Indian Claims Commission facts for kids
The Indian Claims Commission was a special group set up by the United States Congress in 1946. Its job was to help Native American tribes deal with old complaints they had against the United States government. This group was created under a law called the Indian Claims Act of 1946.
The Commission was formed for a few reasons. One was to thank Native Americans for their important service in World War II. Another was to help fix problems and bad feelings caused by the US government's past actions towards Native American peoples.
Through this Commission, tribes could officially present their complaints. If a tribe had lost land because the government broke a promise or treaty, they could ask for money as payment. However, if a tribe accepted the money, they agreed not to bring up that claim again in the future. Sometimes, a tribe even gave up its official recognition from the government as part of the deal.
Many experts helped with the Commission's work. These included people who study cultures (anthropologists), historians, lawyers, and government officials. The large amount of research done for the Commission helped create a group called the American Society for Ethnohistory. This group studies the history of different cultures. The way scholars research the history of cultures, called ethnohistorical research, often goes back to the work done for the Commission.
Because of the chance to make claims, many Native American groups that had been overlooked, especially in the Southeast, Northeast, and California, started to form their own tribal governments. They did this to pursue their claims, especially for land. The 1946 law allowed any "identifiable" group of Native American descendants to bring a case, even if they weren't officially recognized by the government yet. For example, the Poarch Band of Creek Indians in Alabama traces its current official status back to efforts made with the Indian Claims Commission in the 1950s. These land claims were a big reason why the Bureau of Indian Affairs created a process in 1978 to officially recognize tribes.
The Indian Claims Commission finished its work in 1978. Its remaining cases, about 170 of them, were moved to the United States Court of Claims. By the time the Commission closed, it had given out over $818 million in payments and had completed 546 cases.
Land Claims and Payments
The biggest concern for tribes bringing cases to the Indian Claims Commission was land. The Commission could not give land back to the tribes. Instead, it could only offer money. This money was calculated based on how much land was lost and what that land was worth at the time it was taken.
Many tribes were unhappy about this rule. They wanted their land back more than they wanted money. For example, the Pit River Indians in northern California and the Teton and Lakota people of the Black Hills, South Dakota wanted their lands returned.
In a few special cases, tribes did get some money to buy land. This happened when they didn't have any shared tribal land left. Examples include the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes in Maine and the Catawba tribe in the Carolinas. Sometimes, special laws passed by Congress even gave some land back, like to the Havasupai people at the Grand Canyon.
Researching Land History
To prepare for these cases, researchers looked at many types of information. They searched for the oldest maps showing the original territories of Native American tribes. They also looked at maps based on treaties, laws, and government orders.
It was usually easier to prove land claims based on official government documents. But proving original Native American territories required information from many sources. These included Native American people themselves, explorers, fur trappers, military members, missionaries, and early researchers who studied cultures. Scholars tried to understand the natural environment and resources of these lands. This helped them create maps of the original territories. The Commission's final report showed that sometimes, compromises were made about land areas. This meant some land that had been used by more than one tribe over time was not included in the claims.
The detailed reports, testimonies, and decisions from these cases were published in the 1970s. They were made available in different formats for people to study.
