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1787 Congress can regulate trade with Indian tribes The Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 8, permits Congress to make all laws ... |
1803 Congress orders medical care for Native peoples The federal government formally assigns the responsibility for providing medical care for Native peoples ... |
1819 Congress pays missionaries to ‘civilize’ American Indians Congress appropriates $10,000 to pay what it calls people of “good moral character” to help the U.S. eliminate ... |
1823 Supreme Court rules American Indians do not own land The first of three court cases (the “Marshall Trilogy”) that become the foundation of American Indian ... |
1824 U.S. establishes Office of Indian Affairs in War Department Establishment of the Office of Indian Affairs within the War Department puts in place the bureaucracy ... |
1831 Supreme Court rules Indian nations not subject to state law The second of three court cases (the “Marshall Trilogy”) that become the foundation of American Indian ... |
1832 U.S. vaccinates Native peoples on the frontier against smallpox Congress passes the Indian Vaccination Act and appropriates $12,000 to hire physicians to vaccinate Native ... |
1849 Indian Affairs moves to Interior Department; U.S. approach to tribes shifts Signaling a change in approach toward Native peoples, the federal government moves the Office of Indian ... |
1851 Congress creates reservations to manage Native peoples The U.S. Congress passes the Indian Appropriations Act, creating the reservation system. The government ... |
1861–65 Tribes react to the American Civil War Although most Indian tribes remain neutral in the conflict, some American Indians join Union or Confederate ... |