I am interested in historians estimates in the number of Amerindians who probably died as a result of Andrew Jackson’s actions, wars, treaties, and such.
A new article here has some info
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/article28917745.html
Whoever wrote that article probably did their research on wikipedia. The numbers match up.
Anyway, it really only gives statistics for the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears. Wikipedia cites between 2,000 and 6,000 deaths I’ve seen estimates as high as 8,000, but 4,000 to 6,000 seems to be the most commonly cited numbers.
What you don’t get are good numbers for the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole tribes. Many Seminoles in particular refused to leave peacefully, resulting in actual warfare. Some were defeated and were forced to move. Some were killed. Some retreated into the Everglades. After a long and costly campaign, the government finally gave up on relocating the ones that were left.
We know that about 3,500 of the 15,000 Muscogees that were relocated died on the trip (again, using wikipedia numbers), but there were a lot more than 15,000 Muscogees before that group consented to relocation.
There were also other deaths that should probably be counted. For example, some tribal leaders basically said that anyone who signs an agreement with the government is a traitor to their own people and should be put to death. When other tribal leaders signed agreements to move, this resulted in warfare and deaths between these different groups.
I don’t know how accurate of a number you are going to be able to get. Most of the cites on the internet focus on the Cherokee totals during their move. It’s hard to find information about other deaths.