Georgia’s Land Treaties and Indian Removal
SS8H5
Baptist Church- one of the major Protestant denominations in Georgia; grew rapidly from 1790-1830.
Battle of Horse Shoe Bend (March, 27, 1814)-battle between the U.S. and its Indian allies against the Red Creek Creeks; last battle of the Creek War.
Boll Weevil- insect whose larvae feed on cotton crops; decimated cotton production in the southeastern United States.
Camp Meetings- religious and social gatherings used by the Methodist and Baptist churches to recruit members.
Circuit Riders- Methodist ministers who traveled from town to town to preach; were instrumental in recruiting converts.
Cotton Gin- machine invented by Eli Whitney in 1793 that quickly removed seeds from the cotton fibers.
Cherokee Indians –Native American tribe that lived in northwestern Georgia; forcefully removed from the state in the early 1830s
Creek Indians-Native American tribe that lived in southern Georgia; was removed from the state through treaties in the 1820s.
Dahlonega Gold Rush-Site of America’s first gold rush in 1828; discovery of gold in the area was a factor in the Cherokee removal.
Federal Road- a road that ran through Cherokee territory which connected eastern and western Georgia.
Georgia General Assembly- Georgia’s legislative branch; made up of a bicameral legislature consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Headright System- land allocation approach that provided the head of a family up to 200 acres of free land in the Georgia frontier.
Indian Removal Act of 1830- act signed into law by Andrew Jackson that required the removal of the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole to Indian Territory.
Jackson, Andrew (1767-1845)- seventh president of the United States who was an advocate of Indian Removal.
Land Lottery- land allocation approach that gave the average Georgian a chance to buy land at pennies on the dollar.
Louisville- Georgia’s third capital from 1796-1806; Selected as capital due to westward movement in the state.
Marshall, John (1755-1835)-Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme court who ruled in favor of the Cherokee in the Worcester vs. Georgia case; President Andrew Jackson refused to enforce the Supreme Court’s ruling.
McGillivray, Alexander (1750-1793)-Creek chief who signed the Treaty of Indian Springs. Additionally, Chief Alexander McGillivray signed a deal with the U.S. Government that gave him a commission in the U.S. army along with trading rights.
McIntosh, William(1778-1825)- Creek chief who illegally signed the Second Treaty of Indian Springs; was murdered by his tribesmen for this action.
Methodist Church- one of the major Protestant denominations in Georgia; grew rapidly from 1790-1830.
Morrill Act of 1862- provided federal money to colleges identified as “land grant universities” throughout the United States.
Nullify- to make legally null and void; cancellation of a federal law
Nullification Crisis- a national emergency in 1832 when South Carolina attempted to make null and void the National Tariff of 1832. As tensions increased South Carolina threatened secession and Andrew Jackson threaten to send troops.
Rail Road- one of the major technological advances in the 19th century. Georgia was one of the leaders in railroad development in the 1830’s and many of Georgia’s towns and cities were established due to the railroad.
Red Stick War (1813-1814)-A Creek Indian civil war between the Red Stick and White Stick factions of the tribe. The Red Sticks want to resist white encroachment and return to their traditional society. The U.S. Army, the Tennessee and Georgia militia, and other Native American tribes joined in the war defeating the Red Sticks at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814.
Ross, John (1790-1866)- Principal Chief of the Cherokee Indians who tried to use legal means to fight against removal.
Second Great Awakening- Christian revival movement that led to the growth of many Protestant denominations, primarily the Baptist and Methodist churches.
Second Treaty of Indian Springs- treaty signed by William McIntosh that gave the remainder of Creek land to Georgia; McIntosh was killed for this act.
Sequoyah (1770-1840)- George Gist, inventor of the Cherokee Syllabary.
Syllabary- the written language of the Cherokee Indians. Within one generation after it was invented, over 90% of the tribe was literate in the language.
Trail of Tears- final removal of the Cherokee Indians from Georgia in 1838; over 4,000 people died on the forced march from Georgia to Oklahoma.
Treaty of Indian Springs- An 1821 treaty signed by the Creek Indians and the United States that forced the Creek Nation to cede all of its lands east of the Flint River in Georgia.
Treaty of New Echota (1835)- a treaty between the U.S. Government and a minority representation of the Cherokee tribe that ceded all Cherokee land in the Southeast to the United States and allowed for their move to Indian territory (Oklahoma); three of the Cherokee signers of the treaty (Major Ridge, John Ridge, and Elias Boudinot) were killed for signing over Cherokee land for personal profit.
Treaty of New York (1790)-treaty signed by the Creek Indians and the United States government that ceded land to the United States in return for allowing Creeks to punish non-Indian trespassers on Creek land.
University of Georgia- the first state sponsored public University in the United States; founded in 1785.
White Sticks- Creek Indians during the Red Stick War who were loyal to the United States.
Worcester vs. Georgia (1832)-landmark Supreme Court case which declared that the Cherokee were sovereign and not subject to the laws of the United States. However, Andrew Jackson refused to enforce the Court’s decision and the Cherokee were later removed from Georgia.
Yazoo Act (1795)-Georgia act signed by Georgia Governor George Mathews that transferred 35 million acres of land in present day Alabama to four land companies for $500,000; this led to the Yazoo Land Fraud.
Yazoo Land Fraud- an event where land companies bribed members of the Georgia General Assembly to sell land for pennies on the dollar.