Chapter 9 Section 3 Indian Removal

18 What was the Indian Removal Act?

Jackson and other political leaders wanted to open up land in Georgia and Mississippi to white settlement The problem -->this land was already inhabited by Native Americans Jackson’s solution --> pressure Congress to pass the Indian Removal Act

The Indian Removal Act authorized the removal of Native Americans who lived east of the Mississippi River to lands in the West. Congress established Indian territory--U.S. land in present day Oklahoma where N.A. were moved to

Calhoun supported Indian removal Calhoun’s reasoning --> removal to Indian territory would protect Indians from further conflicts with American settlers (ensure Indian safety)

19 How did the Cherokee try to avoid removal?

The Cherokee adopted the culture of white people How --> they allowed missionaries to set up schools to teach Cherokee children English, modeled their gov’t after the Constitution, and became farmers (much like southern plantation owners)

20 Who was Sequoya?

Sequoya used 86 characters to represent Cherokee syllables to create a writing system--> an alphabet

What was Worcester v. Georgia? 21 What was Worcester v. Georgia?

Gold was discovered in Georgia, so Georgia leaders prepared the Cherokee for removal The Cherokee refused and the Georgia militia then began attacking Cherokee towns

Cherokee’s response --> sue Georgia by claiming states have no power to pass laws concerning sovereign Indian Nations Why --> the Cherokee claimed they were an ind. Nation and that Georgia had no legal power over their lands Court case --> Worcester v. Georgia

Result--> John Marshall, Chief Justice of Supreme Court, agrees Marshall ruled that the Cherokee nation was a distinct community in which the laws of Georgia had no force Further, Marshall stated only the federal gov’t had authority over N.A., not the states

Georgia’s response --> ignore the Supreme Court and remove the Cherokee anyway Jackson’s response --> “John Marshall made his decision; now let HIM enforce it.” In 1838 U.S. troops began removing all Cherokee to Indian Territory

What was the Trail of Tears? 22 What was the Trail of Tears?

The Cherokee’s 800-mile forced march to Indian Territory became known as the Trail of Tears 1/4 of the 18,000 Cherokees died on the march from disease, starvation, and harsh weather

23 Who was Osceola?

Osceola was a leader of the Seminole Indians who asked his followers to resist removal from Florida to Indian Territory The Second Seminole War began and even after Osceola was captured the Seminoles continued to fight, but to no avail 4,000 Seminole were removed and hundreds of others killed

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