 In 1835, Featherstonhaugh travelled from Green Bay, Wisconsin up the Fox river to the Wisconsin River, then downstream to Prairie du Chien, and into the Mississippi River.He paddled up the Mississippi, passing the St. Croix River and the Minnesota River, stopping at Carver's Cave and Saint Anthony Falls.In August 1837 after travelling along the Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee Rivers, Featherstonhaugh joined with Special Government Agent John Mason, Jr. to attend the Cherokee National Council at Red Clay, TN at the beginning of the crisis that eventually led to the Cherokee Removal, sometimes called the "Trail of Tears".