In 1838, Federal troops imprisoned 13,000 Cherokees in preparation for the Cherokees? removal from their native lands in the southeastern United States to the Indian Territory of present-day Oklahoma. The removal of the Cherokees lasted two years and resulted in more than 5,000 deaths. Today, the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail commemorates the Cherokees and the paths that seventeen Cherokee detachments followed. The trail encompasses 2,200 miles of land and nine states. This photo-essay tells the story of the trail, while paying tribute to the seventeen Cherokee detachments that were pushed westward into Oklahoma. It includes excerpts from journals and accounts such as the Journal of Rev. Daniel S. Butrick, who traveled with a detachment. It documents one of the most heart-stirring and tragic stories in American history.