Library Guides: Government Sources by Subject: Native Americans

Treaties and Laws

Documents of American Indian diplomacy: Treaties, Agreements, and Conventions, 1775-1979, compiled by Vine Deloria, Jr., and Raymond J. DeMallie (eBook)
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Final text of treaties made between American Indian Tribes and the United States Government. See also the print version

To find Native American constitutions and by-laws or corporate charters, check SuDoc number I 20.9/2 in the Government Publications stacks (location gvsus).

Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Oklahoma State University, Charles J. Kappler
Volumes I through VII; both fully searchable digitized text and page image; contents accessible from the Table of Contents, the Index of each volume, or through keyword searching.
Early Recognized Treaties with American Indian Nations, University of Nebraska
Provides access to the nine federally recognized Indian treaties that are absent from volume 2 of Charles J. Kappler?s Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties.
Documents relating to the negotiation of ratified and unratified treaties with various tribes of Indians, 1801-69, NARA
Microform; we also have other reels from the NARA (National Archives and Records Administration) record groups for the Bureau of Indian Affairs; check the Libraries catalog for other microfilm and microfiche sources.
Indian Land Cessions in the United States
1896/97--this is a chronological list of all treaties, executive orders, and more, dealing with Native American lands--includes maps outlining the areas affected; print only.
Indian and Tribal Law, Gallagher Law Library
Includes finding aids, primary & secondary sources, tribal materials.

Territorial Papers of the United States, 1764-1953: Series 1 This link opens in a new window
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Territorial government documents including Native American negotiations and treaties, official correspondence with the federal government, military records, judicial proceedings, population data, financial statistics, and land records.
U.S. Congressional Serial Set This link opens in a new window
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Click on Indian Affairs on the main page to access reports, documents, treaty information and journals of the chambers of congress, and much more primary material, 1789-1980.

Washington State Gaming Compacts
A collection of tribal - Washington State gaming compacts including amendments and appendices (CD ROM)

Tribal Recognition, Reservations, Maps

2010 Census, Tribal Tract Reference Maps
Federal American Indian reservation-based maps showing tribal census tracts and tribal block groups; the boundaries and names of American Indian reservations, off-reservation trust lands (ORTLs), Alaska Native areas, Hawaiian home lands, states, counties, county subdivisions, and places; and a base feature network including roads, railroads, and water bodies.
American Indian Reservations and Trust Areas
Print only.
Federally Recognized Tribes of Washington State (PDF)
Population information from the Washington State Data Book. Part 6 is a list of Federally Recognized American Indian Reservations and Trust Lands. Part 7 is the coinciding map.
Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible to Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs, Federal Register (PDF)
March 22, 2007
Indian Issues: Improvements Needed in Tribal Recognition Process; Report to Congressional Requesters (PDF)
This GAO report contains an appendix which shows, in Table 3, how tribes have become federally recognized since 1960--"Forty-seven tribes have been individually recognized since 1960"
Indian Reservations in the Continental United States, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior
Indexed map, downloadable and printable at most copy centers (PDF).

Indian Claims Commission Decisions

Indian Claims Commission Decisions, HEIN Online
1948-1978; access information by volume and date; from HEIN Online's American Indian Law Collection. Access for all on-campus; login required from off-campus.

The resources below are a mix of electronic, print and microfiche and include the cases themselves, expert testimony and indexes.

Note: the 370 original petitions filed with the Indian Claims Commission were separated into 611 different claims. Each of these were given a docket number.

Indian Claims Commission Decisions, Oklahoma State University
Access information by volume, then page. Docket number and plaintiff tribe are also given in this table. To find information by tribe, do a Search by selecting Indian Claims Commission Decisions from the dropdown menu and then entering the tribe's name.
Decisions of the Indian Claims Commission Findings:...index
In print; an index to their opinions, orders, and final awards, indexed by tribe, docket number or case; 1948 - August 17, 1973.
Before the Indian Claims Commission
In microfiche; cases decided by the Indian Claims Commission; located in the Gallagher Law Library.
Expert Testimony Before the Indian Claims Commission
Microfiche M-436; see also the Index for this title.
United States Indian Claims Commission, August 13, 1946-September 30, 1978: final report
In print; members of the Indian Claims Commission, alphabetical index of Indian Claims Commission cases through September 1, 1978, alphabetical tribal index, and more. . .located in the Gallagher Law Library.

Additional Resources

Annual Reports, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Prelinger Library
Enter "indian affairs" in the search box to find list of annual reports available; Prelinger Library has scanned an incomplete run of the Annual Reports which are available for free download as searchable PDFs and as .txt files
Federal Websites - Native Americans
Links to federal agency websites by topic; all are either for or about Native Americans.
Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior
The oldest bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior; includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)

Presidential Executive Orders

Executive orders relating to Indian reservations, 1855-1922
Print only.
Executive orders relating to Indian reserves issued prior to Apr. 1, 1890
Microfiche only.
Executive orders relating to Indian reserves from May 14, 1855 to July 1, 1902
Print only.

Highlighted Resource

Indigenous Peoples: North America
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Digitized primary sources covering the cultural, political and social history of Native Peoples from the 17th through the 20th centuries.

Duwamish ca. 1904

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Indian Affairs Document Library

Document Library, Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior
Find documents in the frequently requested, most recent, or category lists.

Indigenous Peoples Worldwide

Permanent forum on Indigenous Issues, United Nations
Focuses on indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights.
Indigenous Peoples, World Bank
The World Bank in global dialogue and working on development projects with indigenous peoples.

Native American Census Data

Explore Census Data
Find data on Native Americans and Native American geographic areas by searching "Topics" → "Race and Ethnicity" and/or "Geography."

More Focus

American Indian Studies
American Indians of the Pacific Northwest Collection
Native American History
Handbook of North American Indians, Smithsonian Institution
An encyclopedia summarizing knowledge about native peoples north of Mesoamerica, including cultures, languages, history, prehistory, and more. . .Print only.

Government Sources by Subject: Native Americans