The Passage at Ross’s Landing is a monument to the Cherokees who were driven from their homes during The Removal to Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears. Seven, six-foot ceramic disks tell the story of the Cherokee Nation.
A long-time participant in the Remember the Removal ride shows off patches from years he participated.Read moreBlack: Creation of the Cherokee Nation, 1783-1828
It was 175 years ago when the last of more than 20,000 Cherokees were forced from our ancestral lands in North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama to begin a 1,000-mile journey to Oklahoma in what is known The Trail of Tears. It was called that not just because of the suffering endured by our people, but because those witnesses to The Removal cried at the sight – as many as one in four died on the journey.
Those of us who remained in North Carolina in the aftermath of The Removal, as few as 1,000, became known as the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Now about 15,000 strong, we still make our home in North Carolina’s mountains, land our people have occupied for more than 10,000 years.
Commemorative bike ride
There are many ways we commemorate this journey. Of course, we could do so with sadness or with solemn ceremony. Instead, some years ago, we took a different path: A bike ride. Now after many years, the Remember the Removal ride each spring relives a watershed event in our tribe’s history.