September 6: The Cherokee Nation Adopts a New Constitution (1839)
Prayer Idea
Pray for the people and government of the Cherokee Nation.
History Note
The Cherokee are an Indigenous people group who have lived in North America for centuries. In their native language, they refer to themselves as Tsalagi. When Europeans arrived in the 1500s, the Cherokee lived in communities across a large portion of what became the southeastern part of United States, in the modern states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Despite making treaties with the British Crown and then with the United States, the Cherokee faced pressure to give up land and conform to expectations of European Americans. The Cherokee established a government at New Echota in the 1820s and sought to live at peace with their neighbors. They engaged in court cases with the state of Georgia that went to the U.S. Supreme Court. Even though the Supreme Court agreed in Worcester v. Georgia (1832) that Georgia could not impose its laws on the Cherokee Nation, the federal government refused to support Cherokee sovereignty.
The government began implementing a policy of forced removal in the 1830s. U.S. soldiers gathered Cherokee and members of several other Native nations into camps and then sent them to reservations west of the Mississippi River. About 4,000 Cherokee, perhaps one-fourth of their total population, died during this terrible period known as the Trail of Tears.
The Cherokee in Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) organized a new government and signed a new constitution on September 6, 1839. Talequah became their new capital. Today the Cherokee are the largest Native nation in the United States with about 450,000 citizens. About one-third live within the Cherokee Nation boundaries in Oklahoma.
Since 1953 the Cherokee have commemorated the signing of the 1839 constitution with a National Holiday. It is observed over Labor Day weekend. This event features traditional games such as Cherokee stickball, marbles, the cornstalk shoot, and blowgun competitions. Visitors can enjoy storytelling, music, dancing, and craft booths. The Principal Chief also delivers a State of the Nation address to the Cherokee people.
This photo shows a float in the 2019 Cherokee National Holiday parade. Photo by Vineyard Perspective / Shutterstock.com.
Learn More
This promotional video from 2015 describes highlights of Cherokee National Holiday celebrations.
Find more resources at Homeschool History.
