The Cherokee Negotiation and Removal

John Ross and Jackson

The two letters—one from Chief John Ross to the US government—the other from President Andrew Jackson to the Cherokee—show two sides of a terrible battle in the 19th century. On the one hand is the plight of the Cherokee, who see themselves being forced off their land in the South to go to the West. On the other hand is the argument of Jackson that the Cherokee have not bought the land and have no means of securing it for themselves, that the US has set aside funds for them and promised schools for them in the West—and so they must go. Chief John Ross’s letter shows how the Cherokee just wanted to have the same kind of liberty that the Americans promoted in their Declaration.[footnoteRef:2] Jackson’s letter shows how there is no thought of liberty for the Cherokee but rather an intense desire to move them out of the way and to justify their removal by glossing it with a veneer of altruism by promising a fund, schools, and shelter in the West.[footnoteRef:3] [2: Chief John Ross Letter “Our Hearts are Sickened” 2.] [3: Andrew Jackson Letter to the Cherokee, 1.]

Chief John Ross essentially tries to explain in his letter that when members of the Cherokee nation signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835, they did so under a kind of duress—not as speakers of the entire Cherokee Nation. Moreover, he argues that the provisions of the treaty were altered in such a way as to make it all the more unfavorable for the Cherokee people.[footnoteRef:4] Facing overwhelming pressure, Ross argues that these individuals had but little understanding of the consequences, and that they represented only but a small group of Cherokee leaders who agreed to cede their lands in the East to the US government and relocate to present-day Oklahoma. Obviously, this decision would have far-reaching consequences for the Cherokee people, who were forcibly removed from their homes in a brutal journey that became known as the Trail of Tears, as Ross’s words fell on deaf ears. [4: Chief John Ross Letter “Our Hearts are Sickened” 1.]

Those deaf ears belonged in part to Andrew Jackson. Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, was a strong advocate for Native American removal, as shown by his letter to the Cherokee. However, he argued that he himself was their staunchest ally and supporter—which was a very disingenuous way of speaking.[footnoteRef:5] He believed that it was in the best interests of both the US government and the Native American peoples to relocate them to western territories. In exchange for their land, Jackson promised that the Cherokee would be given funds and schools in their new home. However, Chief John Ross, who was elected as the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1828, disagreed with Jackson's plan. Ross believed that no treaty had been signed between the Cherokee nation and the US government, and he vowed to fight for his people's right to remain on their ancestral lands. [5: Andrew Jackson Letter to the Cherokee, 1-2.]

The two letters also clearly show a disconnect between the American Government and the Cherokee Nation. The forced removal of the Cherokee people from their homes was a tragic event with far-reaching consequences—yet the American government did not see it that way at all, at least not according to Jackson. Although Jackson's promises of funds and schools may have seemed like a good deal at the time in his own eyes, they did not make up for the loss of life and culture that occurred during the Trail of Tears. Ross's resistance to Jackson's plan may have been futile in the end, but it showed a brave stand against an unjust policy. By understanding both sides of this complex issue, one can gain a fuller picture of Native American Removal and see how different the two sides were on this matter.

Ultimately these sources are historically valuable because they are a real window onto the lives and minds that shaped American history. Overall, the letters from Chief John Ross of the Cherokee and Andrew Jackson to the Cherokee on Removal are historically valuable for a number of reasons. First, they provide insight into the thoughts and motivations of two key figures in the Removal process. Although most people are probably more familiar with Jackson than they are with Ross, it is important to realize that Ross was a significant figure whose story has basically been consigned to the dust heap of history by the American establishment. Second, these letters offer a rare glimpse into the negotiations between the Cherokee and the US government. They show what a farce it actually was and how the government was willing to use pressure and unfair tactics to get what it wanted—which was the South—in its own hands. Finally, they shed light on the differing perspectives of Native Americans and white Americans on the issue of Removal. Taken together, these letters offer a unique window into one of the most significant events in American history. The more one realizes what was at stake at that point in history, the more one sees the negotiation as treacherous—for if the Cherokee had not been forcibly removed, there might not have been a Civil War and the total takeover of the states by the federal system of government that followed.