Untold Stories Collection

​​The Trail of Tears was a tragic event in American history that took place from the late 1830s to the early 1850s. It involved the forced removal of several Native American tribes from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States to lands west of the Mississippi River. The most well-known tribe affected by this forced removal was the Cherokee Nation, but other tribes, including the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole, were also impacted.

The roots of the Trail of Tears can be traced back to the Indian Removal Act of 1830, signed into law by President Andrew Jackson. This act authorized the federal government to negotiate treaties with Native American tribes for their removal from the southeastern states to lands in the west, specifically what is now Oklahoma. Many of these treaties were signed under duress, and the removal process was often brutal, involving forced marches and inadequate provisions. 

The most infamous part of the Trail of Tears was the Cherokee removal, which began in 1838. The Cherokee were forcibly evicted from their lands in Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, and forced to march westward in what became known as the “Trail of Tears.” The journey was marked by immense suffering, with thousands of Cherokee people dying due to exposure, disease, and hunger during the harsh journey. 

In total, it’s estimated that around 60,000 Native Americans were displaced as a result of the Indian Removal Act, with thousands losing their lives during the journey. The Trail of Tears is a dark chapter in American history that represents the devastating impact of the U.S. government’s policies on Native American communities, leading to the loss of their ancestral lands and a profound disruption of their way of life.