1. Warm Up Question 2. Video Clip 3. Background and Introduction: 4. Primary Source Analysis Activity 5. Class Discussion

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1 Thank you so much for downloading this resource! I really appreciate your support and hope this helps in your classroom. There are many ways you can adapt this lesson for a variety of students, but here is how I generally plan my lesson. 1. Warm Up Question: How would you feel if you were forced to permanently leave your home? What would you take with you if you could only take items you could carry yourself? 2. Video Clip: I show students this short Youtube video on the Indian Removal Act and Trail of Tears: It is a 5-minute excerpt from Episode 2, Empire Upon the Trails in Ken Burns documentary, The West. 3. Background and Introduction: Next, I explain that in 1833, a small group of Cherokee agreed to sign the Treaty of New Echota with the US government. This treaty agreed to their removal to the West. However, this group did not include the recognized leaders of the Cherokee Nation. Most Cherokee, including Chief John Ross, signed a petition in protest. The US ignored this however, and gave them 2 years to migrate voluntarily. 4. Primary Analysis Activity: I have students grouped in tables, so I cut up these sources and give each table (usually 4 students) a set to analyze. Each student also receives the worksheet to complete. Other options include A) giving all students in a group the same source to analyze together at a time, then rotating them around. B) taping the sources up around the room and having students. C) Giving individual students different sources to analyze, then having them move around the room to explain theirs to other students and have others explain the others to them. 5. Class Discussion: After students complete the activity, we hold a class discussion on what they learned from the primary sources. Possible questions to lead students include: Why did some Americans support Indian Removal in the 1830 s? Why do you think the US government engaged in treaties with the Cherokee? If they constantly went against them years later, why did they even bother? How do you think this affected Native American life and culture? 6. Primary Worksheet: Finally, I give General Scott s Address to the Cherokee Nation as a concluding assignment to let students analyze a larger primary source from the same topic. We usually start that in class and then students finish it up for homework. Extension activities include: 1) Writing a diary entry from the perspective of a Cherokee in ) Drawing a picture of what students imagine the Trail of Tears to look like. 3) Drafting an alternative proposal that might have been more fair to Native Americans. Posting Resource Please do not post this resource on a publicly-accessible website like a blog, Wix, or Weebly class page. You are more than welcome to post it on a password-protected site that only your students can access, however. If you have any questions, please let me know!

2 A I flatter myself that Mr. Bell will do justice to the interesting subject committed to his charge as Chairman of the committee of Indian Affairs The removal of the Indians would be an act of seeming violence But it will prove in the end an act of enlarged philanthropy. These untutored sons of the Forest, cannot exist in a state of Independence, in the vicinity of the white man. If they will persist in remaining where they are, they may begin to dig their graves and prepare to die. Alfred Balch to Andrew Jackson, January 8, 1830 LOC: Andrew Jackson Papers: Series 1, General Correspondence and Related Items, 1775 to 1885 B I beg of you to say to them, that their interest happiness peace & prosperity depends upon their removal beyond the jurisdiction of the laws of the State of Mississippi. These things have been [often times] explained to them fully and I forbear to repeat them; but request that you make known to them that Congress to enable them to remove & comfortably to arrange themselves at their new homes has made liberal appropriations. It was a measure I had much at heart & sought to effect because I was satisfied that the Indians could not possibly live under the laws of the States. If now they shall refuse to accept the liberal terms offered, they only must be liable for whatever evils & difficulties may arise. I feel conscious of having done my duty to my red children and if any failure of my good intention arises, it will be attributable to their want of duty to themselves, not to me. C Andrew Jackson to John Pitchlynn, August 5, 1830 LOC: Andrew Jackson Papers: Series 1, General Correspondence and Related Items, 1775 to 1885 It gives me pleasure to announce to Congress that the benevolent policy of the Government, steadily pursued for nearly thirty years, in relation to the removal of the Indians beyond the white settlements is approaching to a happy consummation. Two important tribes have accepted the provision made for their removal at the last session of Congress, and it is believed that their example will induce the remaining tribes also to seek the same obvious advantages. President Andrew Jackson in his Second Annual Message to Congress, December 6, 1830 LOC: A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, Register of Debates, 21st Congress, 2nd Session D By the stipulations of this instrument, we are despoiled of our private possessions, the indefeasible property of individuals. We are stripped of every attribute of freedom and eligibility for legal selfdefense. Our property may be plundered before our eyes; violence may be committed on our persons; even our lives may be taken away, and there is none to regard our complaints. We are denationalized; we are disfranchised. We are deprived of membership in the human family! We have neither land nor home, nor resting place that can be called our own. And this is effected by the provisions of a compact which assumes the venerated, the sacred appellation of treaty. We are overwhelmed! Our hearts are sickened, our utterance is paralyzed, when we reflect on the condition in which we are placed. Chief John Ross Letter To the Senate and House of Representatives, Red Clay Council Ground, Cherokee Nation, Sept 28, 1836

3 E A long time ago this land belonged to our fathers; but when I go up to the river I see camps of soldiers here on its bank. These soldiers cut down my timber; they kill my buffalo; and when I see that, my heart feels like bursting; I feel sorry. Santana, Chief of the Kiowas, 1867 U.S. Bureau of Ethnography Annual Report, 17th, F The Spaniards were unable to exterminate the Indian race by those unparalleled atrocities which brand them with indelible shame, nor did they succeed even in wholly depriving it of its rights; but the Americans of the United States have accomplished this twofold purpose with singular felicity, tranquilly, legally, philanthropically, without shedding blood, and without violating a single great principle of morality in the eyes of the world. It is impossible to destroy men with more respect for the laws of humanity. Alexis de Tocqueville Democracy in America, Translated by Henry Reeve, Esq., New York: Adlard and Saunders, 1838 G It did not occur to me at the time that I was being forced to live the life of a white man. The government officer told me that I would receive 160 acres of my own land, but he did not tell me that it would be dry and rocky and that my beloved buffalo would be nowhere to be found. If I could just live the life of my ancestors roaming the plains, then I know my father would be so proud of me. Chief Luther Standing Bear Chief Luther Standing Bear, My People, the Sioux (Boston, 1929). H At this time, 1890, we are too near the removal of the Cherokees for our young people to fully understand the enormity of the crime that was committed against a helpless race. Truth is, the facts are being concealed from the young people of today. School children of today do not know that we are living on lands that were taken from a helpless race at the bayonet point to satisfy the white man s greed. Future generations will read and condemn the act and I do hope posterity will remember that private soldiers like myself, and like the four Cherokees who were forced by General Scott to shoot an Indian Chief and his children, had to execute the orders of our superiors. We had no choice in the matter. Private John G. Burnett Birthday Story of Private John G. Burnett, Captain Abraham McClellan s Company, 2nd Regiment, 2nd Brigade, Mounted Infantry, 1890

4 I Map showing the lands assigned to emigrant Indians west of Arkansas and Missouri. LOC: Col. Henry Dodge's expedition to the Rocky Mountains], House Document 181, 24th Cong., 1st session, , serial 289.

5 J Poster Advertising Indian Territory That Garden of the World, Open for Homestead and Pre-Emption in Current Day Oklahoma ; ca. 1880; Records of U.S. Army Continental Commands, Record Group 392.

6 Name Analyzing s on the Indian Removal Act Directions: Read through the primary source selections regarding the Indian Removal Act, then complete the chart with its date, author, a short summary of it, and your own analysis of its significance. A B C D E F G H I J Year Message Analysis

7 Name Answer Key / Teacher s Guide Analyzing s on the Indian Removal Act Directions: Read through the primary source selections regarding the Indian Removal Act, then complete the chart with its date, author, a short summary of it, and your own analysis of its significance. A 1830 B 1830 C 1830 D 1836 E 1867 F 1838 G 1929 H 1890 I Year Message Analysis J 1880 Alfred Balch (Friend of Andrew Jackson) Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson Chief John Ross Santana, Chief of the Kiowas Alexis de Tocqueville Chief Luther Standing Bear Private John G. Burnett Map from Col. Henry Dodge U.S. Army Continental Commands Poster Native Americans are better off removed from white society. Jackson implores Pitchlynn to get Native Americans to accept moving or else they will face great difficulty. Jackson announces the Indian Removal Act to Congress. Chief Ross explains the effect the Indian Removal Act has on his people. Santana explains his grief at the state of his land and life compared to that of his ancestors. He remarks how the Spanish are vilified for their treatment of Native Americans but that America has succeeded. He described how the land he thought he was getting from the government is much worse than he thought. Witness to crimes against Native Americans along the Trail of Tears Map showing the land set aside for Native Americans forced to move from the Southeast. Advertising the sale of Indian lands to anyone over 21. Shows the popular opinion among Americans that they are helping Native Americans through the bause and This can be seen as one of the threats of violence against those Native Americans that do not leave voluntarily. Note that the year is still before the Treaty. The Cherokee would bring their case to the Supreme Court and win, however, Jackson ignored the court s ruling. This stands in contrast to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and life, liberty, and property. All of which were taken from them. Santana s land in the Midwest now again is taken by soldiers despite his being forced there by the government. Includes the remarkable statement that the US has somehow destroy[ed] men with respect to humanity. This contrasts with the notion that moving Native Americans to other land did not have such an impact on them. Others talked of how the US was helping the Native Americans but his anecdote shows how brutal the government was. This s contrasted with the next poster selling the same land. The very land given to Native Americans from the map in I has now been taken and is being sold to white settlers.

8 Gen. Winfield Scott s Address to the Cherokee Nation The Cherokee were given two years to migrate voluntarily after the US ratified the Treaty of New Echota. By 1838, only 2,000 migrated while over 16,000 remained on their land. The government sent Gen. Winfield Scott along with 7,000 troops to force the Cherokee out and move West. Cherokees! The President of the United States has sent me with a powerful army, to cause you, in obedience to the treaty of 1835 to join that part of your people who have already established in prosperity on the other side of the Mississippi. Unhappily, the two years which were allowed for the purpose, you have suffered to pass away without following, and without making any preparation to follow; and now, or by the time that this solemn address shall reach your distant settlements, the emigration must be commenced in haste, but I hope without disorder. I have no power, by granting a farther delay, to correct the error that you have committed. The full moon of May is already on the wane; and before another shall have passed away, every Cherokee man, woman and child in those states must be in motion to join their brethren in the far West. My friends! This is no sudden determination on the part of the President, whom you and I must now obey. By the treaty, the emigration was to have been completed on or before the 23rd of this month; and the President has constantly kept you warned, during the two years allowed, through all his officers and agents in this country, that the treaty would be enforced. I am come to carry out that determination. My troops already occupy many positions in the country that you are to abandon, and thousands and thousands are approaching from every quarter, to render resistance and escape alike hopeless. All those troops, regular and militia, are your friends. Receive them and confide in them as such. Obey them when they tell you that you can remain no longer in this country. Soldiers are as kind-hearted as brave, and the desire of every one of us is to execute our painful duty in mercy. We are commanded by the President to act towards you in that spirit, and much is also the wish of the whole people of America. Chiefs, head-men and warriors! Will you then, by resistance, compel us to resort to arms? God forbid! Or will you, by flight, seek to hid yourselves in mountains and forests, and thus oblige us to hunt you down? Remember that, in pursuit, it may be impossible to avoid conflicts. The blood of the white man or the blood of the red man may be spilt, and, if spilt, however accidentally, it may be impossible for the discreet and humane among you, or among us, to prevent a general war and carnage. Think of this, my Cherokee brethren! I am an old warrior, and have been present at many a scene of slaughter, but spare me, I beseech you, the horror of witnessing the destruction of the Cherokees. Do not, I invite you, even wait for the close approach of the troops; but make such preparations for emigration as you can and hasten to this place, to Ross s Landing or to Gunter s Landing, where you all will be received in kindness by officers selected for the purpose. You will find food for all and clothing for the destitute at either of those places, and thence at your ease and in comfort be transported to your new homes, according to the terms of the treaty. This is the address of a warrior to warriors. May his entreaties by kindly received and may the God of both prosper the Americans and Cherokees and preserve them long in peace and friendship with each other! : Cashin, Edward J. (ed.), A Wilderness Still The Cradle of Nature: Frontier Georgia (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1994),

9 Name Winfield Scott s Address to the Cherokee Nation Directions: After reading the primary source address from Gen. Scott to the Cherokee Nation, answer the questions below in complete sentences. 1. Why do you think some Cherokee already moved west of the Mississippi while others did not? 2. What is Gen. Scott referring to when he says he cannot correct the error that you have committed? 3. What threats does Gen. Scott make to the Cherokee? 4. How does Gen Scott attempt to relate to the Cherokee? 5. How do you think most Cherokee reacted upon getting this message? 6. Imagine you are Cherokee Chief John Ross, how would you address your people upon receiving this address? What would your message to them be? Students of History -

10 Name Answer Key / Teacher s Guide Winfield Scott s Address to the Cherokee Nation Directions: After reading the primary source address from Gen. Scott to the Cherokee Nation, answer the questions below in complete sentences. 1. Why do you think some Cherokee already moved west of the Mississippi while others did not? Only a small group of Cherokee agreed to sign the Treaty of New Echota with the US government and move out to the West. However, this group did not include the recognized leaders of the Cherokee Nation. Most Cherokee, including Chief John Ross, signed a petition in protest and did not want to leave their ancestral homeland. 2. What is Gen. Scott referring to when he says he cannot correct the error that you have committed? Gen. Scott believes it is an error for the Cherokee to have not agreed to the Treaty and remained there in the Southeast. 3. What threats does Gen. Scott make to the Cherokee? He threatens them with troops occupying positions, thousands more approaching, spilled blood, and the destruction of the Cherokee. 4. How does Gen Scott attempt to relate to the Cherokee? He attempts to relate to them by saying that he is a warrior and has seen many battles. He attempts to make the address of a warrior to warriors. 5. How do you think most Cherokee reacted upon getting this message? Open to many possible student responses that might be dread, fear, anger, sadness, rage, etc. 6. Imagine you are Cherokee Chief John Ross, how would you address your people upon receiving this address? What would your message to them be? Open to many possible student responses. I usually have students draft a short speech that they imagine Chief Ross giving his people and then ask students to share this speech with the class. These are often powerful and moving messages that make for a memorable class. Students of History -