Trail of Tears

Cultural  

1. The route along which the United States government forced several tribes of Native Americans, including the Cherokees, Seminoles, Chickasaws, Choctaws, and Creeks, to migrate to reservations west of the Mississippi River in the 1820s, 1830s, and 1840s. Those on the march suffered greatly from disease and mistreatment.

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Example Sentences

“The families later known as Creek Freedmen likewise walked the Trail of Tears alongside the tribal clans and fought to protect the new homeland upon arrival in Indian Territory,” Mouser wrote.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 28, 2023

At corners like Cherokee and Tennessee — an association that brings up the Trail of Tears — Counterpublic has installed “Erased History Markers” that retell these facts.

From New York Times • May 9, 2023

In one early scene, her grandfather recalls surviving the Trail of Tears.

From Washington Post • Apr. 14, 2023

Muscogean people say that history is fraught with trauma, but also pride at how they’re thriving now after surviving the Road to Misery, their phrase for the Trail of Tears.

From Washington Times • Sep. 21, 2022

Michael Herr wrote that Vietnam was where the Trail of Tears was headed all along.

From Salon • Aug. 27, 2022