Hide my Children

“It may be regarded as certain that not a foot of land will ever be taken from the Indians without their own consent. The sacredness of their rights is felt by all thinking persons in America and Europe.”
Thomas Jefferson 1786

-1794 Chickamauga Cherokee Chief “The Bowl” enters Arkansas for fear of American retribution for the Muscle Shoals Massacre
-1809 Cherokee Chief Tolontuskee moves into Arkansas with 1200 people
-Treaty of 1819 more than 3 million acres were ceded to the Cherokee in Arkansas including all the Ozarks
-Treaty of 1828 forced Arkansas Cherokee to leave Arkansas for Oklahoma
-1838 Trail of Tears forced all Cherokee from the east to travel through Arkansas to Oklahoma
-Not all Cherokee left Arkansas

HIDE MY CHILDREN

How many times did they tell us
Alone we will leave you
Hide children hide
The land of our grandfathers
We’ve been gone all these years
Hide children hide
Our home again they’re coming to
Take away
Hide children hide
In the middle of the night
Doors they will kick in
Hide children hide
Go to the caves where the bears
Sleep in the winter
Hide children hide
I will never see you again
In this world
Hide children hide
We will be together again
In the next
Hide children hide