Episode Three of the PBS American Experience series We Shall Remain explored the story of Indian Removal and, in this case, the Cherokee Trail of Tears in the late 1830s.

The Library Event Kit and Teacher’s Guide for the PBS television series We Shall Remain provides topics to explore, asking you to consider questions similar to the following:

1. What was the intention of the U.S. government civilization policy?
2. John Ross and Major Ridge had different views on how the Cherokee people might survive and retain their culture. What prompted the decisions they made?
3. What is the legacy of Major Ridge? Of John Ross?

Further information to support your students or patrons regarding events depicted in “Trail of Tears” can be found in the following resources available on the American Indian Experience database:

• For a brief overview of the tribe, start with the “Cherokee” entry in the Encyclopedia of North American Indians by Frederick E. Hoxie. Further in-depth exploration of the Cherokee and the Trail of Tears can be found in Amy H. Sturgis’s book, The Trail of Tears and Indian Removal available as full text.
• Read about the customs and daily life of the Cherokee in The Greenwood Encyclopedia of World Folklore and Folklife (2005) by William M. Clements.
• Of further interest may be the entry “Cherokee Language” also found in the Encyclopedia of North American Indians.
• Littlefield and Parins provide background on Native American newspapers, including an entry on “The Cherokee Advocate,” in American Indian and Alaska Native Newspapers and Periodicals, 1826-1924. 
• Great Documents in American Indian History includes the primary source entry “Response to a Message from President Andrew Jackson Concerning Indian Removal, 1830” by a Cherokee man (Speckled Snake).
• The Encyclopedia of Native American Biography has entries for Major Ridge and John Ross as well as Elias Boudinot and Sequoyah.
• Read the entry on “Missions and Missionaries” in Encyclopedia of North American Indians to hear about missionaries who opposed Cherokee removal. 
• The Encyclopedia of American Indian Civil Rights (1997) has an entry on “Cherokee Nation v. State of Georgia (1831).”
• Look in American Indian Quotations for biographical information along with quotations by Elias Boudinot, Major Ridge, Sequoyah, and John Ross.

The Encyclopedia of North American Indians also has entries for other tribes discussed in Episode Three, including the Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Creek (Muskogee). Also, read the entry on “Trail of Tears” for an overview of the removal of other tribes, including the Cherokee.

For information on the Cherokee Nation in the 21st century, visit their official website.

Watch the preview of We Shall Remain Episode Four “Geronimo” and join the American Indian Experience blog next week for more resources and discussion.

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