Dawes Act 1887 (Hist 102)

Summary

The transcript explores the impact of the 1887 Dawes Act on Native American tribes, focusing on the efforts of Alice Fletcher and Jane Gay to implement the policy. The Act aimed to break tribal communities by allotting land to individual Native Americans, ultimately reducing the land held by tribes. While intended as a means of 'civilizing' the Native Americans, it instead devastated them, as much of their land was seized by white settlers. The story highlights the resistance of Nez Perce leaders, like Chief Joseph, and the long-lasting effects of this policy.

Takeaways

• 📜 The Dawes Act of 1887 was seen as a Magna Carta for Native Americans, intending to free them from tribal life and integrate them into American society as individual landowners.
• 🌾 The Act provided each Native American family with 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land, with surplus tribal land opened up for white settlers.
• 🏞️ The policy aimed to dismantle the tribal structure and collective land ownership, forcing Native Americans to adopt American agricultural and individualistic practices.
• 👩‍🔬 Alice Fletcher, a leader of the Friends of the Indians group and ethnologist, was a key figure in implementing the Dawes Act, believing it would save Native Americans from themselves.
• 📸 Alice Fletcher was accompanied by Jane Gay, a poet and photographer, to document their efforts to divide the land and implement the Act.
• ⛔ Native Americans, like the Nez Perce tribe, resisted the land division, expressing their desire to maintain their tribal structure and communal land ownership.
• 🪶 Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce, despite efforts to record his traditional songs, refused to accept land under the Dawes Act, remaining landless as he couldn't return to his ancestral homeland.
• 🏛️ Alice Fletcher spent four years implementing the Act, allocating more than 175,000 acres of land in over 2,000 Nez Perce allotments, but faced pressure from white settlers eager for the best land.
• 📉 The Dawes Act ultimately devastated Native Americans, with two-thirds of their land lost within 20 years, including over half a million acres of Nez Perce land declared surplus and opened to whites.
• 💔 By 1910, the Nez Perce population had dwindled to just 1,500, with 30,000 white settlers living on their reservation, reflecting the widespread displacement and loss experienced by Native American communities across the West.

Q & A

What was the purpose of the Dawes Act, according to Alice Fletcher?

The Dawes Act was intended to free Native Americans from the tribal structure, the reservation system, and help them integrate into American society as individual landowners and citizens.

How much land was given to each Native American family under the Dawes Act?

Each Native American family head was given 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land.

What was the impact of the Dawes Act on tribal land ownership?

The Dawes Act aimed to dissolve tribal ownership and break up tribal nations by dividing their communal land, with the remaining 'surplus' land opened up for white settlers.

Who was Alice Fletcher, and what role did she play in implementing the Dawes Act?

Alice Fletcher was a reformer and ethnologist who helped draft the Dawes Act. She worked on the Nez Perce reservation to implement the law, dividing their land and promoting individual landownership.

What was the reaction of the Nez Perce tribe to the land allotments enforced by Alice Fletcher?

The Nez Perce opposed the land allotments, with tribal leaders expressing their discontent, stating that they were content with their current way of life and had not agreed to the division of their land.

What nickname did the Nez Perce give Alice Fletcher, and why?

The Nez Perce referred to Alice Fletcher as the 'measuring woman' because she marked off new boundaries on their reservation, dividing their land.

Why did Chief Joseph refuse to accept an allotment under the Dawes Act?

Chief Joseph refused to accept an allotment because he wanted to return to his ancestral homeland in the Wallowa Valley, Oregon, and rejected any land outside of that area.

What difficulties did Alice Fletcher face while implementing the Dawes Act on the Nez Perce reservation?

Alice Fletcher faced resistance from the Nez Perce tribe, emotional exhaustion, and pressure from white settlers who sought to persuade her to reserve the best land for them.

What were the long-term effects of the Dawes Act on the Nez Perce tribe and other Native American nations?

The Dawes Act devastated Native American communities. Within 20 years, two-thirds of their lands were lost, and much of their tribal structure was dismantled. By 1910, the Nez Perce reservation had only 1,500 Nez Perce remaining, surrounded by 30,000 white settlers.

What was the ultimate legacy of the Dawes Act according to the script?

Although intended to help Native Americans, the Dawes Act instead led to the loss of vast amounts of tribal land, the breakdown of tribal structures, and further marginalization of Native American communities.