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Indian Reservations Facts & Worksheets

The establishment of Indian Reservations sought to exercise control over, minimize conflict with, and assimilate Native Americans.

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There were three main goals with the establishment of the Indian Reservations. One was to bring the Native Americans under the control of the US government. Two, was to minimize the conflict between Indians and the settlers, and lastly, to encourage the Native Americans to take on the white man’s way.

See the fact file below for more information on the Indian Reservations, or you can download our 29-page Indian Reservations worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

HISTORY

  • The Treaty of Hopewell was a treaty to place the indigenous Cherokees under the protection of a young United States and set boundaries for their land.
  • The Treaty of Hopewell was signed in 1785 in Georgia, the largest state in the US at that time.
  • It was not long until the European settlers intruded on Cherokee land, making the Cherokee revolt against the white settlement.
  • In 1791, to re-establish the peace between the Cherokees and the settlers, the Cherokees agreed to give up all of their lands outside their established borders under the Treaty of Holston.
  • The Native Americans were also encouraged to not only give up their lands but also to become Christians.
  • By the early 19th century, the settlers moved into the southern Cherokee territory in groups and wanted their government representatives to claim the land.
  • The US government acted to remove all Indian nations from the southeast.
  • At the same time, Georgia agreed to surrender its western land to the government in return for the Indian land title.

BATTLE OF THE HORSESHOE BEND

  • After The Louisiana Purchase, Thomas Jefferson had hoped to move the eastern Indian tribes past the Mississippi River, but most Indians rejected it.
  • To allocate seized Indian lands, Georgia would hold lotteries. While the battle-weary Creeks, who would soon seek sanctuary in east Alabama, fought against Andrew Jackson and his men for their independence. 
  • After suffering a devastating defeat at what became known as the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, the Creeks surrendered more than 20 million acres of land to the federal government.
  • Over the next several years, despite the Cherokee forming a new constitution-based government of their own, the federal government still passed several acts to diminish Indian autonomy.
  • By December 1828, Georgia finally ordered the seizure of the remaining Cherokee land in its state.

INDIAN REMOVAL ACT

  • President Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act on May 28, 1830.
  • The practice of forcing Native Americans off of their ancestral lands in order to make way for European settlers had been institutionalized with the help of the Indian Removal Act of 1830.
  • The federal government forcibly relocated the Five Civilized Tribes, namely the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole, to territories that would later become the states of Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. It was a death march known as the Trail of Tears.
  • The government had agreed to pay for the cost of relocating the people and helping them resettle.
  • The Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Creeks were forced to move westward on foot over the next few years.

TRAIL OF TEARS

  • Even some Indian in the North were forced to relocate.
  • During the move, they were often in chains with little to no food or supplies.
  • President Martin Van Buren sent federal troops to march the remaining southern Cherokee holdouts 1,200 miles to Indian Territory in the Plains in 1838.
  • Disease and starvation were rampant, and thousands died along the way, giving the tortuous journey the nickname “Trail of Tears.”
  • However, a group of Seminoles refused to leave and hunkered down in Florida.
  • The Seminoles fought federal troops for almost a decade before their leader was killed, and they finally surrendered.

INDIAN APPROPRIATIONS ACT

  • It is also known as the Appropriation Bill for Indian Affairs.
  • The Indian territory shrank as the white settlers continued to move westward and needed more land. But the problem was that there was no more land for the government to move the Native Americans.
  • Congress passed the Indian Appropriations Act in 1851. It authorized the establishment of reservations in Oklahoma and inspired the creation of reservations in other states. At the same time, funds to move Indian tribes onto farming reservations were provided. The federal government envisioned the reservations as a solution for keeping Native Americans off the lands white Americans wished to settle and for keeping the Native Americans under the control of the government.

LIFE AT THE RESERVATIONS

  • Many Native Americans resisted the pressure of the reservation system. This sparked a series of conflicts known as the Indian Wars.
  • The US Army ultimately relocated most indigenous people onto reservations through a series of bloody massacres and victories in battle.
  • Thus, the surrounding land and natural resources of the West
    Became available for the white settlers.
  • Daily life on the reservations was problematic at best; not only had the tribes lost their native lands to which they had spiritual and ancient connections, but it was almost impossible to maintain their culture and traditions inside a confined area.
  • Indians who were once hunters struggled to become farmers, and feuding tribes were often put into the same reservations.
  • Living in close quarters hastened the spread of diseases brought by white settlers. At the same time, starvation was common.
  • President Ulysses S. Grant adopted a policy to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream US society.
  • The Indians were encouraged or forced to wear non-Indian clothing and learn to read and write English, sew, and raise livestock.
  • Missionaries attempted to convert them to Christianity and give up their spiritual beliefs.
  • This policy led to violent resistance on the part of many Native Americans and was ultimately abandoned under President Rutherford B. Hayes.

DAWES ACT

  • President Grover Cleveland signed the Dawes Act in 1887. It allowed the government to divide the reservations into small plots of land for individual Indians.
  • The government hoped the legislation would help Indians assimilate into the white culture more easily and quickly and improve their quality of life.
  • The tribal lands, however, were parceled out into individual allotments, and only those Native Americans who accepted the individual plots were allowed to become US citizens.
  • Instead, the Dawes Act had a devastating impact on the Native American tribes.
  • It decreased the land owned by Indians by more than half and opened up even more land to white settlers and railroads.
  • Most of the reservation land was not suitable for farming, and many Indians could not afford the supplies needed to grow a good harvest.
  • Before the Indian reservation system, the Indian women farmed and took care of the land while the men hunted and helped protect the tribe.
  • Now, men were forced to farm, and women took on more domestic roles.

INDIAN REORGANIZATION ACT

  • It was clear that the Dawes Act was severely detrimental to Native Americans after a review of life on Indian reservations, known as the Meriam Survey.
  • In 1934, the law ended and was replaced with the Indian Reorganization Act, with the goals of restoring Indian culture and returning surplus land to tribes.
  • At the same time, it encouraged tribes to self-govern, write their constitutions, and also provided financial aid for reservation infrastructure.
  • The act ended the land allotments created by the Dawes Act and resurrected the reservation system, which remains in place today.

BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS

  • Created in 1824 and was first named as Office of Indian Affairs.
  • It was designed to resolve the land issue.
  • An act of Congress established the position of Commissioner of Indian Affairs in 1832, and by 1869, Ely Samuel Parker became the first Native American to be appointed to the post.
  • The office was renamed the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1947.
  • Modern Indian reservations still exist across the United States and fall under the umbrella of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
  • The tribes on each reservation are sovereign and not subject to most federal laws.
  • The BIA handles most reservation-related obligations but depends on the federal government for financial support.
  • The primary sources of revenue are tourism and gambling on many reservations.
  • According to the BIA, 567 federally-recognized American Indian tribes and Alaskan natives reside in the United States.
  • The BIA is responsible for improving their quality of life, providing them with economic opportunities, and improving their assets which the BIA holds in trust. The living conditions on reservations are not ideal and are often compared to that of a third-world country despite their efforts.
  • Many people on the reservations are stuck in a cycle of poverty, and housing is overcrowded and often below standards. Health care on reservations is provided through Indian Health Services, but it’s underfunded and, in some cases, practically non-existent.
  • Many Native Americans die from lifestyle-related diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Infant mortality rates are significantly higher for Indians than for white people, and alcohol and drug abuse is rising.
  • In search of employment and improved living conditions, many people leave the reservations for urban areas. Initially, the Indian reservation system was established due to the greed and prejudice of early American settlers and the federal government.
  • Native Americans continue to hold on to their heritage and thrive as a community despite its challenges then and now.

Indian Reservations Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Indian Reservations across 29 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching kids about Indian Reservations. There were three main goals with the establishment of the Indian Reservations. One was to bring the Native Americans under the control of the US government. Two, was to minimize the conflict between Indians and the settlers, and lastly, was to encourage the Native Americans to take on the white man’s way.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Indian Reservations Facts
  2. Take Them Home
  3. Fact or Bluff
  4. Indian Reservation Timeline
  5. What’s that Act?
  6. Living in the Past or Present
  7. Photo Check-up
  8. Redraw it!
  9. Photo Gallery
  10. Video Analysis
  11. Act Making

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is it called an Indian reservation?

Reservations were initially created when early Native Americans gave away large parts of their land through treaties, keeping only small portions for themselves. As a result, these reservations are generally characterized as meager parcels upon which they had to inhabit.

Can a non-native live on a reservation?

To ensure the safety and security of Indigenous lands, federal law has implemented special protections for Indian reservations. This includes criminalizing any non-Native attempting to establish a residence on tribal land granted by the U.S. government.

How do Indian reservations get money?

The United States government acknowledges the presence of 574 Native American tribes in its 48 lower states and Alaska, offering funds and services to every officially recognized tribe courtesy of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. These resources may be accessed through grants, contracts, or compacts.

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Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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