In the Shadow of the Trail of Tears: The Love Story of John and Elizabeth Ridge

by Martha Hutchens

Major John Ridge, Father of John Rollins Ridge
Image from Smithsonian Open Access

John Rollins Ridge had a difficult start in life. He was born in 1827 to a Cherokee father and a white mother. His father, Major Ridge, was among the tribal leaders who signed the Treaty of New Echota—an agreement that ceded ancestral Cherokee lands and led to the Trail of Tears. Though Major Ridge opposed removal, he likely signed the treaty only when he believed it was inevitable and hoped that negotiation might secure better terms for his people. He moved his family to Oklahoma in 1837, two years before the forced removal.

Members of the Cherokee Nation levied a death sentence against Major Ridge, largely in response to his role in signing the treaty—a treaty many viewed as a betrayal. The forced removal, known as the Trail of Tears, resulted in the deaths of thousands of Cherokee people due to disease, starvation, and exposure. Though the Ridge family had already relocated voluntarily, many still held Major Ridge responsible for the suffering. The legal authority of the death sentence—even under tribal law—remains questionable. But on June 22, 1839, assailants dragged Major Ridge from his bed and killed him in front of his family. John, only twelve years old, witnessed his father’s death and was deeply traumatized. He suffered nightmares for the rest of his life. Soon after that night, his mother moved the family to northwestern Arkansas.

John met Elizabeth Wilson in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where she worked for a missionary who was teaching him Greek and Latin. He fell in love with her beautiful features, brilliant mind, and noble character. They married in May of 1847. Throughout their marriage, she frequently comforted him after nightmares. She accompanied him to Oklahoma.

While John had been away in Arkansas, many of the men who had participated in his father’s killing were themselves killed. When he returned, only four remained. One of them, David Kell, mutilated John’s stallion in a supposed attempt to provoke a fight. The two men confronted each other, and when Kell advanced, John killed him. It was ruled self-defense, but John no longer felt safe in Oklahoma. He and Elizabeth relocated to Springfield, Missouri, where they welcomed their daughter, Alice.

Image by Luftklick, Deposit Photos

John held several jobs as a clerk, but when news of the 1849 gold rush in California reached Missouri, he decided to head west. Knowing conditions would be rough, he left Elizabeth and Alice behind.

He found little success in the gold fields, but he began publishing articles in a local newspaper under the name “Yellow Bird,” a name given to him in youth by his Cherokee peers.

In 1853, John sent word to his mother that he was very ill. When Elizabeth learned of this, she left Alice with John’s mother and traveled west by stagecoach. Though John was near death when she arrived, her comforting presence and constant care helped him recover. Once he had regained his health, she returned east to bring Alice to California.

Image by ronstik, deposit photos

Elizabeth encouraged John’s writing, especially his poetry, which she noticed helped him cope with the lingering trauma of his past. In 1854, John was inspired by the story of a Mexican bandit who had turned to crime after the murder of his fiancée and the seizure of his land. Perhaps John’s own losses gave him a deep empathy for the outlaw. His resulting book, The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta, the Celebrated California Bandit, became a literary success. John Rollin Ridge is now recognized as the first Native American novelist. Unfortunately, he never profited from the book, as his publisher went bankrupt. However, the book’s popularity helped him secure editorial positions at several newspapers.

John and Elizabeth lived in Grass Valley, California, for fifteen years before John’s health declined. He died in 1867 at the age of forty. In 1868, Elizabeth published a collection of his poetry—including several written for her, the woman whose love and strength helped him endure the lifelong trauma of witnessing his father’s death.