ONLY THE NAMES REMAIN: The Cherokees and the Trail of Tears

by Alex W. Bealer ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 1972

Simply and affectingly told, the story of the brief flowering of the Cherokee Nation (unique among Indian groups in its adoption of a republican constitution and invention of a written language) and its subsequent betrayal by land-hungry Georgians and former ally Andrew Jackson. Though the Trail of Tears is but one incident in the familiar pattern of displacement of Indians by white settlers, promising steps toward integration of the two societies made it seem far from inevitable at the time; a matrix of causes, beginning with the American Revolution (when the Cherokees were British allies) and the invention of the cotton gin and ending with an illegal treaty (which passed the Senate by a single vote) lead to the forced eviction -- a people ""pulled up by the roots and cast westward to the wind."" Bealer blends history and epitaph with quiet dignity.

Pub Date: March 16, 1972

ISBN: 0316085197

Page Count: -

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1972

Categories: NONFICTION