Trail of Tears
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The Trail of Tears is the common name for the forced removal of Cherokee Indians from Tennessee to Indian Territory (later Oklahoma) in compliance with the Indian Removal Act of 1830 as put into place by President Andrew Jackson. 17,000 Indians were sent on a forced march of 1,200 miles (some made the journey by boat) Between 2,000 and 4,000 Indians died on the trip, mostly the elderly and small children due to disease, malnutrition, and fatigue. The Trail of Tears became a national historical site in 1987.[1]
References
- â The exact number is debated. On the official lists, 13,169 left home and 11,504 arrived in Oklahoma. Russell Thornton et al. The Cherokees: A Population History (University of Nebraska Press, 1992), .