More Than 16,000 Cherokee Were Forcibly Removed in 1838–1839; An Estimated 4,000 Died on the 800-Mile Journey
The Fact
The National Park Service reports that more than 16,000 Cherokee people were forcibly evicted from their homelands in Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and Georgia, beginning in 1838 and ending in 1839. An estimated 4,000 died along the roughly 800-mile journey to Indian Territory, in what is now Oklahoma.
What This Means
About one in four people who were forced to make the trip didn't survive it.
Why It Matters
The Cherokee Nation rebuilt in Oklahoma and is now the largest tribe in the country (BSF-0370). In 2020 the Supreme Court opened McGirt v. Oklahoma with: 'On the far end of the Trail of Tears was a promise.'
Sources
National Park Service. "Trail of Tears." https://www.nps.gov/stri/learn/historyculture/trail-of-tears.htm
McGirt v. Oklahoma, 591 U.S. ___ (2020), slip op. at 1. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/19pdf/18-9526_9okb.pdf
(One-in-four ratio calculated by The Broadside.)
Related Facts
- What's the Largest Tribe in the U.S.? Cherokee — About 1.5 Million People.
- How Much Land Did Tribes Lose Under Allotment? About 90 Million Acres in 47 Years.
- When Did Native Americans Get to Vote? Citizenship in 1924 — Some States Held Out Until 1957.
- How Many Children Died at Federal Indian Boarding Schools? At Least 973.