In the 1820s , the discovery of gold in the foothills of northeast Georgia within the Cherokee Nation – approximately north of today 's Johns Creek – led to America 's first Gold Rush , the eventual takeover of the Cherokee Nation by the U.S. government in 1830 , and the subsequent forced exile ( the " Trail of Tears " ) of Cherokee Indians to Oklahoma and other areas of the American West
Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
Johns Creek, Georgia