FEBRUARY 10, 1890

PRESIDENT BENJAMIN HARRISON ISSUES PROCLAMATION 295—OPENS GREAT SIOUX RESERVATION (GSR) TO SETTLEMENT

In the 1880’s, railroads (RRs) demanded that the GSR be opened. White settlers soon followed the RRs forcing the Federal government to seek further Sioux land cessions; however, the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty required ¾ of adult Sioux men to agree to any land cession. After two commissions sent to the GSR & a conference held in Washington failed to get assent, Congress passed the Act of March 2, 1889 (Act), dividing the GSR into several smaller & well-separated reserves. With the dye cast, in July 1889, the Crook Commission obtained the required percentage. In November, North & South Dakota entered the Union. Using the Act, President Harrison issued Proclamation 295 formally declaring surplus lands on the GSR (lands not specifically set aside as reserve land) open to settlement. Shortly after, beef rations were halved as congressional funding was slashed due to “erroneous” census data. With the GSR divided & travel between reserves restricted, any united Lakota opposition became impossible.

Sources:

“Proclamation 295—Sioux Nation of Indians,” The American Presidency Project.  Retrieved 9/26/2022, Proclamation 295—Sioux Nation of Indians | The American Presidency Project (ucsb.edu),

Delphine Red Shirt, Lakota (“Sioux”) History 101 – Parts 2-4, Lakota Times, 11/152, 22, 29/2018.  Retrieved 9/26/2022, Lakota History 101 Part IV - Lakota Times [access to other parts also available at this site].8

Karl van den Broeck, “Everything We Know About Sitting Bull’s Crucifix is Wrong,” True West Magazine, 10/29/2018.  Retrieved 9/26/2022, Everything We Know About Sitting Bull’s Crucifix is Wrong - True West Magazine

Photo:  Author unknown, late 1800s. Public Domain: “Homesteading in the Badlands, Badlands National Park, National Park Service.