Georgia, the Cherokee Nation, and Indian Removal

In May 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act. This law allowed the president to negotiate treaties with Indigenous nations. These treaties traded Indigenous lands east of the Mississippi River for land in the west. The government promised to provide money, supplies, and protection to those who agreed to relocate. Supporters argued that the Act would help the U.S. expand. They believed it would also ease conflicts between settlers and Native nations. Many Indigenous communities resisted and chose to defend their rights and land. 

A major conflict over removal happened in Georgia. The Cherokee Nation had built farms, schools, and even a capital city at New Echota. They had a constitution and a written language. Many leaders thought that adopting parts of American culture would keep them safe. Still, Georgia leaders wanted their land for cotton farming and settlement. Gold was found on Cherokee land, so the pressure grew. The state made laws to abolish the Cherokee government. The laws allowed them to take Cherokee land and give it to white citizens. These actions broke promises made to the Cherokee in past treaties. 

Cherokee lands in Georgia

In 1831, the Cherokee turned to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Cherokee Nation v. Georgia. They asked the Court to block Georgia’s laws. Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that the Court could not hear the case. He said the Cherokee were not a foreign nation. He referred to them as a “domestic dependent nation.” This meant the Cherokee could not sue Georgia in federal court. The decision left the Cherokee without legal protection at a time when state leaders were seizing their land. 

The next year, another case went to the Supreme Court: Worcester v. Georgia. Georgia arrested Samuel Worcester, a missionary. He was living in the Cherokee Nation without a state license. This time, the Court sided with the Cherokee. Marshall ruled that the Cherokee Nation was a distinct political community and that Georgia had no authority there. Only the federal government could deal with Native nations. Georgia ignored the decision meant to protect Cherokee sovereignty. President Jackson also refused to enforce it. 

John Ross, Cherokee Chief during the case of Cherokee Nation v. Georgia

During his presidency, Andrew Jackson signed nearly seventy removal treaties with Native nations. These agreements forced tens of thousands of Indigenous people to leave their homes. This opened up millions of acres in the Southeast for white settlers. His policy treated Indigenous sovereignty as less important than state needs and national expansion. This shaped how the government interacted with Indigenous nations for many years.