Focus: Trail of Tears

Set against the backdrop of a growing nation that was still determining the power of states' rights and the system of checks and balances in its national government, this Focus portfolio reveals the injustice the Cherokee faced under the United States government in the late 1700s and early 1800s, and their removal from the East in 1838. Evocative primary sources, including excerpts from treaties, political cartoons, denouncements of the government's mistreatment of the Cherokee, and a page of the Cherokee Nation newspaper, contribute to a fuller understanding of the legal, political, and social aspects of the events leading up to the forced march that ultimately killed thousands of Cherokee. Support Materials: * Illustrated Broadsheet Essay * Timeline * Critical Thinking Questions with Response Key * Recommended Reading List 8 Primary Source Documents: * Sequoya's Cherokee alphabet, 1821 * Front page of the Cherokee Phoenix, April 10, 1828 * Indian Removal Act, May 28, 1830 * Political cartoons relating to United States Indian policy, 1833-1886 * Circular and memorial of the New York Committee in aid of the Cherokee Nation, February 10, 1832 * Pages of the Treaty of New Echota, December 29, 1835 * Transcript of a letter from Chief John Ross to Congress, September 28, 1836 * Poster with photographs, quotations, and a map relating to Indian removal