To impress Indian leaders with the greatness of the United States, it was a common practice to bring Indian delegations to Washington, D.C., where they could meet with American bureaucrats and see the splendors of the city.
In 1873 Ulysses Grant was President and his primary Indian policy was to turn over the administration of Indian reservations to Christian missionaries. His Indian policy is referred to as the Peace Policy as it stressed peace with the Indians rather than war. Catholic historian James White, in an article in Chronicles of Oklahoma, reports:
“Under the terms of the Peace Policy, a single religious group had a franchise over the evangelizing efforts on each reservation.”
In the American governmental bureaucracy, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, a political appointee within the Department of the Interior, was in charge of administering Indian Affairs.
Briefly described below are some of the Indian delegation visits to Washington 150 years ago, in 1873
Crow
The Crow, a Northern Plains tribe, were really three separate and distinct groups: the River Crow who ranged north of the Yellowstone River, the Mountain Crow who live south of the Yellowstone and farther west, and the Kicked-in-the-Bellies (also known as Home-Away-from-the-Center) who lived in the same area as the Mountain Crow.
.A delegation of 14 Crows including Blackfoot (Sits in the Middle of the Land), Iron Bull, and Long Horse, visited Washington, D.C. They met with the Secretary of the Interior and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to remind them that the Crows had been friendly to the United States and to present complaints about having insufficient pasture, timber, and water to meet their needs.
Blackfoot complained about the things which were discussed and agreed upon in the treaty council which were not included in the actual treaty. He said:
“When we were in council at Laramie we asked whether we might eat the buffalo for a long time. They said yes. This is not in the treaty. We told them we wanted a big country. They said we should have it; and that is not in the treaty.”
Regarding the 1868 treaty, Blackfoot said:
“The treaty you say, has bought all our land except on this side of the river. And what do we get for it? We get a pair of stockings, and when we put them on they go to pieces. They get some old shirts and give them to us . . . and our elbows go right through them. That is what we get for our land.”
The delegation had a short meeting with President Grant who encouraged them to maintain peace, to begin farming, and to educate their young people. The Crows presented the President with a buffalo robe and the President gave them pipes. After the meeting, Blackfoot complained that the President was obviously less than interested in talking with them.
Like nearly all Indian conferences, the smoking of the pipe was done at the opening. Blackfoot explains:
“The reason we smoke is because we want to tell the truth, and we are not going to lie to one another.”
Pima and Maricopa
The Akimel O’odham (or Pima) are the village agriculturists of central Arizona. They are the cultural descendants of the Hohokam, an agricultural people who flourished between 600 and 1450 CE.
The designation Maricopa as actually an Anglo term: the people refer to themselves as Pipatsje. They originally lived along the Colorado River near present-day Parker, Arizona, but later moved up the Gila River away from the Colorado River.
In 1873, the Pimas (Akimel O’odham) and Maricopas, were concerned about the impact of drought and the encroachment of Anglo settlers upon their reservation, and so they sent a delegation of their leaders to Washington, D.C. to present their case to the federal government. The government’s response was to recommend that the tribes be removed to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma).
Pima leader Antonio Azul went to Oklahoma and checked out the land which might be assigned to them. While Azul was impressed with the land, the Pimas were opposed to any removal from their homeland.
More American Indian histories
Indians 101: Visiting Washington 150 years ago, 1872
Indians 101: Indian reservations 150 years ago, 1873
Indians 101: Southwestern Indian Reservations 150 years ago, 1873
Indians 101: Negotiating peace 150 years ago, 1872
Indians 101: Indian Reservations 150 years ago, 1872
Indians 101: Some Indian conflicts 150 years ago, 1870
Indians 101: American Indian religions 150 years ago, 1870
Indians 101: American Indian court cases 150 years ago, 1870