Trail of Tears motorcycle ride

Trail of Tears Gives An Important ReminderAmerica's largest motorcycle ride takes place every third Saturday in September. More than 100,000 bikers took part in Saturday's 15th annual Trail of Tears Commemorative Motorcycle Ride. The ride that means a lot to those in the Tennessee Valley.

The Indian Removal Act of 1830 ordered Native Americans from the Eastern United States to Oklahoma to be removed from their homes and taken away with nothing except the clothes on their backs. When 17,000 Indians refused to leave, soldiers were told to brutally remove them against their will. Thousands died and were dragged across the South.

In 1994, the very first Trail of Tears started with eight bikers. They left Chattanooga, Tennessee and ended up in Florence, Alabama. Fifteen years later, 100,000 more people ride to remember the Native Americans that were treated so badly. The ride was started to bring national attention to this dark time in U.S. history.