Page "Indian removal" Paragraph 9

On September 27, 1830, the Choctaw signed the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek and became the first Native American tribe to be voluntarily removed.

The agreement represented one of the largest transfers of land that was signed between the U. S. Government and Native Americans without being instigated by warfare.

By the treaty, the Choctaw signed away their remaining traditional homelands, opening them up for European-American settlement in Mississippi Territory.

When the Choctaw reached Little Rock, a Choctaw chief ( thought to be Thomas Harkins or Nitikechi ) stated to the Arkansas Gazette that the removal was a " trail of tears and death ".