Cherokee Trail of Tears



      "The Trail of Tears" by Robert Lindneux


      In Georgia, during the summer of 1838, the United States Army rounded up about 3,000 Cherokee people and planned to load them onto boats to be moved further west; in the winter of 1838-1839, 14,000 more Cherokees were forced to march from their homes into territories further west.

      Gold had been discovered on Cherokee land in northern Georgia and President Andrew Jackson moved quickly to enforce the Indian Removal Act of 1930.

      It is estimated that 4,000 of the these people, driven from their homes at gunpoint, died of hunger, exposure and disease on their journey along the "trail where they cried", now referred to as the Trail of Tears.

      Cherokee Timeline
      A list of important dates in Cherokee history.

      The Trail of Tears
      An account of Cherokee history in Georgia and their removal under the Treaty of Echota;explains the legend of the Cherokee Rose as a symbol of the grief experienced by Cherokee mothers.

      Cherokee Removal
      The story of the Cherokee nation from pre-removal through their trek to Oaklahoma; includes a map and bibliography.

      Samuel's Memory
      The memories of Samuel Cloud who was nine years old at the time of the Cherokee removal; told by his great-great grandson.

      John G. Burnett's Story of the Removal of the Cherokees
      On his eightieth birthday, John Burnett recorded the story of his experiences as a United States soldier who participated in the Cherokee removal.

      Accounts of the Cherokee Trail of Tears
      A newspaper interview of James Butler Bushyhead and his brother, grandsons of a famous Cherokee Chief.

      Print Resources:

      Banks, Sarah. Remember My Name. Niwoti, CO: Roberts Rhinehart, 1993. (Fiction)

      Bealer, Alex. Only the Names Remain. Boston: Brown,1972.

      Brill, Marlene Targ, The Trail of Tears: The Cherokee Journey. Brookfield, CT: Millbrook Press, 1995.

      Fremon, David. The Trail of Tears. New York: New Discovery Books, 1994.

      Hoobler, Dorothy. The Trail On Which They Wept. Morristown, NJ: Silver Burdett, 1992. (Fiction)

      Lowe, Felix. John Ross. Milwaukee, WI: Raintree, 1990.

      Stein, R. Conrad. The Trail of Tears. Chicago, IL: Children's Press, 1993.

      Stewart, Elizabeth. On the Long Trail Home. New York: Clarion Books, 1994. (Fiction)


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      Judith Lamb
      Library Media Specialist
      St. Francis Xavier School
      Hyannis, Massachusetts
      lamb@meol.mass.edu