A Trail of 4,000 Tears

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Painting, The Trail of Tears, Robert Lindneux, Woolaroc Museum
Question

How many Native Americans died on the Trail of Tears?

Answer

The “Trail of Tears” refers specifically to Cherokee removal in the first half of the 19th century, when about 16,000 Cherokees were forcibly relocated from their ancestral lands in the Southeast to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) west of the Mississippi. It is estimated that of the approximately 16,000 Cherokee who were removed between 1836 and 1839, about 4,000 perished.

It is estimated that of the approximately 16,000 Cherokee who were removed between 1836 and 1839, about 4,000 perished.

At the time of first contacts with Europeans, Cherokee Territory extended from the Ohio River south into east Tennessee. The Cherokee enjoyed profitable commercial and diplomatic relations with the British, although Anglo-American settlers caused conflicts by encroaching on Cherokee lands. After the American Revolution, the U.S. implemented a policy of “civilization” toward the Cherokee and other American Indian nations living within U.S. borders. They urged Native Americans to abandon their own cultures and traditions and adopt Christianity and other Anglo-American ways, such as western habits of dress and farming. Some Cherokee embraced this plan in order to maintain control over their economy and political sovereignty. These changes altered gender roles significantly, as men took on traditionally female tasks of farming and adopted patrilineal practices of private property ownership. A few Cherokees acquired large tracts of land, became planters, and purchased slaves. Eventually the Cherokee nation modeled its own Constitution after the U.S. frame of government.

Despite these signs that the Cherokee were assimilating, whites in Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee insisted that their state governments remove them. In 1828 the Georgia legislature annexed Cherokee territory. The Cherokee resisted, using American courts to argue that they were a sovereign nation. The U.S. Supreme Court agreed in Worcester v. Georgia (1832), but Georgians and President Andrew Jackson ignored the Court’s decision. Acting under the Indian Removal Act of 1830, the U.S. government pressed the Cherokees to migrate west. An unauthorized Cherokee faction signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835, which exchanged Cherokee lands in the east for land in Indian Territory and money to help them with relocation.

The Cherokee nation was not the only Native American culture to be removed westward in the 19th century.

Most Cherokees refused to move, and in May of 1838 federal troops began to round up the Cherokees and imprison them in stockades to await removal. Many died in the stockades as they waited. U.S. soldiers then accompanied the Cherokees as they traveled 1,200 miles westward. Most made the journey on foot. Rebecca Neugin, who was a child when she and her family were forced to remove, stated that although she and her smaller siblings were able to ride in a wagon, her mother, father, and older brother walked all the way. “There was much sickness among the emigrants,” she recalled, “and a great many little children died of whooping cough.” After they arrived in Indian Territory more Cherokees succumbed to famine and disease, bringing the estimated death toll to 4,000.

The Cherokee nation was not the only Native American culture to be removed westward in the 19th century. Perhaps as many as 100,000 First Peoples were pushed out of their traditional lands, and the death toll from these forced removals reached far into the thousands.

For more information

McLoughlin, William G. After the Trail of Tears: The Cherokees’ Struggle for Sovereignty, 1839-1880. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1993.

Mooney, James. Historical Sketch of the Cherokee. (1900) Reproduction. New Brunswick, NJ: Aldine Transaction, 2005.

Sturgis, Amy H. The Trail of Tears and Indian Removal. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2007.

Bibliography

Burnett, John G. “The Cherokee Removal Through the Eyes of a Private Soldier.” Journal of Cherokee Studies 3 (1987): 180–85.

Neugin, Rebecca. “Recollections of Removal, 1932.” In The Cherokee Removal: A Brief History with Documents, 2nd edition, edited by Theda Perdue and Michael D. Green. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin, 2005.

Perdue, Theda and Michael D. Green. The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears. New York: Viking Press, 2007.

Little Wolf and President Grant

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photomechanical print, Little Wolf, c1905, LOC
Question

Why did Little Wolf, a Cheyenne leader, go to Washington in 1873?

Answer

In November 1873, Little Wolf was among a delegation of Northern Cheyenne and Northern Arapaho leaders who traveled to Washington to meet with President Grant. At issue for both sides was the continued tenure of Cheyenne and Arapaho communities on their ancestral territory in the northern Plains.

In May 1868, the Northern Cheyenne and Northern Arapaho signed a treaty with the United States government. (The treaty was ratified in July and proclaimed in August.) In that treaty the Cheyenne and Arapaho agreed to accept "for their permanent home" land amid the Southern Arapaho or the Brule band of the Lakota nation. The Cheyenne and Arapaho nevertheless retained the right to hunt over their ancestral homelands "while game shall be found in sufficient quantities to justify the chase." The United States government, for its part, agreed to supply the communities with teachers, farmers, carpenters, clothing, and small annuities. Any Cheyenne or Arapaho "head of a family"—an adult, married man by Euro-American standards of the day—would receive 320 acres of land as well as seeds and agricultural supplies if he promised to become a farmer. The treaty also included language giving the United States government jurisdiction over all crimes committed by or toward Indian people. (1)

Despite the treaty, most Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho did not want to become farmers and were content to live life as they always had.

Despite the treaty, most Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho did not want to become farmers and were content to live life as they always had. Neither did the Southern Arapaho or Lakota bands abandon their traditional practices and accede to reservation life, much less welcome the Northern Cheyenne and Northern Arapaho into their midst. The 1868 treaty protected the Northern communities in their right to continue hunting—but as white settlers pushed into the Northern Plains, conflict escalated between those emigrants and the Native communities who lived there. Armed conflict ensued, but while the U.S. military poured men and resources into the region, the nations of the Northern Plains were able defenders of their territory.

It was in this context that the leaders of the Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho journeyed to Washington in 1873. At first, the Secretary of the Interior tried to negotiate with the delegation, but the Washington Evening Star reported that the Cheyenne and Arapaho leaders "said they had come a long way to see the Great Father and to talk with him about these things and they did not propose to talk much with the Great Father's subordinate." (2) On meeting Grant himself, members of the delegation conceded that it seemed that white settlers would continue to encroach on their territory, but did not concede that the solution was for them to relocate. On returning to the Northern Plains the Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho continued to actively resist white encroachment on their land.

Despite the premise of a recent novel about this meeting between Grant and the Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho, there is no evidence that Little Wolf asked the president for one thousand white women when they met. This action would also make little sense in the context of life on the Northern Plains, and the Cheyenne's continued claim to their territory and traditional ways of life.

For more information

Eastman, Charles Alexander. Indian Heroes and Great Chieftains. Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1919.

Hoig, Stan. The Peace Chiefs of the Cheyenne. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1980.

Simon, John Y., ed. The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant. Vol. 24: 1873. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois UP, 2000.

Bibliography

1 "Treaty with the Northern Cheyenne and Northern Arapaho, 1868," in Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties, ed. Charles J. Kappler, vol. 2 (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1904).

2 "Indians at the White House," Washington Evening Star. November 14, 1878, front page.

Sullivan Clinton Campaign, 1779-2005

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Photo, The Standoff at Douglas Creek. . . , 2006, Sullivan Clinton Campaign
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This learning center focuses on the devastating 1779 Continental Army campaign into Iroquois Country that set out to destroy the Seneca, Cayuga, and Onondaga nations who had allied themselves with the British. It features maps, images, audio/visual presentations, and lesson plans. Three maps show the places affected by the campaign and its aftermath, including an interactive map explaining the background and course of the campaign, as well as an actual campaign map from 1779. The site has more than 300 images in 11 different thematic galleries including Iroquoia, the events of the campaign's 25th anniversary, traditional images, and alternative viewpoints. There are 10 audio/visual presentations directly inspired by the campaign and its aftermath or "devoted to a world freed from its legacy."

The educator's guide to the campaign offers an introduction that includes an overview, background to the campaign and goals, and 13 lesson plans. The site also provides a section for posting commentary and discussion about the campaign and provides 13 links to related websites. A useful site for teaching the Revolutionary War and for anyone with an interest in the 1779 Sullivan-Clinton Campaign and its legacy.

Rebellion: John Horse and the Black Seminoles

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Engraving, Gopher John, Seminole Interpreter, 1858, N. Orr, Rebellion
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Using images, maps, timelines, and essays this "web-based documentary" relates the story of John Horse and the Black Seminoles, a community of free blacks and fugitive slaves allied with the Seminoles of Florida in the 19th century. Taking the position that academic historians have overlooked and misinterpreted the history of the Black Seminoles, it presents their role in the outbreak of the Second Seminole War (1835-1842) as the "largest slave rebellion in U.S. history." "Overview" provides an introduction to the features of the site and its interpretive themes as well as a "story synopsis" with a summary of the origins of the Black Seminoles, their role as rebels against slavery, their movement to Indian Territory after 1838, and a biography of John Horse. "Trail narrative" explains the history of the Black Seminoles "from their origins as a community to the death of their great leader John Horse in 1882" through 450 story panels with text and images. There are 360 "images," a picture tour with 32 images summarizing the site author's interpretation, and 23 "key images."

Other features include a key events summary, a guide to six central characters, a timeline, four interactive maps, and a listing of 17 related journal articles and nine newspaper articles available on the web. In addition to those interested in its interpretations of the history of the Black Seminoles and the Seminole War, this site offers useful material for those interested in Native Americans or the history of slavery in America.

Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture

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Logo, OIEAHC
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Introduces the Omohundro Institute, "the only organization in the United States exclusively dedicated to the advancement of study, research, and publications bearing on the history and culture of early America to approximately 1815." The site provides background information about the institute, including descriptions of its fellowships, publications, conferences, and colloquia.

Also provides tables of contents and texts of selected book reviews from recent editions of The William and Mary Quarterly, articles from Uncommon Sense, and four links to related resources—including one to the Institute's own online discussion forum, H-OIEAHC, which offers 13 syllabi for undergraduate courses on early American history, a bibliography of approximately 50 titles, and links to 102 libraries, museums, historical societies, organizations, online exhibits, and collections of documents pertaining to the period. These latter materials can be valuable to students and teachers of the early American period.

Omaha Indian Music

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Photo, Dancers and Musicians at the Library of Congress..., 1985
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Part of the American Memory project at the Library of Congress, this site features audio recordings of more than 350 songs and speeches from the Omaha Indian tribe in the 1890s and 1980s. It offers 44 wax cylinder recordings collected between 1895 and 1897, 323 speeches and songs from the 1983 Omaha Harvest Celebration Powwow, and 25 songs and speeches from the 1985 Hethu'shka Society concert at the Library of Congress.

More than 80 segments from interviews with members of the Omaha tribe conducted in 1983 and 1999 help to contextualize the music and spoken-word recordings, and more than 350 photographs from the 1983 powwow and 1985 concert illustrate Omaha Indian culture.

Each item is accompanied by brief (100–250 words) descriptions that give the names of speakers or performers, the date of the performance, and the original recording format. The 1983 powwow field notes are available in transcript and image forms (17 pages). Excerpts from Dorothy Sara Lee and Maria La Vigna, eds., Omaha Indian Music: Historical Recordings from the Fletcher/LaFlesche Collection (Washington, DC, Library of Congress, 1985) provide further context to the recordings.

The site also provides a stylized map of the Omaha Indian reservation, two selected bibliographies listing over 150 primary sources and scholarly works; and four related essays from Folklife Center News, 1981 to 1985. This site is searchable by keyword and browsable by medium and event. The Powwow audio is also available in sequence for those wishing to hear the entire performance. The site is easily navigable and ideal for those interested in Great Plains American Indian history and culture.

NativeWeb: Resources for Indigneous Cultures Around the World

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Logo, NativeWeb
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A project established in 1994 by a group of historians, independent scholars, and activists "to provide a cyber-place for Earth's indigenous peoples." Offers a gateway to more than 3,400 historical and contemporary resources relating to approximately 250 separate nations primarily in the Americas—but also including groups in Africa, Aotearoa-New Zealand, Asia, Australia, Europe, and Russia—to emphasize "indigenous literature and art, legal and economic issues, land claims, and new ventures in self-determination."

Includes 81 "history" links; bibliographies in 42 categories linking to approximately 1,000 sites with information on books, videos, and music; more than 350 links relevant to legal issues, including government documents; 41 "hosted pages" for a variety of organizations; a news digest; and a section devoted to Native American technology and art.

Resources are arranged according to subject, region, and nation, and the entire site is searchable. "Our purpose is not to 'preserve,' in museum fashion, some vestige of the past, but to foster communication among peoples engaged in the present and looking toward a sustainable future for those yet unborn." The site increases by approximately 10–15 links each week, providing an invaluable resource for those studying the history, culture, practices, and present-day issues confronting indigenous peoples of the world.

Native American Constitution and Law Digitization Project

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Logo, National Indian Law Library (NILL)
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This website presents full-text versions of 500 codes, constitutions, treaties, land titles, and Supreme Court decisions relating to the more than 500 Native American tribes in the U.S. The bulk of the material lies in the "IRA (Indian Reorganization Act) Era Constitutions and Charters" section, which offers close to 300 documents. These are primarily corporate charters, constitutions, and bylaws from the 1930s and 1940s. The website also includes the 1936 Composite Indian Reorganization Act for Alaska and twentieth-century constitutions from selected tribes, such as the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.

For material before the twentieth century, the "Treaties" section includes scans of the original Six Nations Treaty of 1794 and the Senekas Treaties of 1797 and 1823. In addition, a digitized version of Felix Cohen's 1941 Handbook of Federal Indian Law, and the Opinions of the Solicitor of the Department of the Interior Relating to Indian Affairs 1917-1974 are both available.

National Museum of the American Indian: Beauty Surrounds Us

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Shawnee bandolier bag, c. 1830
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This exhibit features more than 65 objects from Native American cultures in North and South America. Beautifully displayed in 10 showcases, these objects address many aspects of American Indian life, such as identity, recreation, communication, dress, adornment, music, and dance. All images can be zoomed for detailed viewing and are accompanied by a brief description, information about Native cultures, and other facts. Some images are accompanied by related photographs. The "Containing Culture" case, for example, includes a Paviotso (Northern Paiute) carrying basket, c. 1900, make from willow shoots and leather and used by women to carry seed-foods or personal possessions on their backs. An accompanying undated photograph shows Kaibab Paiute women in Arizona using the baskets. Each case also includes a map locating the objects throughout the Americas, as well as an interactive activity that allows users to manipulate the objects onscreen—by placing instruments in "wind," "percussion," or "string" categories, for example.

Mission to Arizona, 1916–1940: Father Augustine Schwarz, O.F.M.

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Photo, Fr. Augustine on location with film Westerners
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This exhibition presents photographs taken by Father Augustine Schwarz (1887–1946) while he served as a Catholic missionary to American Indians in Arizona. The images, donated by the Schwartz family, depict missionary scenes and workers, church buildings, and other landmarks.

The site focuses on three American Indian groups—Pima, Papago, and Apache Indians—and serves as an accessible portal to Catholic missionary activities among those three groups. Many of the photographs are accompanied with brief descriptions and annotations by Father Schwarz. A brief biography of Father Schwarz is included.

Along with images of Whiteriver Apaches of northern Arizona taken by Father Schwarz's brother, Arnold Schwarz, the entire collection consists of 179 images.