Today in History: Passing of Indian Removal Act

Gold had been discovered in Georgia in 1828, resulting in a Democrat-controlled Congress rushing through the Indian Removal Act, which passed by a single vote in 1830. …signed by Democrat President Andrew Jackson… carried out by Democrat President Martin Van Buren. … Over 12,000 Cherokees signed a petition in protest of the Indian Removal Act.

Condemning the federal government’s mandate were members of the National Republican and Whig Parties, including Congressman Abraham Lincoln (IL); Senator Theodore Frelinghuysen (NJ), Senator Daniel Webster (MA); and Senator Henry Clay (KY). Tennessee Congressmen Davy Crockett gave an impassioned speech in defense of the Indians. Christian missionaries, such as Jeremiah Evarts, led resistance to the government’s removal of the Indians, with many being arrested by the State of Georgia and sentenced to years of hard labor.…