield them from impending ruin, but promote their welfare and happiness” This means that it will shield them from impending ruin and it will make them and the whites happier and it will promote their welfare. Removing the indians will make both sides happy because the indians have better land and the whites have room to expand on their

One reason of the unjustification of the Indian Removal Act is the fact that the Cherokees owned the land before the Americans arrived; their tribe have lived on the land for hundred of years. A passage from Georgia Encyclopedia states, “White people in Georgia and other southern states that

Indian Removal Act Argumentative Imagine you’re a Native American in 1830 walking the Trail of Tears. Half dead, starving, and homeless. Soldiers are surrounding your tribe from the American Government forcing you to move across the country. In 1830 President Jackson placed the Indian Removal Act which allowed U.S. soldiers to remove Native American tribes from Georgia and other eastern lands to new discovered western lands.

In December of 1830 President Jackson would submitted the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek to congress, it would be the first to win Senate approval. President Jackson wanted everything to go smoothly so that the American people would see that he was humane and that this Treaty would benefit both the Indians and the American nation at large. With Jackson located too far away to oversee the actual removal of the Choctaw Nation, they would endure mismanagement, theft, corruption, and inefficiency on a level that would lead to their destruction. Jackson would be deeply offended and the removal of the Choctaw Nation would become one of the worse horror stories of modem era.

Most Cherokee bands stood together as an independent nation to dispute the lesignation to the U.S courts. The supreme court decreed in the favor of the Cherokees. Already by then, some Cherokee tribes had signed the treaty and relocated to the designated Indian territory.

One of the defining moments of President Andrew Jackson’s career, if not the most significant, was the Indian Removal Act of 1830. This was a controversial bill at the time and the impact from it is still felt today. The Indian Removal Act directly led to the displacement of thousands of Native Americans; including four thousand deaths during the Trail of Tears, the forced march from Georgia to Oklahoma. While overt racism played a clear role in relocating Native Americans past the Mississippi, it is possible that other factors were at play. The living conditions in many of the states were poor for Natives and Jackson hoped that giving them a new location to live could remedy these problems while opening the land up for white settlers.