The Cherokees are a tribe of Native American Indians. A Native American people formerly inhabiting the southern Appalachian Mountains from the western Carolinas and eastern Tennessee to northern Georgia, with present-day populations in northeast Oklahoma and western North Carolina.
The Cherokee were removed to Indian Territory (modern-day Oklahoma) in the 1830s after conflict with American settlers over rights to traditional lands. This removal is often referred to as the Trail Of Tears. In the links above, there is a link to a section about the Trail Of Tears.