The Benge Detachment - Groups on the Trail of Tears
Little River Canyon. Image source: NPS / Matt Switzer
In June, 1838, approximately 500 Alabama Cherokees, led by John Benge and George Lowrey, gained permission to make camp near Rawlingsville (Ft. Payne in present-day DeKalb County) rather than wait in Tennessee internment camps through the summer. They pledged their good conduct and willingness to surrender when removal resumed and asked for protection from the white settlers and whiskey sellers who were harassing them. As the summer progressed, the number of Ft. Payne Cherokee prisoners swelled to include 200 who had been recaptured after escaping from wagon trains and rail cars, 300 sent from Ft. Morrow, 30 from Ft. Lovell, and 300 from the Tennessee camps. Although many Cherokees at Ft. Payne contracted diseases and several died, most remained healthier than the majority of the Cherokee Nation held in the crowded Tennessee camps, where conditions worsened in the summer heat.
By mid-summer, most of the Alabama militia was mustered out, leaving command of the few remaining Alabama posts to the regular army.
“…If they are not ready to leave in time to
leave…I will have my soldiers and they may
have to spill blood. That is what I have to do
according to my orders, although I don't
want one Indian's single hair to fall to the
ground… Therefore I want you to notify them
to get ready to leave…”
- George Lowery (1770-1852) Assistant Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation,
recounts warning from US military officials, September 1838
On September 28, 1838, the Benge party of more than 1,100 Cherokees departed Ft. Payne, crossed the Tennessee River, and left Alabama for the west. Actual numbers are difficult to obtain. The number of Cherokee departing with the Benge Detachment varies according to various sources of information available and range between 1079 to 1200. The other information is fairly consistent with 1132 arriving in Indian Territory, 33 deaths and 3 births. Some of the other detachments have a category for "desertions"; however, there is no listing for deserters in the Benge records. When all is summed up, this detachment had one of the lowest attrition rates.
On September 28, 2013, the Etowah Historical Society's Heritage Museum in Gadsden dedicated a memorial and exhibit to commemorate the 175th anniversary of Cherokee removal. The installation, located at the Elliot Community Center, includes artwork and photographs in the exhibit space and a permanent fountain and informational plaques about Cherokee history and the removal process.
