What was the primary purpose of the Indian Removal Act passed in 1830?

The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was primarily aimed at facilitating the negotiation of land-exchange treaties between the U.S. government and various American Indian tribes. This legislation authorized the federal government to negotiate the relocation of Native American tribes residing east of the Mississippi River to lands in the west, specifically designated as Indian Territory. The act was grounded in the belief that the westward expansion of the United States would be more manageable without the presence of Native American tribes on the eastern side, and it paved the way for significant demographic and territorial changes in the United States.

Negotiating these treaties was meant to enable the federal government to acquire desirable land for white settlers while ostensibly providing American Indians with new territory where they could reside undisturbed. However, the implementation of the act often involved coercion and lack of genuine negotiation, leading to significant suffering and displacement for many tribes, exemplified by events such as the Trail of Tears.

A focus on railroads, citizenship rights for Native Americans, or the establishment of national parks does not encapsulate the intent or impact of the Indian Removal Act. The act was specifically about land exchange rather than infrastructure development, civil rights legislation, or conservation efforts.