RECONSTRUCTION

From Destruction to

From Destruction to Reconstruction

Opening the West The Pacific Railway Act began the

process of building a railroad and telegraph line across the country. The Homestead Act of 1862 turned over vast amounts of public land to homesteaders; 10% of the land in the US was settled under the act.

It allowed anyone at least 21 years-old and the head of a household to claim 160 acres of public land. In 1862, two senators – James Lane and Samuel Pomeroy – introduced a Reconstruction Plan for Indian Territory which involved taking land from the 5 Civilized Tribes to give to relocated Kansas tribes.

Tribal Treaties After the Civil War, tribal leaders were

called to a meeting at Fort Smith. Cooley, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, told the Natives that, by joining the Confederacy, the tribes earlier treaties with the US were no longer valid.

Each tribe must proclaim permanent peace, abolish slavery, add freedmen (former slaves) to the tribe and surrender part of their land. The tribes were to be treated like a conquered enemy. This policy seemed to ignore that several tribes had split and tribes members had remained loyal to the US. Cooley gave up the negotiations and called for a meeting in Washington.

In 1866, leaders of the 5 Tribes met in Washington; new treaties abolished slavery, granted freedmen tribal citizenship, peace with the US, railroad rights-of-way, and for a single unified government in Indian Territory

The Seminole were the first to sign. They lost their 2 million acres to the US and were paid 15 cents an acre; they had to buy 200,000 acres from the Creek for 50 cents an acre

The Choctaw and the Chickasaw ceded the Leased Lands (southwestern Oklahoma) to the government for $300,000; Allen Wright suggested Oklahoma as the name for the unified government

Allen Wright, chief and Choctaw preacher

The Lower Creek and Upper Creek met together to work out their treaty; they ceded 3,250,000 acres and received about 30 cents an acre

Both Union supporters and Confederate supporters from the Cherokee met in Washington. They gave up their land in Kansas and the government now had the right to relocate tribes to the Cherokee outlet

In blue, land left to the

Cherokee

The war took about a quarter of the population of the Five Tribes and the US government took a lot of their land. The Native Americans would now begin the long process of rebuilding

Plains Tribes during the War – Many Plains Tribes stayed in Indian Territory during the Civil War. Because military regiments were called elsewhere, protection for settlers and other tribes did not exist. Some bands of Plains Indians took advantage of the lack of military protection and raided settlers in an effort to drive them from their hunting grounds. Raids on the hated white settlers sometimes resulted in the loss of lives or captives; raids on other tribes were usually to steal horses and cattle.

Fort Nichols Many Plains warriors targeted wagon

trains and freighters. To help provide safe passage on the Cimarron Route of the Santa Fe Trail, Colonel Kit Carson established Fort Nichols in the Oklahoma Panhandle.

Carson, commander of the First Regiment of New Mexico Calvary Volunteers, intended to locate the camp in New Mexico but was mistaken about his location. About 300 soldiers were housed in tents and dugouts (house built half in the ground, half above). The camp was never attacked because the Indians believed that Carson had “strong medicine”

Medicine Lodge Treaty – In attempt to stop the attacks, treaties were signed. The government determined – the Plains tribes would live on reservations, farm instead of roam, the tribes would be protected from white hunters and receive food and clothing yearly

Sheridan’s Winter Campaign – Major General Philip Sheridan organized a campaign to end the attacks by the Plains Indians and force them to live on the reservations

Battle of Washita

Led by Chief Black Kettle, the Cheyenne had set up Winter camp along the Washita River which was not on their reservation. Some Cheyenne, led by War Chief Roman Nose, ignored the Medicine Lodge Treaty and attacked Kansas settlers and wagon trains.

Colonel George Custer, having been ordered to punish the Cheyenne responsible, took 800 troops of the 7th Calvary through the snow to the Washita Valley. On November 27th just after midnight, Custer and his men attacked; Custer reported about 100 Indians dead but the Cheyenne claimed 30. Custer lost 21 men; he captured 50 and his men slaughtered hundreds of horses and mules.

Battle of Soldier Springs As part of Sheridan’s winter

campaign, Lieutenant Colonel A.W. Evans led troops to the southwestern part of Indian Territory.

A band of Comanche were there that were believed to have been involved in raids. On Christmas Day 1868, Evan’s troops attacked the Comanche who were overwhelmed and fled. Soldiers entered the camp and destroyed tipis, food, supplies, etc. This played a part in the plan to destroy food, shelter, and horses that the Native Americans needed and force them onto reservations.

Fort Sill Sheridan believed that a garrison

(military post) was needed in the heart of Comanche country. Colonel Benjamin Grierson selected a site for a camp in the foothills of the Wichita Mountains in 1868.

African American troops of the 10th cavalry, or Buffalo Soldiers, constructed most of the Fort. In June 1869, 25 wagons of tools, hardware, stone-masons, and carpenters arrived. First planned to be a six-company post, the fort grew to house over 500 troops. It was renamed Fort Sill in honor of Brigadier General Joshua Sill who died in the Civil War.

New Indian Policy In 1869, President Ulysses S. Grant

approved a “peace policy” toward the Native Americans and asked Quakers to help with tribal affairs.

Lawrie Tatum, a chosen Indian Agent, distributed rations and annuity goods. Annually, the amount of annuity goods decreased. Soldiers were restricted by the peace policy in how they dealt with the Indians, which some warriors took as a sign of weakness. Some Plains warriors, bitter toward the US government and white settlers, continued to raid the nearby states.

A number of agencies were set up in Indian Territory to deal with the various tribes; the Darlington Indian Agency was established in 1869 for the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes. Brinton Darlington, the first superintendent, selected the site and began the Cheyenne Indian School and Arapaho Indian Boarding School. When Darlington died, John Miles became agent and hired John Seger. Seger developed a great rapport (relationship) with the Native Americans and turned the Arapaho Boarding School into a great success.

Red River War

Conditions for the Plains Indians had not improved and the US government declared that all Indians must live on reservations by the summer of 1874. Fearing having to fight or starving, Comanche, Kiowa, Southern Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors met to discuss war.

They unsuccessfully attempted to attack a settlement of buffalo hunters in the Texas Panhandle. A number of bloody battles occurred along the Red River until the military finally broke the resistance by capturing and killing most of the horses. After surrenders over several weeks, Quanah Parker surrendered at Fort Sill in June of 1875; 72 captured chiefs from several tribes were sent to prison in Florida and held until 1878.

Turkey Springs In 1877, the Northern Cheyenne

were forced to relocate to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Reservation in Indian Territory. About a third refused to join the Southern tribe and tried to leave the reservation.

About 12 hours after they “escaped”, two companies of the 4th US Cavalry pursued. After killing two cowboys who were hauling salt, the cavalry caught up with them. An Arapaho scout was sent to ask them to surrender but they refused. The Cheyenne set fire to the prairie grass which forced the cavalry to retreat. The Battle of Turkey Springs ended when the warriors pursued the retreating cavalry.

Relocating Other Tribes

Tribes continued to be relocated to Indian Territory which meant more military posts, stage coaches, and cattle trails.

In 1868, the Citizen Potawatomi were pressured to sell their lands in Kansas. They purchased a 30-square-mile reservation. They soon discovered that the government had assigned this land to the Absentee Shawnee. Twenty-five years later, the two tribes settled the dispute

Early treaties referred to the Indian Territory as, “the Indian country south of Kansas”. The Potawatomi land, according to the treaty, would, “never be included within the jurisdiction of any state or territory, unless as Indian Territory be organized.”

The first treaty in which the government recognized the area of Oklahoma as “Indian Territory” was the 1872 treaty with the Osage. They sold their land in Kansas and purchased a reservation in Indian Territory in the eastern end of the Cherokee Outlet. The Kaw bought land in 1873 from the Cherokee in the area of the Outlet. The Pawnee had been apprehensive about their move because their old enemies – Kiowa and Osage – were there. They stay at the Wichita Agency during the winter of 1873-1874 and eventually purchased a reservation between the Arkansas and Cimarron Rivers.

In 1865, the Ponca tribe had ceded their land but the government had given the same land that the Ponca reserved to the Sioux. The Sioux overran the Ponca, killing families and livestock. For 8 years, the Ponca asked for help; in 18756, unknown to the Ponca, the government decided to move them to Indian Territory and troops appeared to make them move.

Today, more than 67 tribes call Oklahoma home. According to the 2000 Census, there are 273,200 Native Americans living in Oklahoma.