The Indian Removal Act is Passed
May 28, 1830 · 19th Century
The Indian Removal Act was passed by Congress on May 28, 1830, and signed into law by President Andrew Jackson. The Act authorized the President to negotiate with Native American tribes in the southeastern United States for their removal to federal territory west of the Mississippi River in exchange for their ancestral homelands. This legislation led to the forced relocation of approximately 60,000 Native Americans, including the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Seminole tribes, in what became known as the Trail of Tears, during which thousands died.
Key Figures
John MarshallAndrew JacksonMartin Van BurenJohn Ross
Locations
Indian TerritoryUnited States Capitol
Topics
propertynative americanindian removal actlawmississippi riverunited states
Connected Events — 4 Connections
Continued the systematic destruction of Native American land rights by breaking up tribal lands into individual allotments, completing the legal framework begun with Indian removal by eliminating communal tribal ownership The Dawes Act
Established the legal doctrine of 'discovery' that denied Native Americans true ownership of their ancestral lands, providing the constitutional foundation that Jackson and Congress relied upon to justify forced removal Johnson v. M'Intosh
The influx of miners into Cherokee territory created political pressure for the Indian Removal Act of 1830 Discovery of Gold in Cherokee Territory
The syllabary gave Cherokee a written legal and diplomatic voice used in opposing the Indian Removal Act Sequoyah Completes the Cherokee Syllabary
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