The end of the Rail of Tears did not end the suffering of the Cherokees. 
When they arrived in Oklahoma, they did not accept the Indian councils
that were already n place, shown here in this example.  The Cherokees
split into two factions-John Ridge led t hose who favored the councils,
which meant cooperation with the whites, and John Ross led a splinter
group which favored Cherokee autonomy.  A meeting was called in June 1839
to resolve differences between the Plains Indians and the Cherokees, but
it ende d in disaster.  Ridge was assassinated by members of the Ross
faction, and the concept of Cherokee unity was never realized.