"Andrew Jackson, Indian Removal and the Trail of Tears" Lecture & Exhibit

University of Tennessee–Knoxville history professor and author Dan Feller will give a lecture on Andrew Jackson’s influence on Native American removal in the United States to conclude the 10^th Annual East Tennessee History Fair presented by the East Tennessee Historical Society. The lecture, which will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, August 20, at the East Tennessee History Center, will explore events leading to and effects caused by the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Traveling exhibit panels from Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage will accompany the lecture as part of the presidential home’s Andrew Jackson 250th birthday commemoration programming.  

Feller’s lecture coincides with a resurgence of interest in Jackson, including recent visits to The Hermitage from President Donald J. Trump (March 15) and former First Lady Laura Bush (May 17), the release of a new introductory film and biography about Jackson’s life, and the development of new HBO miniseries starring Sean Penn and based on Jon Meacham’s best-seller “American Lion.” 

Feller is the editor of The Papers of Andrew Jackson at the University of Tennessee and has contributed to numerous historical reference works, including the Oxford Companion to United States History, the Reader’s Guide to American History, the Dictionary of American History and American National Biography. His critical essays and review articles have appeared in the Journal of the Early Republic Reviews in American History, in Documentary Editing, and on H-SHEAR. He is currently at work on a biography of Benjamin Tappan, a Jacksonian politician, scientist, social reformer, and freethinker.

About The Hermitage

Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage: Home of the People’s President is one of the largest, most well-preserved and most visited presidential homes in the United States. Opened to the public in 1889, The Hermitage is one of America’s first presidential museums. Today, The Hermitage is a 1,120-acre National Historic Landmark with 27 historic buildings, including Jackson’s mansion and tomb, restored slave cabins, a church, and gardens. In recent years, new interpretive initiatives and educational programs such as archaeology and the history of slavery, as well as Andrew Jackson: Born for a Storm, a new state-of-the-art exhibit that delves into the life of Andrew Jackson, including his military and presidential careers have enriched the site experience for 180,000 visitors annually. The Foundation anticipates an increased attendance of more than 200,000 guests for the current fiscal year. For more information, visit www.thehermitage.com.