Historical Documents

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From his birth on the banks of the Niobrara River in Nebraska until his death in 1908, Chief Standing Bear spent his life in a constant struggle to gain equality and justice for our nation’s Native Americans. Open the pdf for the rest of the story

Chief Standing Bear Presentation

 

 

 

 


 

The War BonnetThe War Bonnet – courtesy of the Historical Society

In a document from December of 1915, Caroline C. Poppleton tells the story of an important Native American relic – the war bonnet.

 

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agents in Indian Territory 1877Reports of Agents in Indian Territory, 1877

This document describes the transition from Dakota to Quapaw Reservation, Indian Territory – the new home of the Ponca Tribe as of 1877.  (Source:  Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior of the Operations of the Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1877–Washington: Government Printing Office.  1877)

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agents in Indian Territory 1877Reports of Agents in Indian Territory, 1877

This document describes the transition from Dakota to Quapaw Reservation, Indian Territory – the new home of the Ponca Tribe as of 1877.  (Source:  Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior of the Operations of the Department for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1877–Washington: Government Printing Office.  1877)

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agent Territory 1878Nebraska County Histories

Creighton Centennial, 100 Years of Progress Creighton, Nebraska 1874-1974, Creighton (1974)

 

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agent Territory 1878Kansas Sources re. Movement

Kansas Newspapers, Maps, and County Histories re. Movements

 

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agents Territory in 1878 - The PoncasReports of Agents in Indian Territory, 1878 – The Poncas

This report discusses the lack of compensation the Ponca Tribe received for the land they had to leave behind on the Dakota Reservation, and also discusses the development and conditions on the Quapaw Reservation as of 1878. (Source:  Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior for the Year 1878–Washington:  Government Printing Office.  1878)

 

 

 

 


 

 

Reports of Agents in Territory 1879Reports of Agents in Indian Territory, 1879

This agency report details the development of farming, housing, and education in Indian Territory during the two years following the Ponca’s relocation to the site. (Source:  Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior for the Year 1879–Washington:  Government Printing Office.  1879)

 

 

 

 


 

Reports of Agents in Territory in 1879 - The PoncasReports of Agents in Indian Territory, 1879-The Poncas

In another report filed approximately two years after the relocation of the Ponca Tribe, a government worker describes recent developments in Indian Territory, such as the creation of a steady police force and improving health conditions.  (Source:  Annual Report of the Secretary of the Interior for the Year 1879–Washington:  Government Printing Office.  1879)

 

 

 

 


 

NE Legislative Resolution 171Nebraska Legislative Resolution 171

LR171 briefly describes the need for a continuous Chief Standing Bear trail from Nebraska to Oklahoma, and the cultural and historical significance of the trail to the state of Nebraska and its citizens.

 

 

 


 

Kansas House Resolution 6042Kansas House Resolution 6042

House Resolution 6042 outlines a resolution aimed at designating and developing a Chief Standing Bear Trail from Nebraska to Oklahoma.

 

 

 

 


 

Secretary Schurz. Reply of the Boston CommitteeSecretary Schurz. Reply of the Boston Committee

Written in 1880 by the Massachusetts Committee on the Ponca Indians, this document outlines the importance of providing education, guarantees of citizenship and titles to land to American Indians following their forced relocation. (Source:  Secretary Schurz, Reply of the Boston, Massachusetts Committee on the Ponca Indians, Governor John D. Long, Chairman, Misrepresentations Corrected and Important Facts Presented, 1881)

 

 

 


 

NEEDLegal Filings (writ of Habeas Corpus) from Standing Bear v. Crook

National Archives at Kansas City
Record Group 21, Records of the District Courts of the U.S.

U.S. Circuit Court for the Omaha Division of the District of Nebraska
Chancery, Criminal, Equity and Law Case Files, 1867-1911

ARC Identifier 1105112
Case #136E, U.S. ex. Rel Standing Bear v. George Crook
View this document on the National Archives Catalog

 

 

 


 

Publications

John E. Carter, Photographers and Plains Indians. NEBRASKAland Magazine, November 2014, p16

Omaha "Princess"An Omaha ‘Princess’ in Kilwinning

(By Tom F. Cunningham, Courtesy of The English Westerners’ Society)