page_title: Trail of Tears
section_title: Routes
hierarchical_section_title: Trail of Tears / Routes
context_page_description: The Trail of Tears was a forced movement of Native Americans in the United States between 1836 and 1839. The United States government forced Native Americans to leave their lands and move outside the United States. The U.S. then took over the Native Americans' lands and made the United States bigger.
  Because thousands of Native Americans died during this forced move, it is called the "Trail of Tears."
context_section_description: There were different routes the Cherokees took. Some were by land and others by water. Some boats were destroyed, which was a danger on water routes. On the ground, people had to walk through mud and cold weather and it was harder walking on land.
caption: Map of water and land routes the Cherokee had to travel on the Trail of Tears
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