Andrew Jackson A Hero

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Did Andrew Jackson have a really big life in the 1800’s? Yes he did, starting in 1830, when he signed the Indian Removal Act on May 28, 1830. This allowed the president to grant unsettled land west of the Mississippi , in trade for Indian land within state borders. In 1838 the move had started. Some went peacefully, some did not. Would the new territories be slave -holding or free? Was Andrew Jackson a hero or a villain? In 1829, Andrew Jackson was elected President and he promised to expand the United States westward. He believed that the new settlers would want towns, cities, lush farm lands, civilization and liberty. This led to the Indian Removal Act and what the Cherokee call Trail of Tears. Over several years, Jackson seized millions of acres of Indian Lands making room for cotton plantations. The Removal Act signed in 1830, by President Jackson, was to guarantee the Indians would have land in the west but these promises were later broken.
The Removal Act was …show more content…

Soldiers came all hours of the day and night, dragging families from their dinner tables. Arresting the men straight out of the fields. Snatching up children playing in the yard. Like cattle or a herd of sheep, loading them into 645 wagons. Some were able to sleep in them, others forced to sleep on the ground with no fire to keep warm. It is October and the weather is cold , wet, windy, not to mention snowing and freezing rain. This caused even more pain and suffering with the deaths due to illness and disease. Many also died from hunger and exhaustion. Over 4,000 out of 15,000 Cherokee Indians died during the move to the west. In conclusion, President Jackson was a confusing figure. Some see him as a hero, a common mans warrior. Some see him as a villain, a political tyrant. It was great that he expanded the United States however the Native Americans took a great