--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: On October 1, 1838, the first detachment…" description: "\"“On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward, they began to die—of sickness,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51a/howard-zinn-576_trail-of-tears_on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-s_168511.jpg" --- # On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what… ![“On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward, they began to die—of sickness, of drought, of the heat, of exposure. There were 645 wagons, and people marching alongside. Survivors, years later, told of halting at the edge of…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51a/howard-zinn-576_trail-of-tears_on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-s_168511.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51a/howard-zinn-576_trail-of-tears_on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-s_168511.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51a/howard-zinn-576_trail-of-tears_on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-s_168511.jpg) > ““On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward, they began to die—of sickness, of drought, of the heat, of exposure. There were 645 wagons, and people marching alongside. Survivors, years later, told of halting at the edge of the Mississippi in the middle of winter, the river running full of ice, “hundreds of sick and dying penned up in wagons or stretched upon the ground.” Grant Foreman, the leading authority on Indian removal, estimates that during confinement in the stockade or on the march westward four thousand Cherokees died. In December 1838, President Van Buren spoke to Congress: It affords sincere pleasure to apprise the Congress of the entire removal of the Cherokee Nation of Indians to their new homes west of the Mississippi. The measures authorized by Congress at its last session have had the happiest effects.”” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights the tragic human cost of forced relocation, emphasizing suffering, death, and political denial of that reality. **In simple terms:** Forced removal caused massive suffering and death, ignored by officials. Key Takeaway Remember and acknowledge past injustices. Themes history human rights colonialism government policy suffering Mood somber reflective Type historical political When to use this quote - education - memorials - policy reform Key Concepts genocide forced migration political rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - How do we honor those who suffered? - What responsibilities do we have to remember? A Different Perspective The narrative may overlook resilience of survivors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Indians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indians/) [Sick and dying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick-and-dying/) [Trail Of Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trail-of-tears/) ## Related quotes > [“Grant Foreman, the leading authority on Indian removal, estimates that during confinement in the stockade or on the march westward four thousand Cherokees died.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/grant-foreman-the-leading-authority-on-indian-removal-estimates-that/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“We're on a Trail / a Trail of Tears / There's Dip on MY Chin / and We're Gonna Die Here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/we-re-on-a-trail-a-trail-of-tears-there-s-dip-on-my-chin-and-we-re/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [It should be remembered that hundreds of people of African ancestry also walked the Trail of Tears with the Cherokee during the forced removal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/it-should-be-remembered-that-hundreds-of-people-of-african-ancestry/) [Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/) > [I honestly think I was an Indian living in the time of the Trail of Tears. Something like that. Every time I read books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/q-orianka-kilcher/i-honestly-think-i-was-an-indian-living-in-the-time-of-the-trail-of/) [Q'orianka Kilcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/q-orianka-kilcher/) > [Among the worst episodes in American history are those moments when the federal government deploys the full weight of its power against the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamelle-bouie/among-the-worst-episodes-in-american-history-are-those-moments-when/) [Jamelle Bouie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamelle-bouie/) > [“If your success is as a result of a trail of tears & hurt you left in anothers life, Karmas' watching.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaelle-siang-a/if-your-success-is-as-a-result-of-a-trail-of-tears-hurt-you-left-in/) Jaelle Siang'a > [I don't bad-mouth football, but I also know that it has a long trail of tears and heartbreak and animosity built up by past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-paysinger/i-don-t-bad-mouth-football-but-i-also-know-that-it-has-a-long-trail/) [Spencer Paysinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-paysinger/) > [“If we just keep walking in one direction," Colin said, "we'll find civilization." Meanwhile, Hassan was singing a song entitled: "We're on a Trail/…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/if-we-just-keep-walking-in-one-direction-colin-said-we-ll-find/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe the National Park Service has demonstrated strong partnerships geared towards respecting the private property of citizens in its administering of the current…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-wamp/i-believe-the-national-park-service-has-demonstrated-strong/) [Zach Wamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-wamp/) > [“the Supreme Court ruling and forced their Indians into Indian Territory (Oklahoma), along what has come to be called the infamous “Trail of Tears.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosanne-bittner/the-supreme-court-ruling-and-forced-their-indians-into-indian/) [Rosanne Bittner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosanne-bittner/) > [“Anyway, you couldn’t use standard methods to date the doom; might as well say that Vietnam was where the Trail of Tears was headed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-herr/anyway-you-couldn-t-use-standard-methods-to-date-the-doom-might-as/) [Michael Herr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-herr/) > [“the Trail of Tears: a cheerful gesture of casual genocide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-trail-of-tears-a-cheerful-gesture-of-casual-genocide/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [It affords me sincere pleasure to be able to apprise you of the entire removal of the Cherokee Nation of Indians to their new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-buren/it-affords-me-sincere-pleasure-to-be-able-to-apprise-you-of-the/) [Martin Van Buren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-buren/) > [“Be it Europeans’ initial assumption of the right to invade in the 1600s, the Indian Removal Act in the 1800s, or the English-only acts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debby-irving/be-it-europeans-initial-assumption-of-the-right-to-invade-in-the/) [Debby Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debby-irving/) > [In the pioneer West Whitopias, immigration tended to be the dominant social and racial issue. In Forsyth County, Georgia, immigration is still an issue,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-benjamin/in-the-pioneer-west-whitopias-immigration-tended-to-be-the-dominant/) [Richard Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-benjamin/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. 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You would be astounded--maybe you wouldn't, maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/now-i-have-been-studying-very-closely-what-happens-every-day-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Sexual purity was to be the special virtue of a woman. It was assumed that men, as a matter of biological nature, would sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/sexual-purity-was-to-be-the-special-virtue-of-a-woman-it-was-assumed/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Middle-class Americans might be invited to join a new elite by attacks against the corruption of the established rich. The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More Indians quotes > [Our nation was born in genocide when it embraced the doctrine that the original American, the Indian, was an inferior race. ... We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/our-nation-was-born-in-genocide-when-it-embraced-the-doctrine-that/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The two principles on which our conduct towards the Indians should be founded are justice and fear. 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They have vanished before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tecumseh/where-today-are-the-pequot-where-are-the-narragansett-the-mohican-the/) [Tecumseh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tecumseh/) > [“Should Indian adults attempt to use the California courts to bring such killers to justice, they invariably were frustrated because the law of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-e-stannard/should-indian-adults-attempt-to-use-the-california-courts-to-bring/) [David E. Stannard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-e-stannard/) > [“Wherever the white man goes he attempts to impose the bases of his ordered civilization. He puts down tribal war, he wages truceless combat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-lothrop-stoddard/wherever-the-white-man-goes-he-attempts-to-impose-the-bases-of-his/) [T. Lothrop Stoddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-lothrop-stoddard/) > [“Because the Indians are planning to start war now, the common people want all of them destroyed so that they can live in peace;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-martin-boltzius/because-the-indians-are-planning-to-start-war-now-the-common-people/) [Johann Martin Boltzius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-martin-boltzius/) > [Land. If you understand nothing else about the history of Indians in North America, you need to understand that the question that really matters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-king/land-if-you-understand-nothing-else-about-the-history-of-indians-in/) [Thomas King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-king/) > [The Indians are a civilization wrought with culture and a beautiful, deep spirituality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cree-summer/the-indians-are-a-civilization-wrought-with-culture-and-a-beautiful/) [Cree Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cree-summer/) > [Where did all these damn Indians come from?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-armstrong-custer/where-did-all-these-damn-indians-come-from/) [George Armstrong Custer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-armstrong-custer/) > [“Just as the Five Tribes and others were formalizing their tribal governments and running their own programs, legal aid groups were helping nonrecognized tribes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-edwin-miller/just-as-the-five-tribes-and-others-were-formalizing-their-tribal/) [Mark Edwin Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-edwin-miller/) > [It is the simplest fact of Indian life: there are too many Indians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/it-is-the-simplest-fact-of-indian-life-there-are-too-many-indians/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [“The Indians must conform to 'the white man’s ways', peaceably if they will, forcibly if they must. 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But we have hidden our identity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rigoberta-menchu/this-is-why-indians-are-thought-to-be-stupid-they-can-t-think-they/) [Rigoberta Menchu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rigoberta-menchu/) [Browse all 549 Indians quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indians/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward, they began to die—of sickness, of drought, of the heat, of exposure. There were 645 wagons, and people marching alongside. 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