That those tribes cannot exist surrounded by our settlements and in continual contact with our citizens is certain. They have neither the intelligence, the industry, the moral habits, nor the desire of improvement, which are essential to any favorable change in their condition.”

Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the United States

May 28, 1830: 7th President of the United States, Andrew Jackson Signed the Indian Removal Act, which narrowly passed the House of Representatives before going to his desk for signature.

The Indian tribes were offered a paltry sum of money for their land, some opted to take it, while others chose to fight. In 1835 the treaty of “New Echota” was negotiated by peaceful, self-appointed, Cherokee negotiators who sat down with the government and gave up all their land east of the Mississippi, were paid five million dollars compensation for lost property and agreed to relocation.