to the Indians

(1)

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~

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Landgran"10William johruon, Indian children(Chris Campbell Colleceicn)

centralized Indian office and a separate

"Indian Country"-became part of Ameri- can policy after independence. Ironically, most Indian tribes supported the British, their formerenemies. againstthe rebelsin the AmericanRevolution; to the Indians.

the rebels represented theencroaching settlers. The Treaty of Paris of1783at theend ofthewar gave noconsiderationwhatsoever toNative Americans as allies or landholders.

DUTCH AND SWEDISH LAND USE

Dutch Indian policy wasbasedonconsid- erationsofexpediency needed to accom- plish desiredends,whichevolved fromthe furtrade toagriculture as well.Inorder to demonstrate[0otherEuropeannationsthe credibility of their landclaims, theDutch recognized [Jibes as sovereign. with prior rights toland, andcodified alegalprocess forpurchase. Tomaintainthelucrativefur trade. they were responsive to Indian demands and practiced apolicyofdiplo- macy andconciliation. Yetastribal lands became more important than trade.the Durch readily resorted to cajolery and forceCOobtain newterritory.

During the existence of New Nether- land, which came to include territory stretching from the Hudson and Delaware River mouths westward over much of

present-dayPennsylvania andNew York,the thrust ofDutchpolicyevolvedasfollows: In the years ofthe United New Netherland Company charterfrom 1614to 1617, the period of development by independent traders from 1617 to 1624, and the early years of the Dutch West India Company charter (although thecharterwas granted in 1621, commercial activity began in 1624 and lasted until 1664), there occurred little Indian displacement. The Dutch negotiated with IndiansforsmalltraCts ofland toestab- lish tradingposts and village sites.

Starting inthe 1630s,with thedeple- tion offurresourcesincoastalareas andthe threat of British expansion, the Dutch embarked on acourse ofagricultural colonization that required more land. The patroon system was devised to expedite development. Like seigneursinNewFrance and proprietors in the British colonies.

patroons werecolonial landlords who col- lected rent from tenantfarmers. In return forpurchasing availabletracts ofland from the Indians andsettling at least 50 Euro- peans on each, patroons received deeded tidefromtheDutch West India Company.

Among the most important land grants were Swaanendael on Delaware Bay, Pavo- nia on the west shoreof thelowerHudson River, and Rensselaerwyck on the upper Hudson. During thisperiod, too, theDutch West India Company lost itstrade monopoly. Independent noanneken (traders), whose activity on thefrontier was more

196 ATLAS OFTHE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN

difficult to regulate, began taking greater advanrage ofand exerting greaterpressures on Indian peoples.With increased friction on both accounts and the overtly racist WiUem Kieft becoming governor-general in 1639, warfare resulted, with repeated outbreaks untilEngland wrestedcontrol of New Netherland from theDutch in 1664, In one area perhaps the Dutch were moreenlightened thantheircolonialCOun- terparts. Although the Dutch considered themselves superior to Indians and dis- couraged intermarriage, theywerestilllib- eralenough intheirviewstoacceptIndian culturein proximitytotheir ownwithout an official policy of acculturation. The Dutch Reformed Church established a cer- tain numberof missions toconvert Indi- ans,butnowhereon thescale asthat found inSpanish.French.orBritish territory.

During the Dutch presence in North America, Sweden, through the New Swe- den Company, laidclaimin 1638tosome of the original Dutch holdings along Delaware Bay.Because ofinsufficient man- power inthearea, the Dutch were unable to evict them. The Swedish established friendly relations with Native Americans for the purposes of trade, offering better prices than either the Dutch or English.

There wasalso some missionary activity within their claim byLutherans. In 1655, with a stepped-up military effort, the Dutch ousted them and reclaimed theter- ritory(which,nine yearslater, became part ofthe Britishclaim).

RUSSIAN LAND USE

Russiahad few regulations governing the behavior of its nationals toward the Native population within its North American claimalong the North Pacificcoast, estab- lishedin the1740s.Other thanthe10 per- centroyal tribute, known as theyasnk,the promyrhknniki-fur traders--were left to shape theirown policy, eventually impos- inga certain number of restrictionson themselvesandarguing infavor of Russian Orthodox missionary activity inorder to obtain a royal charter for a monopoly, whichwas granted by the czarin1799.N a result, throughout Russia's tenure in North America, a small number of Rus- sians, through particularly barbaric rnerh-

ods,had anextremeimpacton manypeo- ples with whom they came into contact, especially the Aleut of Alaska and the Porno of California. One tribesuccessfully resisted them and stymied even further expansion andexploitation-the Tlingit.

The Russians typically sailed to a nativevillage, used forceor the threat of force torakewomen and children hostages.

and demanded labor and furs from the men,While themen hunted, the women were usedas concubines. Every ablernern- berofa village was forcedtohelpin the preparationof hides-men. women, and children. If thepromyrhlrnniki were dis- pleased, they carried OUttheir threats with executionsandrorrure.

Bythe1760s,whenasystemof adhoc yearly companies wasstructured to develop trade, some rules were established, with Aleut working nominally for shares that wererarely granted. Starting in 1784,per- manent year-round settlements were founded, the first at Three Saints on Kodiak Island, from where ongoing relations with particular groups of the native population could be overseen. By the 1790s,and the mergerof the many Russ- ianfur companies into one-the United American Company, the name of which, withtheroyalcharter, became the Russian American Company-more rules were applied. Yetnative inhabirants continued to beexploited through exacting discipline and outright cheating. From 1812 to 1841, the Russians maintained Fort Ross in Bodega Bay ofCalifornia. With the sale ofAlaska to the United States in 1864,

Aleutwoodenhat

RussiantenureinNorthAmerica cameto an end.TheAleut, Inuit, andother peoples hadnewlandlords.

{The ^Growth of

the United

States and Indian Land Cessions

UnitedStatesterritorial expansion meant Native American territorial reduction.

EveryU.S.territorial thrusthadits ownset ofconsequences among differing elements of the native population, the end result being thediminishing ofthe vast aborigi- nalland base toapresent-day size of amere 52 millionacres,less than the state ofMin- nesota. With regardtoIndian landcessions within what has evolvedinto the continen- talUnited States, each regionof the country, each tribe, and each period ofhistory hasits ownchronicle.

Inorder tomake thecomplex subject of U.S. growth and theresulting tribal displacement manageable, this section will summarize the material, in conjunction witha series of maps, fromseveralpoints ofview:asummary of the generalforcesat play and recurring patterns of displace- rnent: the acquisition of territoriesbythe federalgovernment andformation of states along withnon-Indian settlementpatterns;

areview ofthe important datesand histor-

ical periods affecting Indians and tribal locations; and asurvey of regional dis- placement patterns. The list of Indian nations inAppendix B,showing historical and contemporary locations, alsopresents a viewofIndian displacement and migrations. Most tribes ended upfar from their original homes.

The typical cycleof Indian displacement can besummarized as follows:First,there was aperiod ofacceptance,peacemaking.

and treaty making. even mutual aid and trade,between theearly settlersinaregion and nativepeoples.Often the Indians will- inglyceded land inexchange forgoods or the promise of annuities. Boundary lines between Indians and non-Indiana were assumed by the limits of sertlernenr or determined by natural boundaries, with degrees ofsegregation depending primarily ontrade activity.Peace generallylastedsev- eralyears.Second, afterrime,settlersfrom arapidly expanding, land-hungry popula- tiontrespassedon Indian lands and appro- priated territory. The violation ofearlier agreements led to reprisals by Indians against settlers, which in turn fostered a greatdealofpublicity and fear mongering in the non-Indian centers of political power, about the Indian presence on the froncier. Third, federal.state, or territorial leaders called for military action, usually involvingboth regulars and volunteer militia, against Indians. The invading troops often built wilderness forts, which in turn attractedmoresettlers.Fourth.Indian peo- ples, overwhelmed by superior numbers andarms,with manyoftheirvillagesand crops destroyed, sued for peace and were forced to negotiate new territorialcessions andwithdraw farther intothe wilderness.

This compendium isof course an oversimplification and does not address various other factors involved in Indian land cessions besides the pressures of the expanding non-Indian frontier. Itdoes not take intoaccount.forexample, therole of economic interests. with theirdesire for cheap land and resources, from the early colonial chartered joint-stock companies thai developed the fur trade and agricul- turetolatercorporate enterprises,suchas the railroads,lumberand miningconcerns, andcattle barons, Many of these interests received huge landgrants from respective governments matgaveno considerationto

INDIAN LAND CESSIONS 197

I, i

!

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·-... , Montana , NorthDakota '

.> L

1889

i

1889 :. .,-"u,, _

Oregon ,.: :____ "Mmn~: '.'_~fq,

1859 ~ Idaho ••_ ,-___ ,---, 1858:

fj'

-_ : 1890 --': ---- ------: ~:

...,' : : SouthDakota: "':<'isconsin - .,.,~

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1836,...- AJb \. Georgia'\,

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: : Mtssissippi 1819 '.

---. Tex3S ••...• 1817 ---!. ---,~

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.: 1812

6.4 GROWTH OF THE UNITED SD\.TES BYREGION AND APPROPRIATION OFINDIAN LANDS 6.5GROWTH OF THE UNITED STATES BYSTATEHOOD

North Carolina, backedby WalterRaleigh, in the 1580s.The firstpermanent Euro- peansettlement inNorth America wasSt.

Augustine in Florida, founded by the Spanish under PedroMenenedez deAviles in 1565, who drove away the French Huguenots. In 1607 (two years alter the French hadestablished the permanent settlement of Port Royal in what is now Canada), the Englishfounded what turned out to be their first permanent settlemenr at Jamestown, Virginia, under John Smith, and in l620, the Pilgrims arrived atPly- mouth, Massachusetts. Meanwhile, in the Southwest, the Spanish founded Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1609_And the Dutch gaineda foothold in North America along theHudson Riverduring the 1620s-Fort Orange (Albany) and New Amsterdam (Manhattan).

These permanent settlements resulted in the first Indian land cessions, through early trade, territorial purchases and agree~

rnents,disease. and eventual warfare includ- through disease and warfare, or assimi-

lated within thenon-Indian population.

ingthe PowharanWarsof 1622 and l644in Virginia; thePequotWarof1636-37 and KingPhilip'sWar of1675-76 inNew Eng- land; the Wappinger and Lenni Lenape (Delaware) uprisings against the Dutch from 1643to1664inNewNetherland; and thePuebloRebellionagainst the Spanish in New Mexicoin1680.

Most Indian displacement during the 17thcentury occurred atthehands of the British and the Dutch, whose patterns of colonization necessitated extensive cul- tivablehomesteads (see 'The European Use ofIndian Lands and Resources" in this chapter) andwhose presence dramatically reduced the number of Algonquian-speak- ing peoples along the easternseaboard. In thelSthcentury,theFrenchexpanded their sphereofactivity into theMississippi and Ohio valleys, appropriating some Indian lands;theSpanishspreadoutfromtheRio Grande intoTexas, Arizona. andCalifornia, where theyestablished manymissionsand brought aboutthephenomenon of Mission

Indians, dispossessedofland and culture;

and the Russians gained dominance over and hadgreat impactontheNeutof Alaska.

Yetalthough the Indians whocarne into contact with the traders, missionaries, and settlers ofFrance, Spain,and Russia suffered acertain degree of cultural attrition, with Europeandiseases andforcedlaborexacting a toll, trans-Appalachian tribal locations remainedfuirly constant duringthisperiod.

Agreater impact on thewestern Indian ter- ritorialpatrernsduring the17thcentury was the advent of the horse, which brought many formerly sedentary peoples from other regions onto the Great Plains (see 'The GreatPlains Culture Area" and "The IndianandtheHorse" inchapter 3).

The beginning of the new order for NativeAmericans, aswellasthebeginning of the end of the colonial period, came about in1763,with theTreaty ofParis,in which France ceded New France to En- gland; Pontiac then led the tribes of the GreatLakesregionin the rebellion against

the English; and England issueda Royal Proclamation which established the Appalachian watershed asthedividing line between Indians and non-Indians, pro- hibiting settlement onIndian lands and the displacement of Indian peoples without tribaland Crown consent, During the next 10years,a series oftreaties and purchases further defined rheProclamation Line that carne to stretch from Canada to Florida.

The lasting consequence of the Proclama- tionof 1763,however,was not thepteser- vation ofIndian lands, because settlers vio- lared its provisions from the start, but rather thepolicy-making precedent ofsep- arateandsegregated Indian lands.

After the American Revolution and thenewTreaty of Paris of1783, theRoyal Proclamation of coursewasnolonger in effect within the United States. The North- west Ordinance of1787, formulated under the ArticlesofConfederation and defining aNorthwest Territory in theregion ofthe Great Lakes (the OldNorthwesr), echoed Indian rights, Nor does the summary take

into account thecompetition overland among various non-Indian factions, with the Indians often considered incidental players, asinthe French and Indian Wars, the American Revolution, the War of 1812, and the Civil War. Nor does it address thequestion ofManifest Destiny andthecalculated governmental policy of Indian removal.

There areother concepts to keep in mind-five general patterns of Indian displacement-when studying Indian land cessions and migrations: drift, in which tribes migrated away from non- Indian settlements by choice, orsome-

times toward them; banishment, in

which tribes wereprevented from enter- ing certain areas; relocation, in which tribes were forcibly moved to a new region; concentration, in which tribes were forced tolive in asmaller part of their existing territory; and extinction, in which tribes were either obliterated

The event normally cited asmarking the beginning ofAmerican history isthe voy- age of Christopher Columbus, although Columbus did noractually land inNorth America and although the United States did not form for another three centuries.

Inanycase,hisjourney setoffaperiod of intense European exploration along the eastern coastline ofNorth America; how- ever,other thanperhaps the spreadofsome European diseases inland, coastal explo- rationshadlittleimpact onthe majoriry of native peoples.

Most ofthe early attempts atsettle- ment within the area now comprising the continental United States were failures, suchasFrench Huguenot colonies inpte- sent-day South Carolina and Florida, headed by Jean Ribault and Rene de Laudonniere, in the 1560s, and British colonies on Roanoke Island,inpresent-day

198 ATLAS OFTHE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN INDIAN LAND CESSIONS 199

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Lands ceded before 1784 Lands ceded 1784--1810 Lands ceded 1810-1850 Lands ceded 1850-1870 Lands ceded 1870-1890 Landsnever formallyceded

6.6INDIAN lAND CESSIONS INTHE UNITED STATES BYREGION AND DATE

thesame concept of Indian land rightsbut also,adversely. set upguidelines for politi- caland economic development. thereby encouraging non-Indiansettlement. It was during thisperiod thatmany ofthe tribes ofthe region came tobeconquered and displaced. The American Revolution saw thedestruction of much of rhe Iroquois homeland aswellasthemigration ofmany Iroquois peoples to Canada. New York establishedreservationsin thewesternpan of the state forsomeoftheIroquois (Hau- denosaunee) whoremained. After the Rev- olution, aseriesofwarsfor theOld North- west occurred, involving many of the region's tribes. starting with LittleTurtle's Warof1790-95 and.in the following century.Tecumseh'sRebellion ofIB09-11 and the BlackHawkWar oflB32.

Even while the Old Northwest was being disputed. the new nation was begin- ningto expandits domain into otherlndian lands through various territorial acquisi- tions. In 1790. Spain signed the Noorka Convention, cedingterritory inthePacific

Northwest to the United States and En- gland. Then. withtheLouisianaPurchaseof IB03. the United Statespurchased a huge tractoflandwest of the Mississippi. extend- ing fromNew Orleansto Canada. and. with theensuing Lewis and Clark Expedition.

initiatedanew era ofwesternexploration.

In 1B16, after the War of 1812. the Red RiveroftheNorth area ofpresent-day Min- nesota became part of the United States.

The border between the United States and Canada wasdefinedasthe 49th paralleltwO yearslater. (Tothe east.the border between Maine and Canada was resolvedin1842;

andto the west.theborder betweenOregon andCanada wasresolvedin1B46.)In1B19.

Spain ceded Florida to the United States.

enlarging theAmerican domain in theEast to the Gulf of Mexico. Other territorial expansion inthe 19thcentury included the Texas Annexation of 1845.whichled tothe Mexican-American Warthe next year,lead- ingin turntothe MexicanCessionof1B4B.

The policies of ManifestDestinyhad taken theUnited Statesallthe waytothePacific.

The Gadsden Purchase in 1B53of additional Spanish territory in the Southwest.

plus theAlaska Purchase from Russia in IB67. filledoutthe United Statestoitspre- sent continental shape.

With eachstage of growth. vastnew reaches ofterritory. andthe Indian peoples within them,cameunderU.S. dominion.

Inthe processofadmitting territories and states to theUnion, NativeAmericans were considered incidental and weregiven no voice. Non-Indian settlement previousco officialAmerican procurement of territo- ries had varying degrees of impact on native: populations atthelocal level.After official acquisition, however,

me

^pace^of

change inevitably accelerated. Pioneers claimed the land; politicians instituted policies toremovethe Indian obstaclefrom the land;merchants, bankers,speculators, andother business tycoons invested init;

andsoldiers patrolled it.

Within this framework ofthe territor- ialacquisitions of an expanding nation, other mctors and policies relatedtoIndian

displacement and led tothefollowing key eVents and dates: AseparateIndian Coun- try west ofthe Mississippiwasfirstdefined

;in IB25. between the Redand Missouri Rivers;theIndianRemovalAct.signedinto effect in 1830, calledfor therelocation of 'eastern Indians tothe Indian Country or .the IndianTerritory,asitcame tobecalled;

andthe TradeandIntercourse ActofIB34 -further defined theIndianTerrircry and the

"PermanentIndianFrontier."Owing these andensuing years.tribes of theSoutheast, the Old Northwest. the prairies. and the plains were relocated to the Indian Terri-

~tory, which was gradually reduced insize

andevolvedintothestate ofOklahoma by 1907. The experience of the Cherokee.

removed from their homeland in the Southeast. as wellasthat of otherSoutheast tribes.hascometo be known astheTrailof Tears(see"The Indian Territory" and"The TrailofTears"in thischapter).

Midway through the century-starting withtheCalifornia goldrush ofIB49 and continuing with the Colorado gold

rush of IB5B-59-the settlement of

Indian landsbynon-Indians dramatically increased. The 1850salsosaw aseriesof hostilities in the FarWest, thesigning of numerous treaties, and the creation of

reservations. By the end of the decade.

Indian peoples were virtually surrounded on the Grear Plains by an expanding Euroamerican population and a string of forts.The CivilWar from 1861 to IB65 sloweddowntherepeated pattern ofwar- fare. treaty making. and the creation of reservations. although the Homestead Act ofIB62 opened upIndian landsinKansas and Nebraska to non-Indian homesteaders. who were deeded plots of land after havinginhabited them forfiveyears.

Afterthe CivilWar. thepace ofdevel- opment again picked up. leading to the most intense period of warfare on the

o

^Ceded firstto Spain

I).POTAWATOMI 14.MIAMI 15.CHIPPEWA (OJIBWAY) 16.alTAWA, CHiPpeWA

(OJIBWAY) 17.SEMINOLE.

18. KAW(KANSA) 19.WINNEBAGO 10. SAC, FOX (MESQUAKO,

SIOUX (DAKarA, lAKarA.

NAKOTA), OMAHA.

IQWAY, OTOE, MISSOURIA 21.MENOMINEE 22.oroaMISSOURIA 23.l'AWNEE l~.CADDO

15.SIOUX (DAKOTA. LAKOTA.

NAKOTA) 26. CALn:ORNIA INDIANS

1.7. SIOUX (DAKOTA. L\KUrA.

NAKOTA), CHEYENNE, ARAPAHO, ASSINIBOINE, GROSVENTRE (ATSINA), MANDAN, ARlKARA 28.ROGUE RIVER(TAKELMA,

Tl!TlITNQ 19.UMPQUA, KALAPUYA 30.OMAHA 31.CHASTACOSfA ETAL 32.NISQUALLY, PUYALLUP

"TAL

33. DUWAMISH. SUQUAMISH, IITAL

Joi.CL\LL'.M 35.MAKAH

36.WALLA WAL1..A.CAYUSE, UMATILlA 37.YAKAMA

38.NEZ PERCE

39.CONFEDERATED TRIBESOF MIDDLE OREGON

~o.QUINAULT. QUILEUTE 4t.FLATHEAD ETAL 42.CQASTTRIBES OF OREGON 43.BL\CKF£ET. FUTHEAO.

NEZPERCE 44.MOLAI...A 45. PONCA 46. SHOSHONE 47. APACHE

.(8.ARAPAHO AND CHEYENNE

~9.UTE

so.QIEHA1lAS. Q-nNOOK ET AL 51.PAIUTE

52.KlAMATH ET AL 53. WASHOE 54. COMANCHE, KIOWA

55. CROW SG.NAVAJO (DiNEH) 57.ARIKARA, GROS VENTRE

(ATSINA), MANDAN 58. METHOW, OKANAGAN,

IITAL

59. COEUR D'ALENE ET AI..

60. GROS VENTRE (ATSINAJ.

BI...ACKFEEl; RIVERCROW 61.SIOUX (DAKarA, LAKarA.

NAKOfA), NORTHERN CHEYENNE, ARAPAHO 62.HUAL\PAI 63.YUMA 64,MOJAVE 65.COCOPAH 66.TOHONO O·ODHAM.

AKIMEL aOOHAM, MARICOPA

I.IROQUOIS

(HAUDENOSAUNEE) 2.CHEROKEE 3. CREEK (MUSKOGEE)

<1.WYANO<Yf(HURONl.

LENNI LENAPE(DEL\WARe).

CHIPPEWA (OJIBWAY), AND ALLIED TRIBES 5.CHOCTAW; CHICKASAW 6.KASKASKlA (SUBGROUP OF

ILLINOIS)

7. LENNI LENAPE (DELAWARE) 8. SAC,FOX (MI!SQUAKI) 9.{lIANKI\.SHAW (SUBGROUP

Of-MIAMI) 10.OSAGE II.O'1TAWA, CHIP['EWA

(OJIBWAY), pOTAWATOMI 12.QUAPAW

G.7INDIAN lAND CESSIONS IN THE UNITED STATES BYTRJBE. 1776-1945 (with modern bo"",/"ries). Aftu Roy".

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plains, asweUasthemost active period in theformation of reservations, The Railroad Enabling Act of 1866.and the subsequent completion of thetranscontinental railroad in 1869. facilitated travel westward. And the end of treaty making with Indian nations as federal policy in 1871facilitated unilateral action against Indians on the part of officials. Another goldrush. to the

Black Hills of SouthDakota and Wyoming.

starting in 1874. precipirared another inva- sionofminersonto Indian lands.

Yetforcedland cessionsforIndian peo- plesdid notcease aftertheperiodof warfare and reservations. Under the federal allotment policy that began with the Genetal Allotment Actof 1887-which broke up andallotted triballyheldlandsto individual

Indians insmallparcels. opening up thesur- plusto whires=-rhe Indianland base shrunk fromabout 150 millionacresto 60million acres.The Oklahoma Land Run in 1889.

withsettlerslining upforaraceto the best propertyandwith"sooners" already illegally having staked theirclaims. canbeviewedas symbolic of theU.S.hunger forlandat the expense ofIndian peoples.

Additional Native American displace- ment occurred during

me

^20th ^century.

through the building of dams and other public works bythe Army Corps ofEngi- neers and private contractors. under the concept of eminent domain, as wellas through various methods of extortion, such as the invalidation of wills.the appropriation of land inexchange for socialser- vices. the declaration of landowners as incompetent. and the manipulation and intimidation ofIndians. forcing~

Indian Tr: 's and Non dian In ads

Indians were the first trailblazers in North America.They createdtrails for hunting and gathering. for trading. and for warfare.

Once trails were established. repeated use kept undergrowth at a minimum. Some pathrwere opento people whohappened to passthat way; others were sacred to and guarded by territorial bands or tribes.

Knowledge of a people's favored route was passed down from generation [0generation.

Non-Indian explorers. traders. and trappers in turn learned of these trodden paths. aman's width insize.from helpful Indians or discovered them ontheir own.

Various armies also used these trails and passes co interconnect their frontier out- posts. broadening and smoothing them if necessary to accommodate artillery and supply trains. These military roads then often became the migratory wagon roads forsettlers and miners. Once:communities were established, these same frequently traveled routes became commercial roads fortrade. And many ofthese commercial roads became the paved roads and high- waysof today. following the same logical COntours ofland engineered by Indians.

Of course, there were exceptions co thistypicalprogression of Indian trailsto modern roads, with one or several stages being skipped. Insome parts of the continent. especially from the Greae Lakes northwatd. Indians as well asnon-Indian traderstraveledthe rivers and lakes.leaving them only when necessary to haul their canoes alongoverland portage routes. And

Indian hunters often left their favored trails to trackgame. andwarriors leftthe trailsto surprise anenemy.

Because of the insufficient historical documentation. as well as the great num- berofroutes involved overthe centuries, it is impossible to depict Indian trailson a continental scale. Yet toacertain extent, because so many modern roadswere origi- nally important Indian paths of transporta- tion. onecan getasense ofthe intricate network of historical Indian trails criss- crossing the continent bylooking a1 cur- cent road maps. And one can assume with nearcertainty, when taking a walkinany partof Nonh America. thatnative peoples previously walked thesamepath.

In postconrac[ times. some early roads, passes, and waterways, whether for-

merlyexact Indian routes or not, had spe- cial significance in that they carried the waves of non-Indian settlers onto tribal lands during the periods of European.

American, and Canadian expansion, usu- ally in a westward direction. The building ofcanals and railroads further contributed to non-Indian setdement and Indian displacement. The following are represented visuallyon the accompanying map:

CUMBERLAND GAP AND WILDER-

NESS ROAD: The Cumberland Gap in the Cumberland Mountains of the Appalachian chain. a natural passage carved bythe erosive action ofan earlier stream as well asa commonly used Indian trail, was mapped and named by Dr.

Thomas Walkerduring his expedition out of Virginia in 1750. In 1775. the Transyl- vania LandCompany hiredDaniel Boone and 30 others to open the Wilderness Road. from FortChiswell in theShenan- doah Valley through the Cumberland Gap. as a route to the Ohio Valley.In 1792. afterKentucky had become astate.

thetoadwaswidened fortravelby wagon.

BRADDOCK'S ROAD: In 1749-50.

Nemacolin. a Lenni Lenape (Delaware) Indian. and Thomas Cresap. a Maryland frontiersman. cleared a trail between the Potomac and Monongahela Rivers that cameto be known as Nemacolin's Path. In 1755.during theFrench and Indian Wars.

the British General Edward Braddock expanded this trail to crnnspoce histroOps from Fort Cumberland (Cumberland.

Maryland) acrossthe AlleghenyMountains to the FrenchFort Duquesne (Pittsburgh.

Pennsylvania).

FORBES ROAD: In 1758. during the FrenchandIndian War. theBritish general John Forbes built another road north of Braddock's Road. to advance on Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh) through the Allegheny Mountains. Apostwar extension joined the eastern end of the road with Philadelphia.

NATIONAL ROAD: Braddock's Road westward from Cumberland. Maryland.

became the firstleg of the National (or Cumberland) Road. built in 1818. to Wheeling. West Virginia. the mostambi- tious road-building project in the United States to that point. with a surface of crushed stone. In 1825, anextension was undertaken to Vandalia. Illinois. eventually reaching St.Louis.

NATCHEZ TRACE:The Natchez Trace from Natchez. Mississippi. to Nashville.

Tennessee. was used successively by the French. English. and Spanish in colonial times.andthenby AmericansaftertheRev- olution. At first.Americans traveled only northward on it because.onthesouthward trip. theycould Roartheir goods downriver byboat. With expansion. however.itcarne to betraveledboth ways.Inthe Warof1812 andlater Indian campaigns. AndrewJackson usedthe NatchezTraceas amilitary road.

SANTE FE TRAIL: During theearly 19th century. small trapping partiestraveled the Santa Fe Trail-originally an Indian trail- between Independence. Missouri. andSanta Fe, New Mexico, butcheywere not permit- tedtotrade in Spanish territory.Only after Mexican independence in 1821 and the deregulation of tradedidthetrailassumeits importance. William Becknell led acaravan over theroute in 1822.Inaddition to the originalnorthern wagontoad. thesouthern cutoff known astheCimarron came tobe esrablished. By 1850.a monthly stage line provided passengerandfreightservice along the northern division.

OLD SPANISH TRAIL:The OldSpanish Trail.used by the Spanishin the l8th century to travel from SantaFe toLosAnge- les, regained itsimportance afterWilliam

INDIAN LANDCESSIONS 203

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_ WildernessRoad - Braddock'sRoad - ForbesRoad - National Road

- NatchezTrace _._, SantaFeTrail - Old Spanish Trail - Oregon Trail - Central Overland

Rome:

...• Mormon Trail .-. California Trial - - SouthernOverlandTrail ..""" Pony ExpressTrail ---ChisholmTrail - Bozeman Trail - Canal

•....•...•Railroad line

, ,

:Northern Padfic~

, '

f---~

400miles 1--'--'-4-00rl -ki-Io-m-'e:ers 6.9 WAGON ROADS,RAlLROADS, ANDCANALS. carr:x.ing non-Indians ontoIndian lands (with modern boundaries}

Wolfskilland George Yountledan expedi- ion retracing itspath in 1830and 183L

)REGON TRAIL: TheOregon Trailand ts various offshoors-c-including the Cen- ral Overland Routeand the Mormon and

"alifornla trails-carried most non- ndian traffic westward during theperiod f accelerated settlement in the mid- 800s,asit had carried Indian traffic for umerous generations before. Mountain ien thoroughly explored this region in te years following the Lewisand Clark xpedirion of 1804-06_ They established route fromIndependence and Westport lothnow partof Kansas City,Missouri) I thewaytothe Columbia Riverregion Oregon, crossing the Continental ivide through the 7,750-foot-higft iurh Passin the Rocky Mountains. In ienprairiecountrythe abundant wagon iins ofthe ensuing yearsdid notfollow

pneroadbed as such, butspread out over a wideregion. converging again for river crossings and mountain passes. The roughly21,000-mile journey took, on the average. six.months.

CENTRAL OVERLAND ROUTE: This southern alternate route of the Oregon Trailbranched southward from its parent trailatthejunction ofthe North Platteand South Platte Rivers, then joined up with theMormon Trailto GreatSalt Lake, continuing west through Carson's Passinthe SierraNevada Range to California.

MORMON TRAIL: In 1847, the Mor- monsreachedtheir newsettlementon the GreatSalt Lake (now SaltLake City,Urah) via a route from Illinois thatcametobe known as the Mormon Trail. For some stretches, the trail paralleled the Oregon Trail and alsopassed through the Rocky

Mountains bytheSouth Pass.

CALIFORNIA TRAIL: TheCaliforniaTrail, the gatewayto California during the gold rush of 1848--49, branched off from the Oregon TrailatSoda Springs, followed the Humboldt River,crossed the NevadaDesert, and traversedthe Sierra Nevada along the Donner Pass. The Donner Pass took its name from the leader of a party trapped therein blizzardsof the winter of1846.

BUTTERFIELD SOUTHERN ROUTE (or Southern Overland Trail): In 1857,John Butterfield and his American Express Company were awarded the contract foran overland mail route fromSt.LouistoLos Angeles andSan Francisco, over theBut- terfield Southern Route, also called the Southern Overland Trail, providing service until 1861, whenstagesbegan travelingthe Central Overland Route.

PONY EXPRESS TRAIL: The Pony

·Express-founded in 1860 by thefirm of

•Russell, Majors, and Waddell--<:arried

--'·"r~-'~~-

mail westward from the western limit of

•the telegraph inSt.Joseph, Missouri, as furasSacramento, California. Aseriesof relay riders, who changed horses every :10-15 miles,could complete the approx- . arely 2,000-mile trip in about eight days. The trail they followed paralleled part of the Oregon Trail and part of the Central Overland Route, using both

•South Pass and Carson's Pass.

.- ~CHISHOLM TRAIL: In 1866, the part-

~_f_, __ Cherokee furtraderJesse Chisholm drove a wagonload of buffalo hides, its wheels forming deep ruts in the prairie, from Texas northward through the Indian Terri- tory to his trading post in Kansas. The resulting trail became apreferred route for cowboys who drove Texaslonghorn cattle torailheads in Kansas,and itwasused into the 1880s. Other cattle trails were the Goodnight-Loving Trailand the Western Cattle TrailwestoftheChisholm, andthe ShawneeTrailtothe east.

BOZEMAN TRAIL: Afterhaving traveled to Montana's gold fields in 1862, John Bozeman followed a direct route through Indian treaty lands west of the Bighorn Mountains back to Colorado, rather than following morecircuitous easternor west- ern routes.The army tried [0 maintain posts along theBozeman after 1865 but, aftera successful Indian uprising under the Lakota Sioux leader Red Cloud, aban- doned both the forts and the trail.

ERIE CANAL: The Erie Canal, a man- made waterway connecting Lake Erie and theHudson River, was completed in1825 and facilitated economic development in theEast throughout the19thcentury. Sub- sequent canals were theOhio and Erie,the Miami and Erie, andthe Wabash and Erie, all connecting Lake Erie with various pointsontheOhio River, aswell asthe Illi- nois and Michigan, connecting Lake Michigan withthe!IIinois Rivet.

THE RAILROADS: Railways began to expand rapidly intheEastafter 1830. By 1850, they connected the Atlantic Coast with the Great Lakes; by 1853, with

>4 ATLAS OFTHE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN

Chicago; and, by1856, with the westside oftheMississippi. In1862 and1864, two actsofCongress initiated the building of a transcontinental line. In 1869, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific met at Promonrory Point, Urah,linking the coasts byrail.The 1880s saw another burst of railroad building. The Southern Pacific from San Francisco and Los Angeles reached New Orleans in 1883; and the Northern Pacific between Seattle and Min- nesota opened in 1884. Also during the 1880s,thegauge of trackwas standardized.

With the establishment of railways, the steadystream of non-Indian settlers onto tribal landsbecame aflood.

\The I~an Territory

Boundaries were the way ofEuroameri- cans,and theIndians had tolearn to cope with them. The adjustment was difficuh.

Becauseof the ever-expanding non-Indian population. the boundaries kept changing.

TIme and again. settlers violated treaties.

and eastern Indians were pushed further westward.

In the 1820s,it wasthought that the formation of an extensiveIndiancoloniza- cionzonein thewilderness areawestof the

Iowa

Unorganized Territory

Missouri IOWAY

SAC AND FOX KICKAPOO

.,:::m~WA!!J!:!rli'm~::;:=~~

_I ^LENNI_WYAND^{LENAPE AND}

_-s,

OTll J\ <0-• ..,.

~~~~~~~~~~W ~

PEORlAAND KASKASKIA

~L..:'<'-~7-1'

MIAMI

~--~~~~~#t~-r~1r~sRK

CHEROKEE NEUTRAL lANDS

I:.:-~::':.i-~~~-~-':-r~-t~

QUAPAW

_~_f'!~9--

Arkansas

"'f)~

\---

: Louisiana 150miles

I----r-.L-,---'I l5~kilometers

Texas

6.10 THE INDIAN TERRITORY IN 1854

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Mississippi wouldstoponce andforallthe clash of cultures over land. The idea appealed to those on both sides of the Indian question: For the sympathetic, a permanent Indian homeland closed to non-Indian setdement would prevent further cruel uprooting; for the uncaring, it wouldopen newlandsto sertlernenr in the Eastand confine Indians to one area.

With the support of Congress. Secre- tary of WarJohn Calhoun of the Monroe Administration delineated a new Indian Country in 1825, whichbythe 1830s and the Jackson Administration carne to be called the Indian Territory. The Trade and Intercourse Act of 1834redefined it and gave the federal government the right to quarantine Indians forthepurpose of"civ- ilizing" them. During this period. the Stokes Commission was created co work out disputes between the various ccibes- immigrant and native-and military expe- ditions, suchas theDragoon Expedition.

were sent in for pacification. At itslargest size. in the yearsbefore 1854, theIndian Territory extended fromthe Red River to theMissouri. and from the state lines of Arkansas. Missouri. andIowa tothe 100th meridian. at that time the United States western boundary.

The name Indian Territoryis mislead- ing. The zone never possessed an inte-

grated territorial government but, rather, a collecrion of independent tribal governments. Nor did thetribes have a unified way oflife. since theycarne from different regions. Local tribes of the eastern Great Plains, such as the Pawnee, Missouria, Ioway;Omaha. and Oroe, were located neartribes ofthe Old Northwest. such as the Miami, Porawatomi, Kickapoo,Ottawa, Shawnee. Sac.and Fox (Mesquaki). South of them were Southeast tribes. the Chero- kee.Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek (Musko- gee) and Seminole (see"The TrailofT ears"

in this chapter). Western Plains tribes, such as the Sioux (Dakota, Lakota.

Nakota), Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, and Comanche. ranged near the territory. at times even coming into conflict with

me

immigrant tribes.Homogeneity andstabil- ity were further disrupted within theterri- tory bythesteady Stream ofnon-Indians passing through along theSanta Fe.Ore- gon. andMormon Trails. especially during theCalifornia gold rushof1849.

Reduction of the supposedly inviolate IndianTerritory beganin the 1850s. as a result of pressure from railroad interests seeking transcontinental routes. The Indi- ansin the northern portion, impoverished and disorganized. were persuaded byfed- eralagents to sign away tribal rights. In 1854. byanactof Congress, the northern

CHEYENNEAND ARAP.uIO

50 miles

r-r-'--,---"

50

^kilometers

Kansas lYIissouri

6.11THE INDIAN TERRITORY IN 1876

206 ATLASOFTHE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN

6.12 THE INDIAN TERRITORY IN 1896

parrof the IndianTerritory becameKansas and Nebraska Territories. Andin 1862. the Homestead Actopened up Indian landsin the rerritories to homesteaders, who were deeded 160-acre plots after having inhab- ited them forfiveyears. Similar moves were made on thesouthern portion oftheIndian Territory, whichwasalso coveted by developers. but the bill was defeated. Further shrinkage occurred in1866 after the Civil War. Because of the involvement ofsome tribes with the Confederacy, Indians were forced toaccept the terms of Reconstruc- tion, which gave the federal government the right to appropriate tribal lands and relocate tribes from Kansas (now a state) within the current Indian Territory (see

"Indians in the CivilWar"in chapter 5).

Each modification of the IndianTerri- toryand relocation of tribeswas presented as final. Yet during the 1880s,the Indians had to endure even more change and displacement. This was the age of the

"boomecs"-bands of home seekerssquat- ting on Indian reservations. Backing the boomer cause for their own self-interests, railroads, banks, and other commercial developers lobbied Congress for the opening ofIndianlandstosetdement. Congress succumbed and in 1887 passed the Gen- eralAllotment Act (orthe DawesSeveralty Act). which broke up certain tribal land- holdings into tracts and allotted them to individual Indians who then could sell them tonon-Indians. By1889. two million acreshadbeen bought fromtheIndi- ans. usually atridiculously lowprices. and thrown open tonon-Indian settlement in a

UPANAPACHE

6.13 THE SfATEOF OKlAHOMA. 1907.AND EARLIER LOCATIONS OFITS INDIAN PEOPLES

land tun. In 1890. Oklahoma Territory was formed fromthese lands.

The treatiesofremovalsigned byeast- erntribes hadpromised perpetuity forthe lands within the Indian Territory. The Chocraw treaty had stated;"No part ofthe landgranted themshalleverbeembraced in a territory (non-Indian) or state." Yet in 1907. theirremaining western landsbecame part of thestate of Oklahoma, asdidtherest of the now much reduced Indian Territory,

The Trail afTears

In 1830. President Andrew Jackson. the former Indian-fighter ("Sharp Knife" to the Indians). signed theIndian Removal Act to relocate eastern tribes to adesig- nated Indian Territory westofthe Missis- sippi River-a swiftand finalsolution. it was thought, [0 the persistent tension between Indians and land-hungry non- Indians (see"The IndianTerritory" in this chapter). Thus began a decade oftorment and tragedyforthetribes ofthe Southeast.

Many Southeast Indian tribes. especially the Cherokee, had adapted to the waysof the Euroamerican culture around them, educating themselves, establishing an efficient agriculture-based economy, andfinding a new.vitalcultural mix oftra- dition and progress. Working within the American legal system, a faction of the tribe under John Ross resisted rheRemoval Act in thecourts, finally winning theircase beforetheSupreme Court. However. their efforts were to no avail. Sharp Knife ignored the decision and ordered the army to evict the tribe anyway. along with the Choctaw, Creek (Muskogee). Chickasaw.

andSeminole, fromtheirancestrallands.

The Choctaw were the first to go.A nonrepresentative minority of leaders, bribed by governmental agents,signed the Treaty ofDancing Rabbit Creek in 1830, ceding allChoctaw landin Mississippi in exchangeforwesternlands. Some Choctaw refused to depart and escaped into the backwoods of Mississippi and Louisiana.

Butfrom 1831to1834.mostmembers of the tribe wereherded westward. ingroups of500to1.000. bybluecoats. Conditions

were miserable. Becauseof the inadequate federal funds forthe removal. there were shortages of food. blankets. wagons, and horses. Roadside merchants charged exor- bitant pricesfor supplies. Bandits preyed upon che weak and exhausted migrants.

Disease ran rampant. Atleasta quarter of the Choctaw migrants died before even reaching the Indian Territory. And many more died afterward. as tbey struggled to buildnewlivesinthe rugged terrain. with meagersuppliesand surrounded by hostile western Indians.

The other tribes also endured maltreat- ment, hardship, anddeathinsimilarordeals offorced exodus.Afteraperiod of nearcivil war among tbe divided Creek. with some boughtout for theircompliance bythe gov- ernment and some resisting removal. tribal representatives signed atreaty giving indi- vidualsthechoice ofremaining inAlabama with land allotments or leaving for new lands inthe West.Non-Indian settlers and developers proceeded to take advantage of thisnew privateIndian ownership ofland.

resultinginincreasedtensions.In 1836,the federalgovernment and thegovernment of

f

",. f

(7)

ldin an

-r- ·

rerntory ~.t'

:/

/

"

" ---1 _

Ft.Gibson.~___ /

¥ : --~ ...._J

Routes of Removal -- Cherokee _.-.- Chocraw ... Chickasaw ..._. Creek --- ..Seminole -- Converging routes

• Pore

.•. Indian viUage

Indianlandsbeforerelocation withdates ofcession

200 miles 1--.-...1...' ..----"

200 kilometers

6.14TRAILS OF TEARS (with modem houndari.,)

Alabamaused Indianactsof violence as jus- tification for the tribe's complete relocation.

Approximately 3,500 of 15,000 men, women, and children diedof disease and exposuteduring andshortlyafterthe ensuing removal.

The Chickasaw, having alreadyceded lands inwestern Kentucky and Tennessee in1818,were again pressured inthe1830s by federalandstategovernments togiveup their remaining lands, now mostly in northern Mississippi and northwestern Arkansas. Since tbey managed to holdout for the best possible deal, and since their journey to the Indian Territory was shorter than thatof the other tribes, they suffered lessduring their removal, begun in 1837.

But disease, especially thedreaded cholera, andfood poisoning ravaged thetribe after theirarrival.

The Seminole of Florida resisted removalmorethan anyof the other tribes.

Their bravery and tenacity forced the United Scates into a protracted war from

Gulf of Mexico

1835 to1842 in thejungles andswamps of

Florida (see"The Seminole Wars"in chap- ter5).Approximately 3,000Seminolewere eventually relocated, some willingly and some by coercion, butforevetytwoIndi- anstransferred tothe Indian Territory, one soldier died. And today many Seminole continue toliveinFlorida.

Themostfamousremoval ofallisthat of the Cherokee. The facttbat their great suffering followed a successful legal battle ledby Chief John Ross to savetheirlands, withChiefJusticeJohnMarshallin favorof Cherokee sovereignty, makestheirstory all the more poignant Mer the futile legal attempt, the stare ofGeorgia,with President Jackson's blessing,ruthlessly began liquidat- ing Indian lands for paltry prices and promises of land in the West. Cherokee homes and possessions wereplundered by opportunistic whites.Spring PlaceMission, the cultural and learning center of the Cherokee, was grabbed up in thelotteryof Indian lands and converted into a tavern.

Using resistancetoremoval as anexcuse,the:

Georgia militia movedupon theCherokee capiralofEchora and destroyedtheprinting pressofthe Chtrok" Phomix, thenewspa- perwritten inthe Cherokee syllabaryere-

Chuoku bttJfoIo dance maJk

atedby Sequoyah. The Georgiamilitia, with the helpofthe U.S. Army,also builtStock- ades and rounded up Cherokee families to hold inpreparation for removal.

During this time, someCherokee did manage toescape the dragnetandhide out inthe mountains ofNorth Carolina, where their descendants still live today. But for the rest, me firstexodus came in the spring of 1838and lasted into part ofthe sum- mer, with intense: heat and thirst the result.

That same year, afull-winter migration began under conditions firstofrain and mud, then of freezing temperatures, snow, and ice.And Cherokee families suffered fromseverehunger because ofinadequate food rations, outbreaks of disease, and attacks by bandits. Goaded on ata cruel pace by the bluecoats, Cherokee families were not evenallowed tobury their dead.

Some 4,000 Cherokee died during con- finement in the Stockades or during the BOO-mile trekwesrward.

The Cherokee migrarion of 1838-39 came tobecalled the "TrailofTears."The name nowstands for the forced removals and suffering of the various Southeast tribes, andbyextension, the forced reloca- tionoftribes of theOld Northwest and.11 other displaced Indians.

A final facr: Because of charges of fraud and the misappropriation of funds

and supplies promised to the Indians in their treaties of removal, the federalgovernment ordered an inquiry by Major Ethan AllenHitchcock. Histhorough and honest investigation, begun in 1841, reported that before, during, and after removal "bribery, perjury, and forgery, short weights, issues ofspoiled meat and grain, and every conceivable subterfuge was employed bydesigning white men."

The federal government decided not t release the Hitchcock reportrothepublic.

The Dwindling Buffalo Herds

The American bison (Bison bison), the large, shaggy-maned, hoofed mammal popularly known as the buffalo, once ranged overmuchofNorth America.The animal's primary habitat, however, was theprairies and plainswestoftheMissis- sippi Riverandeast of the RockyMoun- tains. north-south from present-day Canada into Texas, where it became:

essential to Plains Indian e:conomy. An entire way oflife developed around hum- ing and living off the buffalo (see"The Great Plains Culture Ard' inchapter 3).

Plains Indians conducted tribal hunts in late spring and summer; small hunting parties went out inwinter. The: horse was used in most posrconracr buffalo-hunting.

The buffalo, sometimes standing more thansix feettallandweighinga ton, provided sustenance aswell asresources for many nonfood applications, among them tipi coverings. shields, travels platforms, parfleches, bedding andclothing from the skins (inrawhide form, orsoftened into leather, with orwithout the hair); thread forsewing from buffalo hair; strings from sinews (for bowstrings, etc.):varioushand rools andsledrunnersfromribsand bones;

rattles and other ceremonial objects from hooves, horns, and skulls; glue from hooves; and fuel from buffalo chips. As

~"'/ ^.... ~~~ ,...-

Sioux parjltcht