May 28th, a very important date, that many missed.

193 years ago, unbeknownst to our Ancestors, the US government set in motion something we as Brothertown’s are still dealing with in 2023.

May 28, 1830, President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act.

The Act established a process whereby the president could grant land west of the Mississippi River to Indian tribes that agreed to give up their homelands. As incentives, the law allowed the Indians financial and material assistance to travel to their new locations and start new lives and guaranteed that the Indians would live on their new property under the protection of the United States Government forever.

With the Act in place, Jackson and his followers were free to persuade, bribe, and threaten tribes into signing removal treaties and leaving the Southeast portion of the country. By the end of President Jacksons presidency almost 70 removal treaties were signed, and nearly 50,000 eastern Indians were moved further west. Many of our Brothertown ancestors chose a different path rather than be removed from their lands for a 3rd time. Ultimately signing the 1838 treaty which became The Act of 1839.

A sad note to is The Indian Removal Act by the Government, was that it set in motion the Trail of Tears, which attributed to the genocide of thousands of American Indians and the death of one-quarter Cherokee people alone.

Original resource article through Yahoo News and Native News Online