US Government Documents related to Indigenous Nations
As a federal depository, the Chester Fritz Library holds numerous government documents that relate to the Mandan, Arikara, and Hidatsa Nation. A selection of these documents have been digitized to provide a single location for access that does not require familiarity with SuDoc numbering to navigate.
The digitization of these papers has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this website, do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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River Basin Surveys Papers, No. 1: Prehistory and the Missouri Valley Development Program Summary Report on the Missouri River Basin Archeological Survey in 1948
Waldo R. Wedel, Smithsonian Insitition, and Bureau of American Ethnology
Published as a series sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology, the “River Basin Surveys Papers” are a collection of archeological investigations focused on areas now flooded by the completion of various dam projects in the United States. The River Basin Surveys Papers (numbered 1-39) were mostly published in bundles with 5-6 papers in each bundle. In collaboration with the United States (US) National Park Service and the US Bureau of Reclamation, the US Department of the Interior, and the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Smithsonian Institution pulled archeological and paleontological remains from several sites prior to losing access to the sites due to flooding. The Smithsonian Institution calls this project the Inter-Agency Archeological Salvage Program.
Paper number 1 provides a summary of the progress made on the River Basin Surveys project for the 1948 calendar year. The summary is divided into four sections: laboratory activities, fieldwork and explorations, fieldwork in paleontology, and fieldwork by cooperating agencies. The sections are, when applicable, broken down by state, citing work in Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Kansas. This paper includes photographs and a map.
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River Basin Surveys Papers, No. 2: Prehistory and the Missouri Valley Development Program Summary Report on the Missouri River Basin Archeological Survey in 1949
Waldo R. Wedel, Smithsonian Institution, and Bureau of American Ethnology
Published as a series sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology, the “River Basin Surveys Papers” are a collection of archeological investigations focused on areas now flooded by the completion of various dam projects in the United States. The River Basin Surveys Papers (numbered 1-39) were mostly published in bundles with 5-6 papers in each bundle. In collaboration with the United States (US) National Park Service and the US Bureau of Reclamation, the US Department of the Interior, and the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Smithsonian Institution pulled archeological and paleontological remains from several sites prior to losing access to the sites due to flooding. The Smithsonian Institution calls this project the Inter-Agency Archeological Salvage Program.
Paper number 2 provides a summary of the progress made on the River Basin Surveys project for the 1949 calendar year. The summary is divided into four sections: personnel, laboratory activities, fieldwork and explorations, fieldwork by cooperating agencies. The sections are, when applicable, broken down by state, citing work in Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Kansas. The author notes that 1949 was a difficult year for the project. This paper includes photographs.
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An Act Making Appropriations for Civil Functions Administered by the Department of the Army for the Fiscal year Ending June 30, 1953, and for Other Purposes
United States Congress
This act, dated July 11, 1952, also known as United States (US) Public Law 82-504, makes appropriations for, among other things, paying lawful occupants of properties within the towns of Elbowoods, Sanish and Van Hook, North Dakota, for their improvements, which will be rendered useless by the construction of the Garrison Dam and Reservoir project on the Missouri River.
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The Budget of the United States Government for the Fiscal Year ending June 30, 1953
United States Congress, US House of Representatives, and Harry S. Truman
This excerpt from the US Government yearly budget, dated January 1, 1952, indicates a payment to the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold Reservation in the amount of 7.5 million dollars. This payment is noted in the section “Bureau of Indian Affairs” under the subsection “Miscellaneous Expired Accounts, Bureau of Indian Affairs” and is labeled an “expenditure out of prior authorization.”
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Congressional Record (Senate), February 7, 1952 Vol. 98, Part 1--Bound Edition
United States Congress and US Senate
This excerpt from the United States (US) Senate Congressional Record dated Thursday, February 7, 1952 (legislative day of Thursday, January 10, 1952) contains a resolution adopted by the Fort Berthold Inter-Agency Committee on December 7, 1951. The resolution outlines a plan for obtaining medical care for residents of the Fort Berthold Reservation as the Indian Service hospital in Elbowoods, North Dakota closed August 1951. The Fort Berthold Inter-Agency endorses the outlined plan. The resolution is prefaced by a note from Three Affiliated Tribes Tribal Council Chairman Martin Cross. The note from Cross and copy of the resolution were submitted into the Congressional Record by US Senator William Langer.
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Buildings Being Moved to New Site After Flood
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, depicts three buildings on trailers sitting on a road as if waiting to be moved. The buildings appear to be houses. The road in the photo cuts through grass and disappears over some distant hills. There are no other buildings, signage, or signs of town in the photo. The National Archives record notes, “Alice Young Bear’s house and shed on the road.”
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number:285353; NAIL Control Number: NRE-75-FB(PHO)-497.
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Enterprise Equipment at Work
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, depicts some construction equipment in a muddy area that’s crisscrossed with tire tracks. A truck sits in the center of the photo, a distance from the muddy area. The photo is taken from above. The landscape is treeless with rolling hills. The text at the bottom of the photo reads, “Enterprise Equipment at work; This is the first job of the Tribal SMC Enterprise. It is a stock dam being built by Martin Cross, Chairman of the Tribal Council. A number is written at the bottom of the photo: 341-52-67.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641507; local identifier: 75-FB-579.
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Eunice Kaiser Sits on Blocks after Alice Young Bear's Buildings were Moved
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, shows a two-story house set up on blocks. To the right of the house appears to be a narrow road. There are no other buildings or signs of town in the photo.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641376; local identifier: 75-FB-498
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George Gillette's Wheat Field
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, depicts a man standing right of center in a wheat field. He’s standing with his hands in his pockets looking to his left (viewer’s right). There are rolling hills in the background of the photo. The number “341-51-159” is written at the bottom of the photo.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45642064; local identifier: 75-FB-858.
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Martin Cross Tribal Chairman Three Affiliated Tribes
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, depicts Martin Cross standing on a porch attached to what appears to be a house. Cross is wearing dress slacks and a button-down shirt, tucked in. He is standing with his arms behind his back, and he is looking to the right (viewer’s left) of the camera. There is snow on the ground. The text at the bottom of the photo reads, “Martin Cross; Chairman Tribal Council; Three Affiliated Tribes; Mr. Martin Cross, pictured above, was instrumental in the establishment of the SMC Enterprise on this Reservation. He is very much concerned with the soil conservation problems here and is cooperating to his fullest extent to solve the problem.” The number “341-51-4” is written on the bottom of the photo.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641505; local identifier: 75-FB-578.
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Tops of Buildings Show Above Spring Floodwaters
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print, dated 1952, depicts the tops of buildings sticking out of a flooded area. There are 2-3 buildings visible in the water. More buildings to the right of the photo, unsubmerged, are visible. There are thick woods in the background. National Archives notes that these photos were taken during a spring flood.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 285352; NAIL Control Number: NRE-75-FB(PHO)-493.
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Changin the Name of the Reservoir to be Formed byGarrison Dam, N. Dak., Known as Garrison Reservoir, to Lake Thompson
United States Congress and US Senate
This report, dated August 2, 1951, also known as United States Senate Report 608, was written by the US Senate Committee on Public Works to accompany US Senate Joint Resolution 13. In the report, the Committee recommends passage of the bill with no amendments.
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A Bill to Provide for Certain Per Capita Payments to Members of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota
United States Congress, US House of Representatives, and Usher L. Burdick
This bill, dated May 8, 1950, proposes to authorize and direct the United States (US) Secretary of the Interior to disburse remaining funds associated with sections 2 and 12 of US Public Law 81-437, also known as the Takings Act, once the purposes of those sections have been accomplished
The bill directs those remaining funds to be disbursed in equal per capita payments to members of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation who are living at the time of such determination by the Secretary.
See also:
An Act to Vest Titles to Certain Lands of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota, in the United States, and to Provide Compensation Therefor
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An Act to Vest Title to Certain Lands of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota, in the United States, and to Provide Compensation Therefor
United States Congress
This United States (US) Public Law, dated October 29, 1949, also known as US Public Law 81-437, and commonly referred to as "The Taking Act," identifies the lands of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation that are to be vested in the US, and the procedures and mechanisms by which the Tribes are to be compensated for these lands, along with the costs for relocating residents, cemeteries, monuments and shrines.
Also detailed in this US Public Law are mechanisms for appraising the lands and for adjudication in the event that an appraisal is rejected by a tribal member.
This US Public Law also details privileges of the tribes and their members to remove timber, sand, gravel, lignite, and improvements made within the area of the Taking prior to the impoundment of waters, as well as their rights to electric power generated by the Garrison Dam project.
The notably coercive contract known as the "Garrison Dam Agreement" was signed by MHA Nation Tribal Chairman George Gillette on May 21, 1948 and served as the foundation for this public law.
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Compensation to Fort Berthold Indians, North Dakota, for Lands Taken in Connection with the Garrison Dam Project
United States Congress
This report, dated October 19 1949, also known as United States (US) House of Representatives Report 1458, was submitted by the Committee of Conference to accompany US House of Representatives Joint Resolution 33, and details the recommendations Committee of Conference members have agreed to make to their respective Houses of the US Congress regarding their disagreeing votes on the US Senate's amendments to Joint Resolution 33.
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Hearings before the Subcommittee on Indian Affairs of the Committee on Public Lands House of Representatives Eighty-First Congress First Session on H.J. Res. 33 Providing for the Ratification by Congress of the Contract to Purchase Indian Lands by the United States from the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold, North Dakota
United States Congress and US House of Representatives
This publication, dated April 29 and 30, May 2 and 3, 1949, printed for the use of the United States (US) House of Representatives Committee on Public Lands, contains the full text of US House of Representatives Joint Resolution 33, followed by a transcript of the hearings held on April 29 and 30, and May 2 and 3, 1949 before the US House Committee on Public Lands.
US House Joint Resolution 33, sponsored by North Dakota Senator William Lemke, was an attempt to add $9.5 million to the original $5,105,625 provided in United States Public Law 296 as compensation for the land taken from the members of the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold in order to build the Garrison Dam and reservoir.
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Providing for the Ratification by Congress of a Contract for the Purchase of Certain Indian Lands by the United States from the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold Reservation, N. Dak.
United States Congress and US House of Representatives
This report, dated May 9, 1949, also know as United States House of Representatives Report 544, was written by the Committee on Public Lands to accompany US House Joint Resolution 33 "providing for the ratification by Congress of a contract for the purchase of certain Indian lands by the United States from the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold Reservation,N. Dak., and for other related purposes." In this report, the Committe recommends passage with a number of amendments detailed in the report.
See also:
US House Joint Resolution 33
US House Report 605
Public Law 437
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Vesting Title to Certain Lands of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, N. Dak., in the United States, and Providing Compensation Therefor
United States Congress and US Senate
This report, dated July 1, 1949, also known as United States Senate Report 605, was submitted by the US Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs to accompany US House Joint Resolution 33 "providing for compensating the Three Affiliated Tribes of Indians of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, N. Dak., for lands taken and damages caused by the United States by reason of the construction and development of the Garrison Dam and Reservoir project." In this report, the Committee recommends that US House Joint Resolution 33 be passed with amendments that are included in the report.
See also:
US House Joint Resolution 33
Public Law 437
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Four Bears Highway Bridge Showing Land to be Flooded
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This undated photographic depicts the original Four Bears Highway Bridge, North Dakota (ND), spanning the Missouri River. The background of the photo shows a heavily wooded area. Since this area was flooded by the completion of the Garrison Dam, the original Four Bears Bridge was moved 70 miles upstream to cross the river at the town of Sanish. The original bridge crossed the river near Elbowoods, ND. The bridge is named for two Chiefs, one Mandan (Nueta) and one Hidatsa.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45614545; local identifier: 75-FB-598.
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High School that will be Flooded by Garrison Dam
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This undated photographic print depicts a high school that was flooded by completion of the Garrison Dam. The photo depicts a school building in the foreground with several smaller buildings in the background. There is a fence in front of the school lined with several young trees. A tall water tower is in the background, behind the school. A car can be seen on the far right of the photo.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641581; Local Identifier: 75-FB-616.
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Missouri River Before Dammed for Garrison Dam
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This undated photographic print depicts the Missouri River and some of the area that will be flooded by the Garrison Dam in North Dakota. Photo shows hilly landscape in the foreground with the Missouri cutting through heavily wooded area. There is snow on the ground.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 4561575; Local Identifier: 75-FB-613.
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Timberlands to be Flooded by Garrison Dam
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This undated photographic print depicts timberlands that were flooded by the completion of the Garrison Dam. Photo shows the Missouri river in the foreground with timberlands starting almost at the shoreline. Small rolling hills can be seen in the background. There appears to be a road cutting through the timberland.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641575; local identifier 75-FB-613
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An Act Providing for the Per Capita Payment of Certain Moneys Appropriated in Settlement of Certain Claims of the Indians of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota
United States Congress
This act, dated February 28, 1948, also known as United States (US) Public Law 80-424, directs the US Secretary of the Interior to withdraw $300,000 from the US Treasury, "out of the balance of the principal and interest of the amount appropriated in settlement of certain claims of such Indians pursuant to the last paragraph preceding the heading "Miscellaneous Indian Tribal Funds", in the first section of the Interior Department Appropriation Act,1947, remaining after the fees and expenses authorized by such para-graph to be paid from such appropriation shall have been paid or.provided for."
The money is to be distributed among enrolled tribal member on a per capita basis.
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Four Unidentified Men
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print dated May 20, 1948 depicts Three Affiliated Tribes chairman George Gillette being directed to sign The Garrison Dam Agreement which authorized the flooding of 156,000 acres of prime land owned by the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara tribes. Regarding the agreement, Gillette is attributed to commenting, "We will sign this contract with a heavy heart. With a few scratches of the pen, we will sell the best part of our reservation. Right now the future doesn't look too good to us." Following negotiation regarding how the United States (US) would compensate the Three Affiliated Tribes for their land, this authorization became US Public Law 81-437 (also known as The Taking Act). The man standing to Gillette’s right (viewer’s left) is the US Secretary of the Interior, Julius Albert Krug.
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 4561525; Local Identifier: 75-FB-588.
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Man Signing Document Surrounded by Group
United States Department of the Interior and US Bureau of Indian Affairs
This photographic print dated May 20, 1948 depicts Three Affiliated Tribes chairman George Gillette holding his glasses so he can wipe away tears as Secretary of the Interior Julius Albert Krug signs The Garrison Dam Agreement which authorized the flooding of 156,000 acres of prime land owned by the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara tribes. There are 15 men, including Gillette, surrounding Krug, seated at a desk, as he signs. Regarding the agreement, Gillette is attributed to commenting, "We will sign this contract with a heavy heart. With a few scratches of the pen, we will sell the best part of our reservation. Right now the future doesn't look too good to us." Following negotiation regarding how the United States (US) would compensate the Three Affiliated Tribes for their land, this authorization became US Public Law 81-437 (also known as The Taking Act).
Original print housed at the National Archives Catalogue in Kansas City, Missouri in the “Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs” group. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation are noted as “subjects represented” in the collection. National Archives identifier number: 45641547; Local Identifier: 75-FB-599.