Major Ridge (tribal leader)
Major Ridge was a prominent Cherokee leader born in 1770 in eastern Tennessee, known for his significant contributions to Cherokee society and politics. As a young man, he gained respect as a warrior and orator, later becoming a member of the Cherokee central council. Ridge's leadership was marked by his pragmatic approach to the challenges facing the Cherokee Nation, which included a commitment to education and economic development. He believed that adapting to Euro-American ways of life through farming and trade was essential for the survival and prosperity of his people.
Ridge played a pivotal role during the War of 1812, leading Cherokee forces and fighting alongside American troops under Andrew Jackson, earning the title "Major." In the face of increasing pressure from the state of Georgia to relinquish Cherokee lands, he ultimately signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835, which facilitated the removal of Cherokees to the west. This decision, made without the full consent of the Cherokee Nation, led to severe backlash and violence against him and his family. Major Ridge was later murdered in 1839, alongside his son and nephew, by members of the Cherokee Nation who opposed his actions, illustrating the deep divisions within the tribe during a tumultuous period. Ridge's legacy reflects the complexities of Indigenous leadership amid colonization and forced removal.
Major Ridge (tribal leader)
- Born: c. 1771
- Birthplace: Hiwassee, present-day Tennessee
- Died: June 22, 1839
- Place of death: Indian Territory (now in Arkansas)
Category: Tribal leader and orator
Tribal affiliation: Cherokee
Significance: Major Ridge, an influential Cherokee orator, fought against the Creeks and was a leading figure during the removal era
Ridge was born in eastern Tennessee in 1770. His paternal grandfather was a Highland Scot, but Ridge was brought up as a Cherokee. As a young man, called The Ridge after the Blue Ridge mountains, he became prominent as a hunter and warrior, sometimes raiding against white settlers. Ridge became an outstanding orator among his people, who made him a member of their central council. The Cherokees had a “blood law” decreeing death for anyone who sold Cherokee lands without the full consent of the nation. When Chief Doublehead violated this law, Ridge and Alexander Saunders assassinated him in 1807.
Observing the comparative prosperity of whites, Ridge concluded that Indian prosperity lay in becoming civilized and competing with whites in farming and trade, rather than in war. Ridge did so with such success that he soon became a wealthy planter in western Georgia. Without any formal education, he learned to understand English and could speak it brokenly, but he preferred to use Cherokee and translators.
During the War of 1812, when combat broke out between the Creeks and both the American government and rival tribes, Ridge led a Cherokee force against the hostile Red Stick Creeks, defeated them in several battles, then joined the army of Andrew Jackson, who made him a major. Ridge played a prominent role in Jackson’s victory at Horseshoe Bend.
For the rest of his life, Ridge was known as Major Ridge; he used Ridge as his family name, so that his son became John Ridge. John was one of the most articulate and best-educated Cherokees; with his cousin Buck Watie (who changed his name to Elias Boudinot), he attended the Foreign Mission School at Cornwall, Connecticut, where he fell in love and became engaged to Sally Northrup, daughter of a prominent citizen. The townspeople objected to a mixed marriage, but when Major Ridge, dressed in an imposing uniform, came to town in a coach with liveried servants, they were impressed. After their marriage, John and Sally returned to Georgia, where John became prominent in Cherokee politics. Major Ridge was made speaker of the Cherokee Council.
In the late 1820’s, Georgia began an ever-intensifying effort to drive the Cherokees out of the state and take over their property. The Ridges resisted removal for years, but it was a losing fight, as Georgia began confiscating Cherokee lands and selling them at lottery. Finally, despite his own prosperity, Ridge became convinced, like his son and nephew, that remaining in Georgia would only bring more persecution of the Cherokees and inevitable confiscation of their lands. He believed that the best solution would be to accept the best treaty they could get and make a fresh start west of the Mississippi. In 1835, he signed the treaty of New Echota, though doing so without the full consent of the Cherokee Nation made him liable to the “blood law” under which he had helped kill Chief Doublehead. The Ridges and Boudinot moved west without incident in 1836, but the Cherokees who followed Principal Chief John Ross in resisting removal were rounded up in 1838 by troops sent by President Van Buren, held in concentration camps, and finally sent west under armed guard on a death march known as the “Trail of Tears.” About one third of them died on the way. Blaming the Ridge party, militant followers of Ross, without Ross’s knowledge, condemned them to death and on June 22, 1839, murdered Major Ridge and his son and nephew.