The primary purpose of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 was to facilitate the relocation of Native American tribes from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States to designated territories west of the Mississippi River. The act aimed to open up valuable land for American settlers and agriculture, particularly cotton cultivation. This led to the forced migration of tribes, notably the Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole, under harsh conditions and resulted in significant suffering and loss of life, famously remembered as the "Trail of Tears."