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| Trail of Tears: Historical Marker |
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| (1838 Trail of Tears) |
1838 TRAIL OF TEARS
"Long time we travel on way to new land. People feel bad when they leave
old nation. Women cry and make sad wails. Children cry and many men cry, and all look sad like when friends die, but they
say nothing and just put heads down and keep on go towards West. Many days pass and people die very much. We bury close by
Trail."
— Survivor of the Trail of Tears
Recommended Viewing: The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy
(2006), Starring: James Earl Jones and Wes Studi; Director: Chip Richie, Steven R. Heape. Description: The
Trail Of Tears: Cherokee Legacy is an engaging two hour documentary exploring one of America's darkest periods in which President Andrew Jackson's Indian
Removal Act of 1830 consequently transported Native Americans of the Cherokee Nation to the bleak and unsupportive Oklahoma Territory
in the year 1838. Deftly presented by the talents of Wes Studi (The Last of the Mohicans, Dances With Wolves, Bury My Heart
at Wounded Knee, Crazy Horse, 500 Nations, Comanche Moon), James Earl Jones, and James Garner, The Trail Of Tears: Cherokee
Legacy also includes narrations of famed celebrities Crystal Gayle, Johnt Buttrum, Governor Douglas Wilder, and Steven R.
Heape. Continued below...
Includes numerous Cherokee Nation
members which add authenticity to the production… A welcome DVD addition to personal, school, and community library
Native American history collections. The Trail Of Tears: Cherokee Legacy is strongly recommended for its informative and tactful
presentation of such a tragic and controversial historical occurrence in 19th century American history.
Recommended Reading:
Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation. Review from Library Journal:
One of the many ironies of U.S. government policy toward Indians in the early 1800s is that it persisted in removing to the
West those who had most successfully adapted to European values. As whites encroached on Cherokee land, many Native leaders
responded by educating their children, learning English, and developing plantations. Such a leader was Ridge, who had fought
with Andrew Jackson against the British. Continued below...
As he and other Cherokee leaders grappled with the issue of moving, the land-hungry Georgia legislators,
with the aid of Jackson, succeeded in ousting the Cherokee from their land, forcing them to make the arduous journey West
on the infamous "Trail of Tears." Mary B. Davis, Museum of American Indian Lib., New York, Copyright 1988 Reed Business
Information, Inc.
Recommended Reading:
The Eastern Band of Cherokees, 1819-1900, by John R. Finger. Review from
University of Tennessee Press:
This volume presents the story of the Eastern Band of Cherokees during the nineteenth century. This group – the tribal
remnant in North Carolina that escaped removal in the 1830’s
– found their fortitude and resilience continually tested as they struggled with a variety of problems, including the
upheavals of the Civil War and Reconstruction, internal divisiveness, white encroachment on their lands, and a poorly defined
relationship with the state and federal governments. Yet despite such stresses and a selective adaptation in the face of social
and economic changes, the Eastern Cherokees retained a sense of tribal identity as they stood at the threshold of the twentieth
century. Continued below…
“Most
scholars, like most Cherokees, have tended to follow the Trail of Tears west with scarcely a backward glance at the more than
1,000 Indians who stayed behind in the North Carolina
mountains. In this pathbreaking book, John R. Finger combs federal, state, and local archives to tell the story of these forgotten
natives.”
-- Journal
of Southern History
“This
work is a significant contribution to the literature on this long-ignored group….Finger works [his] sources well and
out of them has produced a narrative that is readable and that puts the Eastern Band of Cherokees as a tribal entity into
a clear, historical perspective.”
-- American
Historical Review
John R. Finger
is professor of history at the University
of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Recommended
Reading: Cherokee Proud, Second Edition,
by Tony Mack McClure. Description: Absolutely the "Bible" of Cherokee Genealogy. New, 336 page 2nd Edition. If the information
in this remarkable new book doesn't lead a person to proof of their Cherokee roots, nothing can! “It is an A-to-Z on
organizing and locating the requirements / qualifications for membership.” Continued below...
Are you Cherokee? Are you the individual that has always been told that you
are a Cherokee, but have no facts or records to prove it? To claim Cherokee membership means that you must prove it –
you must have the facts, so toss the doubt away, get the facts, and claim what is rightfully your heritage by blood quantum.
Now, are you ready to prove that you are a Cherokee? It’s not difficult if you take the time to locate the facts. Included
are proven resources for tracing your family genealogy, the family tree, roots, bloodline, and for researching your ancestors
to prove that you meet the blood requirements (qualifications) for Cherokee membership and tribal enrollment. Those that qualify
as “American Indians are American Indians” and are entitled to the rights and benefits of the tribe! Also includes
a proven “how to dos” written by the foremost expert in Cherokee history, genealogy and heritage. Cherokee
membership is not like joining a gym or paying dues, it’s your blood, so claim it. Are you remotely interested
in knowing that you are a “Cherokee Indian” or are you the individual that enjoys genealogy? Do you want to locate
and preserve your Native American ancestry? Finding information about ancestors for genealogy and heritage is also a lot of
fun. Moreover, you are preserving your own family history and heritage with your relatives and loved ones for generations
and generations… Take a look at exactly what is required to locate and organize and present your information to
prove that you meet the qualifications as a member of the Cherokee tribe. Cherokee Proud, by Tony McClure, is referred to as the "Bible for Cherokee
Genealogy." Cherokee Proud has also been rated a SOLID FIVE STARS by
every person that has read and rated it. To see if you meet the 'Cherokee qualification and requirement for membership',
then look no further -- purchase Cherokee Proud. Read the reviews and
see what people and organizations are saying about it.
Reviews
"Cherokee Proud
is the very best book I have ever seen on tracing Cherokee genealogy." -- RICHARD PANGBURN, acclaimed author of Indian Blood,
Vol. I & II found in most libraries
"McClure unabashedly
loosens his journalistic standards for portions of this book which reach him too emotionally. Understood. Fascinating and
enlightening."
BACK COVER:
Among the people of this country are individuals in whose blood runs the proud heritage of a noble and resilient people whose
ways and talents rank with the finest civilizations the world has known. They are the " Tsalagi ". . . the Cherokee. This
book will help you learn if you are one of them. -- BOOK READER
"The contents
of Cherokee Proud are exceptional - valuable information that can be used by so many readers and researchers who have Native
American (Cherokee) ancestry." -- DON SHADBURN, Famous Georgia historian and noted author of Unhallowed Intrusion and Cherokee
Planters of Georgia
"This Cherokee
guide is the best yet!" -- LAWTON CONSTITUTION
About the Author: Well known and acclaimed Cherokee author Dr. Tony Mack McClure,
a native of Tennessee, is a certified member of the Native American Journalists Association, Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers
and Storytellers, and Committeeman for the Tennessee Chapter of the National Trail of Tears Association. His work has appeared
in numerous magazines, over 250 newspapers, on all major television networks and many cable systems.
The Thomas Legion Award Winner:
After the Trail of Tears: The Cherokees' Struggle for Sovereignty, 1839-1880. Description:
This powerful narrative traces the social, cultural, and political history of the Cherokee Nation during
the forty-year period after its members were forcibly removed from the southern Appalachians and resettled in what is now
Oklahoma. In this master work, completed just before his death, William McLoughlin not only explains how the Cherokees rebuilt
their lives and society, but also recounts their fight to govern themselves as a separate nation within the borders of the
United States. Continued below...
Long regarded by whites as one of the 'civilized tribes', the Cherokees
had their own constitution (modeled after that of the United States), elected officials, and legal system. Once re-settled,
they attempted to reestablish these institutions and continued their long struggle for self-government under their own laws—an
idea that met with bitter opposition from frontier politicians, settlers, ranchers, and business leaders. After an extremely
divisive fight within their own nation during the Civil War, Cherokees faced internal political conflicts as well as the destructive
impact of an influx of new settlers and the expansion of the railroad. McLoughlin conveys its history to the year 1880,
when the nation's fight for the right to govern itself ended in defeat at the hands of Congress.
Recommended Reading: Trail of Tears (Hardcover). Description: Insightful, rarely told history of Indian courage in the face of
White expansionism in the 19th century. Truth-telling tale of the ruthless brutality that forced the Native American population
into resettlement camps and reservations, with a look at the few white Americans who fought to help them. This is an amazing
book. Continued below...
Tireless research
and the author's gift of vision and words produce a magnificently readable narrative of the American Indian Removals. It is
very balanced with no point of view overlooked. Include many surprising appearances and plenty of twists which will make you
laugh out loud and break your heart. A very human book and an absolute must-read for anyone who wants to learn history through
the eyes and ears (and hearts) of those that experienced it. You won't be able to put it down.
Recommended
Reading: The Cherokee Removal:
A Brief History with Documents (The Bedford
Series in History and Culture) (Paperback). Description: This book tells the compelling story of American ethnic cleansing
against the Cherokee nation through an admirable combination of primary documents and the editors' analyses. Perdue and Green
begin with a short but sophisticated history of the Cherokee from their first interaction with Europeans to their expulsion
from the East to the West; a region where Georgia, North
Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama
connect Continued below...
The reader
is directed through a variety of documents commenting on several important themes: the "civilizing" of the Cherokee (i.e.
their adoption of European culture), Georgia's leading role in pressuring the Cherokee off their land and demanding the federal
government to remove them by force, the national debate between promoters and opponents of expulsion, the debate within the
Cherokee nation, and a brief look at the deportation or forced removal. Conveyed in the voices of the Cherokee and the
framers of the debate, it allows the reader to appreciate the complexity of the situation. Pro-removal Americans even made
racist judgments of the Cherokee but cast and cloaked their arguments in humanitarian rhetoric. Pro-emigration Cherokee harshly
criticize the Cherokee leadership as corrupt and possessing a disdain for traditional Cherokee culture. American defenders
and the Cherokee leadership deploy legal and moral arguments in a futile effort to forestall American violence. “A compelling
and stirring read.”
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