Loading
23,000 Muscogees were removed over an 11-year period. 15 different groups travelled the approximately 750 miles over land and water routes, which took an average of three months to complete. Thousands of Muscogees died during removal or soon after they arrived in Indian Territory.
Hover over image to zoom
Family Removal, 1965, by Jerome Tiger. National Museum of the American Indian, 23/6112.
Hover over image to zoom
Bowl, ca. 1830s. Courtesy John and Della Beaver family, Muscogee (Creek) Nation of Oklahoma, Okmulgee.
Hover over image to zoom
Steamship Monmouth, 1998, by Paul Bender. Courtesy of the artist.
“Great difficulty in getting them on board the boat, there were such a number sick; many of them died on the wharf before they could get on board.”
“The season being far advanced and the weather daily becoming more severe, I ordered the party to proceed the following morning. The sufferings of the Indians at this period were intense. With nothing more than a cotton garment thrown over them, their feet bare, they were compelled to encounter cold, sleeting storms and to travel over hard frozen ground.”
“Many fell by the wayside, too faint with hunger or too weak to keep up with the rest. . . . Death stalked at all hours, but there was no time for proper burying or ceremonies.”