jackie loves you aj
Treatment of Native Americans in the Early Nineteenth Century
Throughout history the principles of discovery and conquest have been applied in different fashions. Those who discovered and conquered other lands thought they were entitled to them, their riches and their spoils. The conquered people were treated as slaves or banished to other lands, or ordered to assimilate into the society of the conquering people. Most of human history has been the story of conquest or assimilation, but the discovery of America was different. The nineteenth century served as the canvas for the conclusion of the epoch belonging to the Native American tribal nations. The westward expansion of Americans elevated the hostile tensions towards Indian tribes resulting in wars, governmental legislation, and the resettling of tribes to reservations.
At the conclusion of the American Revolution the fate of the Indian Nation territory was not an issue, simply because early settlements needed the protection of the larger Indian tribes to protect them from threats made by smaller groups whose land the settlers had invaded. Making treaties with the Indians brought a sense of well-being between the white settlers and the Indians.
Thomas Jefferson’s philosophy was to integrate the Indians into American culture. He promoted this integration by making provisions for the Indians when drafting the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. (Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia 2-3. Jefferson’s sentiments were made clear when he wrote in the Third Article of the Northwest Ordinance that, “The utmost good faith shall always be observed towards the Indians, their lands and property shall never be taken from them without their consent; and in their property, rights and liberty, they shall never be invaded or disturbed, unless in a just and lawfully authorized war by Congress; but laws founded in justice and humanity shall from time to time be made, for preventing wrongs being done to them, and for preserving peace and friendship with them." Furthermore, Jefferson asked the people to work along side the Indians to teach them to farm the land rather than to roam it hunting. He hoped that the Indians would become accustomed to farming as a way of life similar to the American settlers. He encouraged the settlers to educate the Indians not only through the schoolrooms but also by showing them how to use tools brought over from Britain. The Northwest Ordinance gave the Indians the right to govern themselves when they were on their own land. The Northwest Ordinance also set guidelines for the expansion of white settlements into the west. The Jeffersonian philosophy continued to influence future treaties. (Northwest Ordinance 4) However, the animosity between the Indians and Americans continued to grow even while formulating these treaties because of the decreasing land availability.
In the beginning of the nineteenth century possession of land north of the Ohio River became an issue. Populations had increased in the upper eastern United States and farming became difficult, the people needed more land. The driving force in seeking land cession was Indiana Governor William Henry Harrison. By 1809 Governor William Henry Harrison negotiated 15 treaties with Indian tribes. These treaties created a hardship on neighboring tribes because as one tribe would cede its property to the United States, its neighboring tribe would have to absorb the new displaced tribe.
One of the more infamous treaties negotiated by Harrison in 1809 was the Treaty of Fort Wayne. In the exhibits submitted to the U. S. Office for Indian Affairs: Fort Wayne Agency Letterbook. April 15, 1809 - Oct. 1, 1815 a summary stated that:
A Treaty was concluded at this place on the 30th of Last month by his Excellency William Henry Harrison Governour of the Indiana Territory and commissioner on the part of the United States, with the Miamie, Delaware, Putawatamie and Eel River Tribes of Indians by which they have Ceded to the United States a Tract of Land on both sides of the Wabash River. They also ceded by the same Treaty a Tract of Twelve miles wide extending along the former boundary line established by the Treaty of Greenville as high up as Fort Recovery. The foregoing Cessions are computed at Two Millions Six hundred thousand Acres and contain some of the finest land in the United States.
S. Office for Indian Affairs 28-29)
This treaty was the prelude to the Indians participation in the War of 1812 on the side of the British.
Tecumseh, the Chief of the Shawnee Nation, urged Native Americans to form a confederacy. His idea was to unite the tribes so that the white settlers and their government would see them, not as individual tribes, but as a nation. His doctrine was that no individual or tribe could sell title to Indian land that was held in common to all Indians in a region. Tecumseh refuted the validity of Governor Harrison’s Treaty at Fort Wayne and traveled to visit the southern tribes in an effort to bring this message to them and hopefully enlist them into the confederacy.(U.S Office for Indian Affairs 27-28)
Leaving his brother called the “Prophet” in charge of a village by the name of Prophetstown (which served as his headquarters) Tecumseh set out for the southern tribes. Governor Harrison knew that Tecumseh was going to start trouble. He asked President Monroe for assistance and authorization to attack the Indians, but President Monroe would only authorize defensive measures to protect the Indiana Territory. The southern states also were having their share of difficulties with the Indian tribes and Monroe did not want to have war on both ends of the country at one time. The formulation of an Indian confederacy was something that he wanted to avoid and he did not want anything to arise which would create any sense of solidarity between the northern and southern tribes. He, therefore, did not want to take any offensive stands against the Indians. (Utley 132)
However, while Tecumseh was traveling south, Harrison sent orders to bring 1000 troops to Prophetstown. (Utley 133) While the troops were in route to Prophetstown, Governor Harrison became aware that some of the horses had been stolen from one of the army dispatch riders and assumed that Indians must have stolen them. (Utley 133) Governor Harrison had what he needed to start the defensive action against the tribe. He proceeded to demolish Prophetstown. In return, the Indians swore their allegiance to the British in the War of 1812. Tecumseh fought and was killed in the Battle of the Thames, in Ontario on October 5, 1813. (Vanderwerth 52)
The southern tribes were angered upon hearing of the destruction of Prophetstown and Tecumseh’s death. The message Tecumseh had brought to them regarding a confederacy had more appeal than ever. Long before Tecumseh had come to speak with the Cherokees and other southern tribes the Tellico Treaty of 1798 had been signed. It promised that the United States “on its sacred national honor” would guarantee to protect the land of the Cherokees “forever.” (Indian Affairs 56) History shows that the Cherokees paid a high price for believing that the Americans would treat them honorably and protect their lands.
The tribes of the Creeks, Choctaws and Chickasaws had also made treaties with the United States for the purpose of establishing roadway systems for trade routes. These tribes believed that the white man’s government would also do as it had promised but they too became dismayed with the actions of the Americans.(Native American Navigator 6-8)
The land set aside in the Northwest Territory together with the property acquired in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 created a large mass of unsettled land west of the Mississippi. The Indians knew that the Americans had acquired this land and that the majority of common citizens could be made to believe that since the Indians did not show any convincing signs of becoming more civilized through interaction with the Americans, that displacement of the tribes would be more a humane practice than trying to persist in integrating them into society. This placed pressure on the tribes to make further treaties and succumb to the wishes of the Americans. (Carl Vinson Institute of Government 2)
The 1796 Treaty of Colerain defined the boundaries of the lands of the Creek Nation. The Creeks gave up certain land tracts that the Americans wanted for trade purposes. They retained a large enough tract of land for their daily needs and avoided a confrontation with the Americans. However, as the Americans were able to roam more freely across the Creek land they also become more envious of it. (Carl Vinson Institute of Government 3)
The Creek leader, Red Eagle, that had met with Tecumseh led the 1813 attack on the Americans at Fort Mims, located on the lower Alabama River and was the fortress and home of a wealthy settler named Samuel Mims. Samuel Mims was sheltering 500 settlers from the Creek Indians. The Creek Indians burned the house down together with the property and killed 464 of the 500 people. Andrew Jackson, commander of the Tennessee militia, was called in to defend the surrounding towns. Andrew Jackson defeated the Creeks in what later became known as the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. The victory had two important results: it made a hero of Andrew Jackson, promoting him to General, putting him in charge of the entire southern theater of the war, and it led to the cession of the remaining Creek land. (“Native American Navigator” 7)
Andrew Jackson later fought in the Battle of New Orleans gained him even more popularity in the American public.
The British did try to protect the Indians in the Treaty of Ghent. The Ninth Article said that the Indians would revert to their pre-war status with “all possessions, rights, and privileges.” However, three circumstances resulted from the War of 1812 that made this unrealistic. The Indians could not revert to their prior status because they had lost the support of their biggest supporter, Britain. They lost their chance to form a Confederacy under the leadership of Tecumseh because he had been killed. They gained a new adversary in American’s newest hero, Andrew Jackson. (People and a Nation 257)
Between the years of 1819 and 1823 trade market was volatile leading to economic instability. Contrarily, population increased among the southern states making the land even more valuable. This imbalance led to the idea of removal of Indians from the land, but through a backward attempt. In 1823 newly elected president James Monroe stated that, “With the Indian tribes it is our duty to cultivate friendly relations and to act with kindness and liberality in all of our transactions. Equally proper is it to persevere in our efforts to extend to them the advantages of civilization.” (Yale Law School 4)
The idea of making the settlers teach the Indians to assimilate into the white society only frustrated the Americans and led them to demand the land belonging to the Indians from the government. They contended that the Indians could not be civilized. As the people became unwilling to share the land with the Indians they pressured President Monroe to do something about them. In 1824 president Monroe revitalized the idea of an Indian Removal Act. He popularized the idea that the Indians were unable to assimilate into society because they were uncivilized. Thus, he argued that they should be set apart for their own good. President Monroe commented that “pressed on every side by the white population, their government and morals will crumble since the change would be too rapid to admit their improvement in civilization.” (Dippie 48)
Subsequent to this clash between the Americans and Indians Monroe had tried to rid himself of the problem by interceding with the affairs of the Indian tribes. This forced attempt to interfere with the tribes took the form of an act of Congress. The Civilization Fund Act created in 1825, schools for Indian children and placed agents on tribal territory. (Prucha 33) We no longer sought to assimilate Indians into society voluntarily. This Act taught American languages, methods and values to the next generation and agents watched over the old. Nevertheless, the Cherokee Nation agents informed Americans of their assimilation progress. The people of Georgia did not want to hear that the Cherokees had been successfully integrated into society because they wanted them to be removed “for their own good” as Monroe had said. Since the Cherokees had progressed they became a thorn in the side of the Georgians who would argue that the tribes should be removed from the white man’s influence.
Evidence for the argument that the Cherokees had advanced and assimilated into the European society was obvious. Linguistically, there was evidence that they had progressed because they spoke two languages, English and Cherokee. They also owned slaves and had large plantations. Cherokee’s had their own alphabet and used it to create their own newspaper. The Cherokee Phoenix was established in 1822. It ran articles in columns side-by-side to one another in both English and Cherokee.
They modeled their own constitution after the United State’s Constitution. This became a sign of insurrection against the Americans because the Cherokees were recognizing themselves to be a foreign nation within the United States. They established a governmental system encompassing courts and internal laws. They enacted a law in 1829 that made it punishable by death for any Cherokee to sell any land owned by the tribe. (Dippie 57-58)
The people of the State of Georgia could not show that the Cherokees were uncivilized and needed to be moved because they could not assimilate. Rather, the Cherokees had learned from watching the Creeks and Seminoles that to fight against the Americans still resulted in the loss of tribal lands. They had become highly advanced and would fight the State of Georgia by using the American system to do it. (Prucha 45)
Their old enemy, Jackson, had come to the forefront as the new President of the United States. In his first annual message to Congress in 1829, that with respect to the land west of the Mississippi River a territory was set aside where President Jackson stated:
. . . each tribe having a distinct control over the portion designated for its use. There they may be secured in the enjoyment of governments of their own choice, subject to no other control from the United States than such as may be necessary to preserve peace on the frontier and between the several tribes . . . This emigration should be voluntary, for it would be as cruel as unjust to compel the aborigines to abandon the graves of their fathers and seek a home in a distant land. But they should be distinctly informed that if they remain within the limits of the States they must be subject to their laws.” (Prucha 48)
The Indian Removal Act that had been promulgated by Monroe was becoming a reality but was not without opposition. Tennessee Congressman Davy Crockett fervently fought against its ratification and later would leave his political career after he opposed the Indians removal. Political leaders also spoke out against the Act were Daniel Webster and Henry Clay. However, the Indian Removal Act passed by one vote.
The biggest opposition came not during the Act’s ratification, but from the Cherokee Nation itself through the use of the American courts. (About North Georgia 2) The Indians presented a petition to Jackson saying that the tribes needed to sign treaties for actions between them and the Americans. In the past treaties were drafted when dealing with tribes and the idea was that treaties required the two parties to agree on a specific issues. This let the Indians have some say in what they wanted to exchange for something they would give up, whereas, laws such as the Indian Removal Act were enacted without consulting them. Similar to the colonists with Britain before the Revolutionary War, the Cherokees were finding that they had no representation in the United States government over the battle for their lands. Andrew Jackson said that he did not have control over the state’s rights to enact laws. The Indians claimed that the ability to create treaties was a right afforded to the federal government through the Constitution and that the laws passed by the State of Georgia had no control over them. (Judgment Day 3)
The court ruled against the Indians saying they had no right to hear a case from the Indians because they were not an entity of the United States. When the tribe sued Georgia in 1832 the court thought it had the right to rule over them and did so in their favor. In Worcester vs. Georgia, the court ruled that the Cherokee Nation was “sovereign nation” making the removal laws invalid. Chief Justice John Marshall explained after he “reviewed the history of relations with the Indians, the treaties with the Cherokees, and the Trade and Intercourse Acts which ‘Manifestly consider the several Indian nations as distinct political communities, having territorial boundaries, within which their authority is exclusive . . .’ Marshall then concluded: ‘The Cherokee nation, then, is a distinct community, occupying its own territory, with boundaries accurately described, in which the laws of Georgia can have no force . . . .” (Canby 238) It is after this decision that President Jackson is said to have said that the Chief Justice John Marshall “has made his decision, now let us see him enforce it.” (Indian Wars 151)
John Marshall could not protect the Cherokee Nation. The court’s decision said that the Indians must be a recognized party to agreements. Ironically, it became a treaty once again that would be the instrument used against the Cherokees.
In 1833 the Treaty of Echota between the Cherokee Nation and the United States was signed by Major Ridge, representing less than 500 of the 17,000 Cherokees. Although it appeared that the Treaty of Echota was valid, the Cherokees did not believe it was not since it did not have the signature of the elected representative. John Ross, the elected official for the tribe, was unaware of the treaty’s signing until afterwards Major Ridge had signed it. John Ross presented a petition to President Jackson signed by the majority of the Cherokees but was told that the signature of Major Ridge was all that was needed to make an agreement between the United States and the Cherokees.
The Cherokee Nation was moved to forts within the State of Georgia before they were sent to Indian Territory. Eighteen forts were established for the purpose of providing a confined area for the temporary housing for these tribes. The construction of these forts had begun even before the Indian Removal Act had been passed. A group of men called the Georgia Guard was assigned to Fort Hinar Sixes to watch over and control the Cherokees. Forts were built as quickly as they could be in order to herd the Cherokees into them as soon as possible after the Act was passed. In 1835 roads were built to commence the track that the Indians would follow to reach the territory set aside for them. (“Cherokee Removal Forts” 1-3)
On May 18, 1838, the Georgia Guard began the process of removal. The Georgia Guard was charged with maintaining stability and control over the Cherokees and ordered not to harm the Cherokees while they were in their care. Provisions that had been set aside for the Cherokees were sold to settlers. This resulted in a drop in birth rates due to the malnutrition. Of the 4,000 deaths resulting from the trip known as the Trail of Tears one-third of them were as a result of malnutrition. Other evidence of the brutality shown toward the Cherokee nation is seen in a quote from a member of the Georgia Guard, “During the Civil War I watched men die, including my own brother, but none of that compares to what we did to the Cherokee Indians.” (“Cherokee Removal Forts” 1-3 )
The inhumanity of the Georgia Guard’s control over the process was resulting in many unwarranted deaths. The statistics relating to the Indians that would leave a fort versus the amount that arrive in the territory west of the Mississippi were shocking. Consequently, John Ross once again sought the protection of his people. He made a proposal and Congress approved it which allowed the Indians to travel in smaller groups so that they could forge for food along the way. (“Cherokee Removal Forts” 1-3)
The atrocities and death rates were so high that many looked to stories to reduce their sadness. One of these stories is about a rose that still grows still along the Trail of Tears. The rose petals are white and symbolized the tears of mothers and the gold center symbolized the gold that was found in the hills of Georgia. This flower has become the Georgia state flower. The Cherokees traveled 1,200 miles sometimes through the harsh winter months to arrive in Oklahoma.
The tribes adjusted to the new land even though their diet was new and they were unfamiliar with local game. They incorporated the buffalo into their diets and used the remaining parts for tools and clothing. They maintained their former governments. Having been removed and consolidated into an area west of the Mississippi, however, did not stop the Americans from interfering with the ways of the Indians.
The sentiment of Hartley Crawford, Commissioner of Indian Affairs was displayed in his annual report of 1839. He indicated that the communal sharing of property by the Indians was contrary to the American view of civilization. This showed his intolerance towards their traditional way of life, wherein, the Chief was responsible for the welfare of his people. The Commissioner wanted a more patriarchal system rather than one person or a council responsible for the entire tribe. He wanted their allotments to be given to the heads of the households rather than to the Chiefs. He also advocated that the children would be subjected to a Christian schooling, hopefully changing what he viewed as an immoral society. (Prucha 73-74)
In 1849, Commissioner Medill had an even more racist view of the Indian. He actually stated that we were the “superior race” and that “apathy, barbarism, and heathenism must give way to energy, civilization and christianity.” (Prucha 77) He thought the solution was to make the Indians work. He viewed the nature of the Indians as frivolous because all they wanted to do was to participate in wars and hunt, he suggested that “nothing can induce him to resort to labor, unless compelled to do so by a stern necessity; and it is only then that there is any ground to work upon for civilization and Christianizing them.” (Prucha 78)
The decade of the 1850’s was a sad reflection of our treatment towards the Indians. A snapshot of history would have found the once strong, viable and respectful people constrained to foreign land within the country they had once been free to inhabit. A people who had recorded no diaries to relay their heritage to their young were asked to rewrite a new history from a much less noble place in time. Jefferson’s idea that the Indians were not to be invaded or disturbed was destroyed and the fact was that their land and property was taken from them without their consent. ( )
The peace Americans had incorporated into their own Constitution never was meant to include the Indians. The pursuit of inalienable rights such as life, liberty and happiness may have been provided for in documents, but our actions never made them part of our relations with the Indians. Nevertheless, the civilized Cherokee Chief John Ross maintained the integrity of his tribe when he spoke to them in view of the upcoming Civil War and stated the following:
“The Cherokee people stand upon new ground. Let us hope that the cloud which overspread the land will be disbursed, and that we shall proper as we have never done before. New avenues to usefulness and distinction will be open to the ingenuous youth of our country. Our rights of self-government will be more fully recognized and our citizens be no longer dragged off upon flimsy pretext to be imprisoned and tried before distant tribunals. No just cause exists for domestic difficulties.” (Indian Oratory 95-86)
Works Cited
Andnst, Ralph. Making of the Nation. New York; Bonanza Books. 1987.
Avalon Project. First Inaugural Address of James Monroe. New Haven; Yale Law School. 1996.
Burger, Warren E. “Warren E. Burger Repository of Lesson Plans.” The National Constitution Center. 1999.
http://www.constitutioncenter.org/sections /teacher/lesson plans/txt/7122a.txt> (September 5, 2001).
Dippie, Brian. The Vanishing American. Connecticut; Wesleyan University Press, 1982.
Fray, William. “The Avalon Project : Second Inaugural Address of James Monroe.” Connecticut; The Avalon Project, 1996.
“Indian Wars,” Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2000. <http://encarta>. (Oct. 15, 2001).
Getches, David, Charles Wilkinson and Robert Williams. “Federal Indian Law.” Minnesota; West Publishing Company, 1993.
Hall, James and Thomas McKenney. “Indian Tribes of North America.” New York; Scholastic Magazines Incorporated, 1975.
Hylde, Rodney. “American Heritage Pictorial Atlas of the United States.” New York; McGraw Hill, 1996.
Jackson, Andrew. “The First Inaugural Address of President Andrew Jackson.” Oklahoma; The University of Oklahoma Law Center, 1829.
Kappler, Charles. Indian Affairs Laws and Treaties. Washington; Government Printing Office, 1904.
“Native American Navigator.” Jan. 5, 1984 <http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/k12/naha/> (Nov. 5, 2001).
“Native Americans.” 7 July 2001.
http://www.emaysine.com/lectures/native%20lecture 1800-1828.htm)(Sept. 5, 2001).
Prucha, Paul. “Documents of United States Indian Policy.” Nebraska; University of Nebraska Press, 1975.
U.S. Office for Indian Affairs. Fort Wayne Agency. John Johnston to John W. Brown. 1st ed. Georgia: GPO, 1815.
Utley, Robert. The American Heritage History of the Indian Wars. New York; American Heritage Publishing Company, 1977.
Vanderwerth, W.C. Indian Oratory. New York; Ballintine Books, 1972.
Vinson, Carl. “Creek Treaties.” Sept. 18 1997. <http://www.cviog.vga.edu/> (Nov. 5, 2001).
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=88.8){kind=small}
theelevation's journal
peaceful
dorky
awake
predatory