In the hope of avoiding removal from their much coveted homelands in the Southeast, the Cherokees began to adopt broad aspects of Anglo-American culture in the early nineteenth century. Despite their general acquiescence to government policies and their efforts to fulfill the expectations of white philanthropists, the Cherokees ultimately fared worse than less acculturated native peoples in similar circumstances. In 1838 Cherokees in Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina were forced at gunpoint to leave their homes, farms, schools, and churches. Their demoralizing journey to a reservation in the Oklahoma Territory—during which thousands died or were killed—came to be known as the Trail of Tears.

The first interdisciplinary survey of Cherokee removal, this volume brings together essays by eight prominent scholars (including three of Cherokee descent) in the fields of history, geography, sociology, and law. They address such topics as Cherokee politics, class structure, and land-use patterns before the removal; Andrew Jackson's Indian policies; Cherokee population losses; the effects of removal on the few Cherokees allowed to remain in North Carolina; and the Cherokees' immediate and long-term problems following their relocation.

The most current general work on the causes and effects of the Cherokee removal, this volume is certain to stimulate the continuing debate on United States Indian policy and to encourage further study.