What is the 1838 Treaty with the Oneida?
In the early part of 1838, delegates from the Oneida Nation met with Carey A. Harris in Washington D.C. to discuss the negotiation of a treaty with the United States. The terms of the treaty were negotiated and then signed on February 3, 1838. Titled simply “Treaty with the Oneida,” states that “from the foregoing cession there shall be reserved to the said Indians to be held as other Indian lands are held a tract of land containing one hundred (100) acres, for each individual, and the lines of which shall be so run as to include all their settlements and improvements in the vicinity of Green Bay.” Official records stated there were 654 Oneidas living on the reservation at that time. That is the basis for the just over 65,400 acre reservation the Oneidas live on today.
Why is this important today and for people living in Oneida?
The importance of our reservation states that this is our home and we are going to continue to regulate our people and our land and make laws that affect our people and our land within these boundaries.
To learn more information about the 1838 Treaty with the Oneida, check out this video featuring Oneida Historian Loretta Metoxen and American Indian Studies Assistant Professor at University of Minnesota Duluth Becky Webster.
