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Original and Secondary Cessions
Another difficulty that has
arisen, and one which, in order to avoid
confusion, will necessitate the duplication
in the atlas of the maps of several States,
is the attempt to show not only original,
but also secondary cessions of land. The
policy followed by the United States for
many years in negotiating treaties with the
tribes east of the Mississippi River
included the purchase of their former
possessions and their removal west of that
river to reservations set apart for them
within the limits of country purchased for
that purpose from its original owners, and
which were in turn retroceded to the United
States by its secondary owners. This has
been largely the case in Missouri, Arkansas,
Kansas, Nebraska, and Indian Territory. The
present State of Kansas, for instance, was
for the most part the inheritance of the
Kansas and Osage tribes. It was purchased
from them by the provisions of the treaties
of June 2, 1825, with the Osage, and June 3,
1825, with the Kansas tribe, they, however,
reserving in each case a tract sufficiently
large for their own use and occupancy. These
and subsequent cessions of these two tribes
must be shown upon a map of "original
cessions."
After securing these
large concessions from the Kansas and
Osages, the government, in pursuance of the
policy above alluded to, sought to secure
the removal of the remnant of Ohio, Indiana,
and Illinois tribes to this region by
granting them, in part consideration for
their eastern possessions, reservations
therein of size and location suitable to
their wishes and necessities. In this way
homes were provided for the Wyandots,
Delawares, Shawnees, Pottawatomies, Sacs and
Foxes of the Mississippi, Kickapoos, the
Confederated Kaskaskias, Peorias,
Piankeshaws, and Weas, the Ottawas of
Blanchard's Fork and Roche de Bœuf, and the
Chippewas and Munsees. A few years of
occupation again found the advancing white
settlements encroaching upon their domain,
with the usual accompanying demand for more
land. Cessions, first; of a portion and
finally of the remnant, of these
reservations followed, coupled with the
removal of the Indians to Indian Territory.
These several reservations and cessions must
be indicated upon a map of "secondary
cessions."
Object illustration is much, more striking
and effective than mere verbal description.
In order, therefore, to secure to the reader
the clearest possible understanding of the
subject, there is herewith presented as an
illustration a map of the State of Indiana,
upon which is delineated the boundaries of
the different tracts of land within that
State ceded to the United States from time
to time by treaty with the various Indian
tribes.
Cessions of Indian LandsFree
Genealogy |
Indian
Genealogy |
Cessions of Indian Lands
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