The question I would like to ask is what events led up to the that scholars and Native American peoples alike refer to as the Trail of Tears and what can my findings on Voyant.org tell me about the Trail of Tears. What’s important to note is that the peoples that are mostly known about when it comes to the Trail of Tears (the Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw and Seminole). These peoples are commonly referred to as the “five civilized tribes”. This is especially poignant when considering how the Cherokee people developed a written language thanks to the teacher Sequoyah. However, there were various government policies that dealt with the “Indian Problem”. This term was coined in response to US settlers who wanted the land that the Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw and Seminole had. As a response, the “five civilized tribes” were forced off of their lands and forced to walk hundreds of miles from the Southeastern US (Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky and a few others). Through my work on Voyant, the words that appeared from my research helped me start to think of how the Trail of Tears started.
The reason that these peoples got referred to by this title was they had embraced European based lifestyles. This method became prominent with George Washington who promoted these ideas as a first solution to the “Indian Problem”. So, some may ask, why did the Trail of Tears even become a thing if these peoples adopted European lifestyles? The land that these peoples lived on became extremely valuable to the point where many settlers wanted those acres of land for themselves. This is even in spite of the government recognizing these peoples as sovereign nations.
The policy that actually pushed the “five civilized tribes” west towards Indian Territory was signed by Andrew Jackson who was the seventh president of the US who served from 1829 to 1837. It is also important top note that Jackson was an army general and had fought in campaigns against the Creek and the Seminoles. As a result, it would be reasonable to assume that the policies of “Indian Removal” were in his mindset, a personal issue. When we discuss Indian Territory or Indian Country, we must understand that this term is often used to describe territories reserved for Native American peoples within the 1830s. The states that “Indian Territory applies to most would be Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, Colorado, North & South Dakota, Montana and even Wyoming. However, the journey there was full of extreme hardships. Among the “five civilized tribes”, over 15,000 in total perished with different numbers for each people. The Cherokee had around 4,000 casualties, the Choctaw and Seminole both had over 6,000, the Creek had a casualty rate of 5,000. Lastly, the Chickasaw had a death toll of around 3,000.
However, Indian Removal was not just in the Southeast United States in terms of the Trail of Tears. There are examples of “Indian Removal” as well, especially in times of warfare. For example, the Black Hawk War, which was a war that was fought between the Fox, Sauk and several other Native American peoples. Despite the idea that some may get, the fighting between these peoples paved the way for US settlers to claim land which was occupied by these peoples. Just like with Jackson’s campaigns against the Creeks and Seminoles, the Black Hawk War would’ve opened up more farming opportunities for US settlers. While a different scenario in terms of geography, this proved to be a historically similar example to what the “five civilized tribes” faced.
In conclusion, there were several waves of what would be called “Indian Removal”. The Trail of Tears, however, become a well known example of the removal of Native American peoples. Even though, they were referred to as the “five civilized tribes”, not even the Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw and Seminole could escape being forced off of their lands. Each of these peoples suffered massive casualty losses when travelling to Indian Country. Through my work on Voyant, the words that appeared like Choctaw gave me an example of one of the peoples who suffered casualties on the Trail of Tears while an article about the Trail of Tears on History.com and a chart I made on Flourish also helped with my research question.
