John Ross (October 3, 1790 - August 1, 1866) was the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1828 to 1866, serving the longest term in that position. He is known today for leading his peoples' resistance to the United States government's efforts to remove them from their land.
Biography[]
Early life[]
John Ross was born in Turkeytown (in present-day Alabama), a settlement in the Cherokee country. His parents were Daniel Ross, a Scottish loyalist, and Mary "Mollie" Ross (née McDonald), who was 3/4 Scottish and 1/4 Cherokee. He had many siblings. Ross was educated at home and briefly at Kingston Academy in Tennessee. At age 19, he was sent on a mission to the Cherokee who moved west to present-day Arkansas as a result of the Louisiana Purchase. Ross proved his leadership skills there, making the mission a success.
Careers[]
During the War of 1812, Ross served in a Cherokee regiment under Andrew Jackson. In 1819, Ross was elected president of the National Cherokee Committee, serving until 1826. He later helped draft the 1827 Cherokee Constitution. Ross was involved in several business ventures which made him one of the wealthiest of his people, earning most of his wealth from a tobacco farm he started in Tennessee. He also owned slaves.
Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation[]
In 1828, Ross became the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. By then, the Cherokee were faced with increasing pressure by the United States government to sell their homeland and relocate to the West. Ross was a persistent opponent of Indian Removal, authorized by his former comrade, President Andrew Jackson. The majority of the Cherokee supported him, but some eventually saw removal as inevitable and formed the "Treaty Party", signing the Treaty of New Echota (1835) in which they sold their land east of the Mississippi River in return for territory that is now present-day Oklahoma. Ross and his followers rejected this treaty as well. However, when the deadline for removal came in 1838, the U.S. military was sent to the Cherokee Territory, forcing Ross to reluctantly lead his people on moving west, in the event that became known as the Trail of Tears. Ross' wife Quatie, whom he married in 1813, was one of the thousands of Cherokee who died on the journey. Ross later married Mary Brian Stapler in 1844.
Ross gradually maintained peace and unity of the Cherokee, who were almost divided following their relocation. However, the problem arose again when the American Civil War broke out. Ross tried to convince his people to remain neutral, but the majority aligned with the Confederacy. Ross eventually agreed to a treaty ensuring the Cherokee alliance with the Confederates, but only for the purpose of keeping his people united. Many of his supporters served in the Union Army. Ross negotiated a treaty with the federal government in Washington, D.C. and died there in 1866.