In the early 1800’s, while the United States rapidly expanded into the lower South, white settlers faced what they considered an “obstacle”. Most of the South was occupied by the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw and Seminole tribes. These Indian nations, in the perspective of the settlers, were acting as an impediment to their progress. Anxious for land to raise cotton, the settlers pressured the government to secure, for themselves, the Indian territory.
General Andrew Jackson gained favor of the settlers for his victories over Indians in Georgia and Florida. Later, as president, he promoted the cause of the eager settlers and worked to remove Native Americans from their homelands. This made a massive impact on migration then and today as well. When Andrew Jackson entered the office, more than 100,000 Native Americans still lived in the areas east of the Mississippi River.
Tribes like the
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The Native Americans had the fertile land and they wanted it for growing cotton. So based on the policies established by Thomas Jefferson, some tribes signed treaties to move west of the Mississippi River. However some tribes of the southeast refused to migrate. By 1820’s many southerners were demanding that Native Americans living east of Mississippi to be forcibly moved. States then began passing laws to have force Native Americans to give up their land. In 1828, Georgia passed a law to force the Cherokee’s off their land. They no longer recognized the tribe as a separate nation, took their land, and forced them to move west of the Mississippi. Georgia’s actions were challenged in two cases before the Supreme Court. In the first case, the Court found for Georgia and agreed they could force the tribe to give up their land. In the second case, Worcester v. Georgia, the Court found Georgia’s law could not be enforced within Cherokee