Together with his father and Boudinot , Ridge signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835 after final negotiations with a delegation in Washington , D.C . They were part of the National Council 's delegation , headed by Principal Chief John Ross , who still was trying to negotiate staying in the East . Since the treaty surrendered all Cherokee land east of the Mississippi River , the opposing Ross faction , known as the National Party , regarded the Treaty Party representatives as traitors . Despite the known divisions within the tribe and the lack of signature by the Principal Chief Ross , the US Senate ratified the treaty . President Jackson used it to justify the forcible Cherokee removal in 1838 , in what is now known as the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
John Ridge