In the late 1830s most Cherokee in the Southeast were forcibly removed by the federal government, walking overland on the Trail of Tears to Indian Territory. Descendants of those who remained in this area later organized and were federally recognized in 1868 as the Eastern Band of Cherokee, based in Western North Carolina.
In the late 1830s, a large number of Cherokee people were forcibly relocated by the US government to Indian Territory. The descendants of those who remained in this region later formed and received official recognition from the federal government as the Eastern Band of Cherokee in 1868, which is now based in Western North Carolina.