Terror on the Osage Reservation

November is Native American Heritage Month. Visit National Archives News for more information on related events and resources. Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. The discovery of oil has changed the financial prospects for many people over the years. Wildcatters, drillers, and oil executives … Continue reading Terror on the Osage Reservation

“Observations” of Native American Records at the National Archives

November is Native American Heritage Month. Visit National Archives News for more information on related events and resources. In 1972 the National Archives held a conference on the history of the Federal Government’s relationship with Native Americans. The Archives held—and still holds—a vast amount of material documenting Native Americans, so it was only natural to … Continue reading “Observations” of Native American Records at the National Archives

The Navajo Treaty of 1868: A Personal Story

Today's post comes from C.P. Weaver, a descendant of Indian Peace Commissioner Samuel F. Tappan. She found an original copy of the 1868 Navajo Treaty in her family home.  On June 1, 1868, Indian Peace Commissioners Gen. William T. Sherman and Samuel F. Tappan signed a treaty with the Navajo Nation at Fort Sumner, New Mexico. … Continue reading The Navajo Treaty of 1868: A Personal Story

The Navajo Treaty Travels to the Navajo Nation

Today’s post comes from Jim Zeender, senior registrar in the National Archives Exhibits Office. On a cool Sunday morning under a cloudless blue sky, I was standing on the loading dock at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock, Arizona. I was there with the museum director, Manuelito (Manny) Wheeler, and Navajo Chief Ranger Stan … Continue reading The Navajo Treaty Travels to the Navajo Nation

The National Archives and the National Museum of the American Indian: A Partnership

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the National Museum of the American Indian have been working together for many years. Over that time, we have built a strong partnership, evidenced in our programming on the National Mall in Washington, DC, at the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House in New York City, and online. … Continue reading The National Archives and the National Museum of the American Indian: A Partnership

Researching the Osage Murders

November is National Native American Heritage Month! Visit our web page for resources on related records and how we are commemorating the month. Today’s post comes from Becca Watford of the National Archives History Office. In his recent book, Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, journalist and … Continue reading Researching the Osage Murders

Nation to Nation: Treaties at the National Museum of the American Indian

November is National Native American Heritage Month! Visit our web page for resources on related records and how we are commemorating the month. Today’s post comes from Becca Watford from the National Archives History Office. Every few months the National Archives lends a treaty negotiated between the United States and Native Americans to the National … Continue reading Nation to Nation: Treaties at the National Museum of the American Indian

On Exhibit: the Indian Removal Act

In the early 19th century, American demand for Indian nations' land increased, and momentum grew to force Indians further west. The first major step to relocate American Indians came when Congress passed, and President Andrew Jackson signed, the Indian Removal Act on May 28, 1830. It authorized the President to negotiate removal treaties with Indian … Continue reading On Exhibit: the Indian Removal Act

A Trip to Williamsburg

Today's post comes from Jim Zeender, Senior Registrar in the National Archives Exhibits Program in Washington, DC.  In early September I had the pleasure of taking a train to Williamsburg, Virginia. I have taken trains to Philadelphia, New York, and New Haven numerous times. Overseas, I have been on trains in England, France, Austria and Switzerland. … Continue reading A Trip to Williamsburg

“Indian New Deal”

Today’s post from Eric Rhodes, intern in the National Archives History Office, highlights the National Archives’ Native American holdings in celebration of Native American Heritage Month. In the 1930s, in an effort to remedy the hardships Native Americans had faced under U.S. policy, Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) John Collier took advantage … Continue reading “Indian New Deal”