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Disestablished / Revoked / and Ceded Indian Reservations in the United States

This article catalogs, state by state, Indian reservations (including rancherias, reserves, tracts, and treaty-set-asides) that were disestablished, revoked, or had substantial portions ceded/diminished. For each state listed, you’ll find notable examples, approximate timelines, and the mechanism (treaty, act of Congress, executive order, allotment/cession, or court ruling). This aims to be as comprehensive as possible in a single reference, while acknowledging that local and case-specific histories can add further nuance.

How Disestablishment, Revocation, and Cession Happened

Only Congress can clearly disestablish a reservation. Over the 19th and 20th centuries, however, boundaries were often reduced or fragmented through treaties, executive orders, allotment-era statutes, “surplus lands” sales, land cessions, and later termination-era laws. In some places courts have confirmed complete disestablishment; in others, courts have found that reservations were never disestablished because Congress did not clearly say so. Many entries below therefore include “ceded/diminished” to reflect partial losses even where a modern reservation remains.

Alaska

Most historic Native “reservations” revoked under ANCSA (1971): With the exception of the Annette Island Reserve (Metlakatla), Alaska’s reservation system was largely replaced by Alaska Native corporations and fee/titled lands. Numerous former reserves therefore fall into the “revoked” category as a class under federal statute.

California

California Rancheria Termination Acts (1950s–1960s): Dozens of rancherias were terminated by Congress, distributing or selling assets and removing federal trust status. Many later regained federal recognition and some trust lands through litigation and legislation, but others remain terminated or only partially restored. Notable terminated rancherias included places like: Big Valley, Cloverdale, Elk Valley, Hopland, Pinoleville, Redding, Robinson, Scotts Valley, Table Bluff, Tuolumne, Upper Lake, and many more (some now restored).

Colorado

Ute cessions/diminishment (late 19th century): After the Meeker Incident (1879) and subsequent agreements, large Ute holdings in Colorado were ceded; remnant reservations persist (Southern Ute, Ute Mountain Ute) mostly in the southwest corner, while former Ute domains in the central mountains and San Luis Valley were relinquished.

Idaho

Nez Perce, Coeur d’Alene, and Shoshone-Bannock cessions/diminishment: 19th-century treaties and agreements reduced reservation boundaries; substantial areas were opened to settlement or otherwise detached. Core reservations remain today, but vast former treaty lands were ceded.

Illinois

Ottawa/Potawatomi reserve tracts (early–mid 19th century): Numerous small reserved tracts named in treaties (e.g., Awn-kote and other named reserves) were alienated or extinguished as families relocated west and lands were sold.

Indiana

Small named reserves disestablished (mid-19th century): A number of Potawatomi and Miami reserve tracts—such as Aubbeenaubbee, Black Loon, and others—were dissolved as lands were allotted, sold, or opened following removals and treaties. Indiana’s modern tribal landholdings are minimal compared to these historic reserves.

Iowa

Historic cessions; settlement remains: Many early treaty-set-asides were ceded in the 19th century. The Meskwaki (Sac & Fox of the Mississippi in Iowa) uniquely purchased land and hold a settlement in fee/trust today, separate from many 19th-century reserve tracts that were ceded.

Kansas

Kaw (Kansa), Miami, Wyandot, Potawatomi, and others—revoked/ceded/diminished: Numerous 19th-century reservations in eastern Kansas were allotted, opened, or ceded. The Kaw Reservation in Kansas was dissolved as the Kaw removed to present-day Oklahoma; other groups experienced similar outcomes or drastic diminishment.

Michigan

Multiple small river/reserve tracts disestablished (19th century): Along with later allotment-era losses, Michigan had many named “Indian Reserves” (e.g., Au Sable River, Au Foin River, Beaubien, Bertrand, Big Rock, and others tied to Odawa/Ottawa and Ojibwe/Chippewa communities) that were extinguished or sold off. Modern reservations endure elsewhere in the state, but many historical reserve parcels were lost.

Minnesota

Dakota and Ojibwe cessions/diminishment (mid-late 19th century): Following conflicts (e.g., U.S.–Dakota War, 1862) and later agreements, broad swaths of treaty land were ceded or reduced. Several reservations remain (e.g., Red Lake, White Earth), but are remnants of larger historical territories.

Missouri

Wyandot and other small reserves disestablished: Treaty-reserved tracts for Wyandot and others in the mid-19th century were sold or extinguished as groups relocated to Kansas and later to Indian Territory (Oklahoma).

Nebraska

Nemaha Half-Breed Reservation (disestablished ~1860–1861): A unique mixed-ancestry reservation dissolved through sales/allotments; the legal entity ceased and the land passed to private ownership. Pawnee Reservation (Nebraska) dissolved (1870s): The Pawnee removed from Nebraska to Indian Territory; former reservation lands were opened to settlement. Other tribal lands in Nebraska were also reduced over time by cession or allotment.

New Jersey

Brotherton (Indian Mills) Reservation (18th–early 19th century): Often cited as the first reservation in what is now the U.S., Brotherton was eventually disbanded as remaining residents relocated (notably to New York/Wisconsin Brothertown communities), extinguishing the reservation.

New York

Seneca and others—Buffalo Creek and allied tracts (19th century): Significant portions of historic reservations (e.g., Buffalo Creek) were sold or alienated; modern Seneca territories (e.g., Cattaraugus, Allegany, Tonawanda) represent remnants, while some former tracts were completely lost. Separate Cayuga/Onondaga/Mohawk land losses also occurred via 18th–19th century transactions and later litigation.

North Dakota & South Dakota

Great Sioux Reservation (diminished): The vast Great Sioux Reservation created in the 1860s–1870s was repeatedly reduced by later acts and agreements, leading to separate reservations (e.g., Pine Ridge, Rosebud, Cheyenne River, Standing Rock, Lower Brulé). Fort Berthold area changes: Arikara (Sahnish), Hidatsa, and Mandan lands were consolidated/altered; modern Fort Berthold Reservation persists but represents a fraction of broader historical claims.

Ohio

Numerous named reserves disestablished (early–mid 19th century): Small tracts listed in treaties—Blanchard’s Fork, Auglaize, and other reserve parcels tied to Shawnee, Ottawa, and allied communities—were sold or extinguished as peoples removed west and lands opened to settlement.

Oklahoma

Kickapoo Reservation (Oklahoma) disestablished (late 19th c.; confirmed by modern court ruling): Following allotment/cession agreements, courts have held the reservation was disestablished. Kiowa–Comanche–Apache Reservation disestablished (~1900): Congressional acts and allotment opened lands; later court interpretations recognized disestablishment. Note: By contrast, many other Oklahoma reservations (e.g., Muscogee, Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole) were held by courts to have never been disestablished; those are not listed here.

Oregon

Coast (Siletz) Reservation—heavily reduced/diminished (1857–1875): A massive coastal reservation created in 1855 was repeatedly cut down by orders and acts; today’s Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians hold a much smaller remnant. Malheur Indian Reservation discontinued (1879): Established for Northern Paiute (1872), it was closed and the people dispersed after conflicts; no reservation remains. Table Rock and related Rogue River-area set-asides (1850s): Short-lived treaty/executive-order reserves created during the Rogue River conflicts were dissolved; people were removed to Grand Ronde/Siletz and elsewhere.

Washington

Puget Sound/Plateau cessions and reductions (mid–late 19th century): Treaty-era maps show larger reserved areas later reduced; while many reservations survive (e.g., Yakama, Colville, Lummi, Puyallup), significant ceded tracts and extinguished smaller reserves occurred during allotment and subsequent agreements.

Wisconsin

Brothertown/Stockbridge–Munsee transitions and other cessions: Complex 19th-century moves and reorganizations (from New York to Wisconsin) included extinguishment of earlier reserved tracts and creation of later, smaller reservations; various Ojibwe and Menominee cessions substantially reduced historic territories, even as modern reservations remain.

Wyoming

Shoshone/Arapaho—ceded/diminished outside the Wind River core: The Wind River Reservation survives, but historical cessions reduced broader claims and surrounding set-asides; similar patterns of diminishment took place across the Northern Plains during the allotment era.

What “Comprehensive” Means Here

This article aggregates places where reservations were clearly disestablished or revoked, and also where large, well-documented cessions and diminishment transformed earlier reserved tracts into today’s smaller footprints. States not listed either retained their core reservations without clear full disestablishment or lacked a discrete, documented “reservation” whose status was later expressly revoked. Where local names varied—or where multiple micro-reserves existed—the entry groups them under the state with representative examples.

Why Many “Lost” Reservations Are Still Debated

Because disestablishment requires a clear statement from Congress, some lands long assumed “lost” have been legally recognized as still-reservation in modern rulings. Conversely, where Congress was explicit—or where later courts have directly confirmed disestablishment—those reservations properly belong in catalogs like this one. The result is a patchwork of outcomes that only detailed, state-specific research can fully resolve.

Conclusion

Across the United States, disestablishment, revocation, and cession reshaped the map of Indian Country. Alaska’s ANCSA overhaul, California’s termination-era rancheria losses, Oklahoma’s mixed outcomes, and countless 19th-century treaties and allotments elsewhere all contributed to the present landscape. Understanding which reservations were fully revoked versus merely diminished is essential for interpreting present-day jurisdiction, tribal governance, and treaty rights.

SOURCES:

Raven
September 19, 2025

Assiniboine bison Dakota medicine man Navajo Sioux sioux tribe Sitting Bull Wounded Knee

Sitting Bull (Tatanka Iyotanka)

Sitting Bull or Tatanka Iyotanka, as he was known in his language, was a Dakota Indian from the Hunkpapa Band of Sioux Indians, a respected medicine man, and one of the last free Sioux leaders. On August 23, 1932, Mr. Z. M. Hamilton, a journalist for the “Leader Post” newspaper of Regina, Saskatchewan, referred to the Battle of Little Big Horn as “a massacre.”

This term was very incorrect. The Sioux were defending their territory, liberty, homes, and their own lives. Had they not been of Indian descent, we would have most likely called them heroes. <--More-->

Their land was given to them in a treaty made with the American Government. They were situated by the frontiers of South Dakota and Wyoming. In the early 1870’s, gold was discovered there and, thus, the Indian territory was invaded by prospectors searching for treasures. These “gold-diggers” established many villages around their mines and some defied the laws of the land, stealing and killing both Indians and white people in their crusade for wealth. The affairs of the Sioux rested in the hands of a few Washington politicians, one of whom described the tribe as “A band of the worst criminals ever.”

Sitting Bull, the Sioux medicine man, and his followers argued with the Government. Grant, one of the best soldiers but equally one of the worst politicians to ever hold the power to decide the future of a nation, was President at that time. He didn’t do anything. The influence of the “Indian Circle” never reached him. Thus, the Sioux were obligated to exchange the Indian reserve and fertile land of their forefathers for very poor and dry land further west.

The Sioux refused and were considered law breakers. Pursued by the American army for having defied the authority of the Government, the Sioux tribe occupied the important areas of the hills of Montana.

During the summer of 1876, the army surrounded them by three sides. In June, General Custer, leading the 7th Cavalry, encountered a large Indian camp. Ordering many of his soldiers to position themselves near the Indians, he and his 300 men began a direct attack. To their surprise, Sitting Bull and his tribe retaliated with great force and not one of Custer’s soldiers survived to recount the adventure.

Knowing strongly that the Indians would be punished severely for their victory if they went south to the United States, Sitting Bull reassembled his people and began the long trip to Canada and to protection. The first of the Sioux tribe arrived in Canada in November of 1876. A dozen scouts from “Little Knife” followed them until they arrived at Jean-Louis Légaré’s fur trading post in Wood Mountain. They wanted to be able to sleep in peace. Légaré, realizing the tribe’s poverty, invited the Sioux to trade with him.

After accepting the merchandise and the thirty dollars that Légaré offered to them to keep them in good spirits, they left. The roads were free, they reported. The next day, seventy Indian groups surrounded Légaré’s store. Following the arrival of the Sioux in Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police learned of Custer’s bloody defeat. Major Walsh apprehended Sitting Bull and his tribe with a detachment of 25 men on November 24, 1876. With the help of an interpretator, Walsh explained that Canada was not to be used as a departing point for raids on the United States. <.p>

A new team of Mounted Police was deployed to Wood Mountain to “maintain the right” amidst the presence of the Sioux. Sitting Bull and most of his tribe explored the Canadian frontier in May of 1877. They followed the Frenchman river between Val Marie and where Mankota is today. Zachary and Marie Hamilton, in their book, “These are the Prairies,” wrote that Sitting Bull “was a man full of good sense, a man of rules.”

Before establishing himself, he warned the Cypress Hills Mounted Police, which was 200 miles away, about his arrival in Canada and requested a meeting with them. Irvine, two officers, and a few agents went to Wood Mountain where they talked with the Sioux chief. Sitting Bull produced a gold medal and said: “My Grandfather received this medal in recognition of his battle for George III during the revolution. Now in this odd time, I direct my people here to reclaim a sanctuary of my Grandfather.” Irvine advised him that he and his tribe were welcome in Canada, but, like other citizens, if they did not obey the laws of her Majesty, the Mounted Police would deal with them.

In “These are the Prairies”, the Hamiltons explain that “since his first day in Canada, Sitting Bull was attracted to Légaré and trusted him. The Sioux chief desired apparently to obey the Canadian law, but he never compromised without first consulting the Canadian merchant.”

During the weeks and months that followed, the state of the Sioux as well as that of the Canadian Indian and Métis people was deteriorating due to declining bison populations and food shortages. Missionaries and officers of the American army offered Sitting Bull, in the name of the American Government, forgiveness if they returned to the United States. Persistent, Sitting Bull refused, although many of his people left for the United States in 1879.

According to Zachary and Marie Hamilton, “Sitting Bull did all he could do until his people could be recognized as Canadians and thus be allowed reserves.” He firmly noted that they had never bowed to the American Government and that their fidelity and love was still with England, who had given them a sanctuary. In the early fall of 1881, Sitting Bull, accompanied by a few followers, went to the post of Hudson’s Bay at Fort Qu’Appelle and visited the agent of the Indians, Colonel Allen MacDonald, in search of food.

The company told the Sioux that it needed all merchandise on hand, as it was already having difficulty meeting the demands of its local Indian population. While returning to Wood Mountain, the Sioux learned that during the preceding fall, Father Hugonard had ordered a load of flour, which had been transported on the Assiniboine river to Fort Ellice.

The Sioux, under the order of Sitting Bull, found Father Hugonard to claim themselves some of that flour. After a few tender moments, Father Hugonard persuaded Sitting Bull and his followers to exchange some tools for the flour. Sitting Bull, the first to trade, offered him a beautiful navajo cover and said, “How much will this buy?” Colonel MacLeod of the Mounted Police was sent on behalf of the Canadian Government to find a means of making the American proposition more attractive and acceptable to Sitting Bull.

He invited the chief to a meeting, where he asked Sitting Bull to name a man whom he trusted to negotiate his current situation with the Canadian and American governments. Sitting Bull unhesitatingly nominated his merchant friend, Légaré. Colonel MacLeod recounted the events of the Battle of Little Big Horn to Légaré.

Légaré distorted this information while negotiating with government officials at Fort Buford in order to satisfy the sincerity of the American offer. On his return, he invited Sitting Bull to a banquet where he suggested that the chief return to the United States. The Hamiltons state that “Sitting Bull kept his word, and during the summer of 1881, him and his people, accompanied by Légaré and a few bison hunters, went to Fort Buford where Sitting Bull handed himself over to the officer in charge.”

Sitting Bull and his tribe settled on the reserve that had been set aside for them at Fort Buford. The Sioux lived there until the end of the decade, when a messenger reported that, as medicine man, Sitting Bull was trying to raise his people. Concerned, the American Government sent an Indian police officer to stop Sitting Bull. When the Sioux chief refused to give up his rifle, the officer shot him on December 15, 1890. A few days later, on December 28, many Sioux men, women and children died at the hands of American soldiers during the Battle of Wounded Knee. The American army had finally avenged the death of General Custer and his regiment.

Raven
September 13, 2025

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The Apache tribes are well known for their beautiful and practical arts and crafts. Out of all their skills, basket weaving stands out as the one they are most famous for. Apache people also make beadwork, clothing, pottery, and carvings. Each branch of the Apache tribes has their own special styles and techniques, shaped by their environment and traditions.

Basket Weaving: The Best-Known Apache Craft

Basket weaving is the most well-known and respected Apache craft. Apache women, especially from the Western Apache, have passed down this skill for hundreds of years. They make baskets not just to carry food or store things but also as gifts and for ceremonies.

These baskets are often made using willow, yucca, and devil’s claw, all plants found in the Southwest. The colors in the baskets are usually natural, like white (yucca root), black (devil’s claw), and green (yucca leaf). Some baskets have bold, strong patterns, like zigzags and stars.

One special kind of basket is the burden basket. These were worn like backpacks to gather food. They are large, cone-shaped, and usually have leather straps and tin cones that jingle as they move.

Basketry is still practiced today, but it is a skill that is becoming rare. Fewer young people are learning it, and the materials are harder to find. Some tribes and museums now run programs to help teach and preserve this craft.

Beadwork and Clothing

Apache beadwork became more common after trade with Europeans and other tribes brought glass beads into the Southwest. Beadwork is used to decorate moccasins, belts, and clothing, often in bright colors and with geometric designs.

The Mescalero and Jicarilla Apache are especially known for their beadwork. Some artists use tiny seed beads to create patterns that represent nature, animals, or clan symbols.

Clothing made by Apache people included deerskin dresses, leggings, and shirts, often decorated with fringe, shells, or beads. These items were both practical and beautiful, showing a person’s identity and role in the tribe.

Dolls and Toy-Making

Apache families also made dolls for children, often dressed in traditional clothing. These dolls helped teach young people about their culture. Some Apache dolls were made from wood or cloth and included tiny beadwork or basket miniatures.

Woodwork and Weapon Making

The Apache were skilled at making tools and weapons, like bows and arrows, cradleboards, and knife handles. Some of these items had carvings or decorations, showing the maker’s skill and creativity.

Pottery

Unlike the Pueblo people nearby, most Apache tribes did not focus heavily on pottery. However, some groups like the Lipan Apache, who lived in Texas and northern Mexico, made simple clay pots for cooking and storage.

Differences Among Apache Groups

The Apache tribes include groups like the Chiricahua, Mescalero, Jicarilla, Lipan, and Western Apache. Each group has different art styles and materials based on where they lived.

For example:

Jicarilla Apache are known for their coil-style baskets and beadwork.
Western Apache are most famous for burden baskets and polychrome (multi-color) patterns.
Mescalero Apache have strong traditions in beaded regalia for ceremonies.

Notable Apache Artists

Allan Houser (1914–1994), a Chiricahua Apache, is one of the most famous Native American artists. He was a sculptor and painter known around the world. His works can be found at Allan Houser’s official site.
Jolene Bird, a contemporary Jicarilla Apache artist, is known for her basketry and for helping keep traditional arts alive. She has worked with museums and schools to teach young people.
Jennie Antonio, a Western Apache basket weaver from San Carlos, was featured in museum collections and helped revive traditional basket-making during the 1900s.

Saving Apache Arts and Crafts

Today, some Apache arts and crafts are in danger of being lost. As older artists pass away, fewer young people are learning the skills. Some schools and cultural centers are trying to change that by offering classes and workshops on basket making, beadwork, and traditional clothing.

Organizations like the Apache Cultural Center & Museum in Arizona and the Mescalero Apache Cultural Center in New Mexico help preserve and teach these traditions.

Sources: