About Trail of Tears Commemoration Day
September 15th marks the anniversary of the day when the last Cherokees arrived in Oklahoma in 1838. Since 2014, it's been designated as Trail of Tears Remembrance Day.
Officially known as The Indian Removal Act of 1830; the deadline of voluntary removal was May 1838.
The military was prepared to use force and did so under the command of General Winfield Scott. General Scott ordered the round-up and removal of over 17,000 Cherokees who refused to leave.The process was swift and brutal. Detachments of soldiers arrived at every Cherokee house and drove men, women, and children out of their homes with only the clothes on their backs. They were placed in concentration camps where conditions were horrendous. Food and supplies were limited and disease was rampant. Many of whom perished.
It's a day to learn more about the Trail of Tears and commemorate the lives of the people who suffered on it.
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