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The Board of Indian Commissioners was a committee that advised the federal
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
of the
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on Native American policy and inspected supplies delivered to Indian agencies to ensure the fulfillment of government treaty obligations.


History

In 1862, in response to the recent Dakota Uprising, Henry Whipple, Episcopal Bishop of Minnesota, wrote "The Duty of Citizens Concerning the Indian Massacre." According to Scott W. Burg one of its "key tenets" was "the creation of an independent commission to oversee Indian affairs, a nonpartisan group made up of clergy and citizens empowered to initiate change and given the tools to investigate malfeasance" (38 Nooses, p. 212). At the time President Lincoln, with whom Whipple had communications over the matter, was in the throes of the Civil War and Whipple's "key tenant" would not be realized until President Grant's post-Civil War presidency. The board, established by
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
on 10 April 1869, authorized the president to organize a board of not more than ten persons "to be selected by him from men eminent for their intelligence and philanthropy, to serve without pecuniary compensation." It remained an all-
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, male body until 1902, when President
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appointed two
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to fill vacancies. The Board of Indian Commissioners established what an "Indian" was, and the rights that they were given, through the different laws and regulations for educating Indians that the board established. An Indian was determined based on their physical appearances. However, legally, it was difficult to determine what rights to give Indians, as according to the board, they weren't aliens or foreigners, however, they weren't citizens by birth. The board therefore determined how to go about treating Native Americans. The members of the board all held semi-official positions within the government, unlike other humanitarian boards. However, the amount of work that the board was able to accomplish was rather compromised, because Congress held the board responsible for funding, and didn't give sufficient powers to enforce either their fundings or recommendations.


Grant's Indian peace policy

Beginning in 1869, and in concert with the board, President
Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...
attempted to formulate a new humane policy towards Native American tribes that was free of political corruption. Known as the ''Peace Policy'', it aimed to place Native Americans on reservations where, in collaboration with
Christian Church In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus Christ. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a syn ...
organizations, the Office of Indian Affairs would provide Native Americans with moral and competent Indian agents, establish churches and schools, teach agriculture and civilized pursuits and provide high-quality supplies at reasonable prices. In 1872, the implementation of the policy involved the allotting of Indian reservations to religious organizations as exclusive religious domains. Of the 73 agencies assigned, the Methodists received fourteen; the Orthodox
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ten; the
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nine; the
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eight; the
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seven; the Hicksite
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six; the
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five; the
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five; the
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three;
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two;
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two;
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian mission, Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the l ...
one; and
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one. In the same year, 1872, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Episcopal missions converted more than 600
Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...
,
Chippewas The Ojibwe (; syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the northern plains, extending into the subarctic and throu ...
, Nez Percés and other Native Americans to these religions. In order to join these
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
religions, the Native Americans were required to shave their hair, adopt civil clothing, and go to work for his living. In essence, the conversion of Native Americans to these Christian religions was an attempt at assimilating Native Americans to the white man's society. The distribution caused immediate dissatisfaction among many groups who claimed that they had been slighted or overlooked. The selection criteria were vague and some critics saw the Peace Policy as violating Native American
freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty, also known as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice ...
. Among the Roman Catholics, this dissatisfaction led to the establishment of the
Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions The Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions is a Roman Catholic institution created in 1874 by J. Roosevelt Bayley, Archbishop of Baltimore, for the protection and promotion of Catholic mission interests among Native Americans in the United States. It i ...
in 1874. The Peace Policy remained in force until 1881, when the government heeded the protests of religious organizations whose missionaries had been removed from reservations on which they had not been assigned.


The Board after 1900

Although the Board of Indian Commissioners began to lose influence in 1900, the appointment of new members quickly revived it. The introduction of Warren K. Moorehead to the Board led to the Board becoming aware of diseases that existed on reservations, as Moorehead was dedicated to this. In 1922,
Flora Warren Seymour Flora Warren Seymour (1888 – 1948) was an American lawyer and author. She was appointed as the first woman member of the Board of Indian Commissioners by President Warren G. Harding. Biography Flora Warren was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She spe ...
became the first woman on the Board. The fight against diseases on reservations was continued by the board member Charles Burke in 1923, when he began a health drive. Although the Board of Indian Commissioners continued to accomplish its goals of fighting disease on reservations, assimilating Native Americans into popular society, and making citizenship available to Native Americans throughout the
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and well into the 1920s, the Board was terminated by
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in 1933, as there was no funding for the Board in the
New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...
.


References

{{reflist 1869 establishments in the United States United States federal Indian policy