The Native American Collection
Native American Records
Whether tracing your heritage or learning about Native American history, original records shed new light on the people and events of the past.
Over 1.5 million images available for the first time on the Internet.
- Ratified Indian Treaties 1722–1869
- Indian Census Rolls 1885–1940
- Dawes Packets
- Dawes Enrollment Cards 1898–1914
- Eastern Cherokee Applications 1906–1909
- Guion Miller Roll 1908–1910
- Cherokee Indian Agency TN 1801–1835
- Native American Photos 1898
Ratified Indian Treaties (1722–1869)
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Treaty between the Governors of New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania and The Five Nations, August 14, 1722.
What is this collection?
Ratified treaties that occurred between the United States government and American Indian tribes.
What can I find?
- Presidential Proclamations
- Pre-Constitution Treaties
- Correspondence
- Treaty Negotiation Expenses
Indian Census Rolls (1885–1940)
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Turtle Mountain, Chippewa, 1910-1912
What is this collection?
Census rolls submitted annually by agents or superintendents of Indian reservations as required by an 1884 Act of Congress. Only persons who maintained a formal affiliation with a tribe under Federal supervision are listed on these census rolls. There is not a census for every reservation or group of Indians for every year. Some tribes, particularly those in the East, were never under Federal jurisdiction and therefore not included in this publication.
What can I find?
- English and Indian name of the person
- Age
- Relation to head of family
- Degree of Indian blood (post 1930)
- Marital status
- Place of residence
Dawes Packets
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Record for Pin Harjo from the Creek Tribe
What is this collection?
President Grover Cleveland appointed a commission to negotiate land with the Native American tribes in 1893. Members of the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole tribes were entitled to an allotment of land in return for abolishing their tribal governments and recognizing Federal law. The commission accepted applications between 1896 and 1914 from these five tribes to establish eligibility. These records have also been referred to as the "Dawes Rolls," the "Dawes Enrollment Applications," and the "Dawes Enrollment Jackets."
What can I find?
- Name
- Tribe
- Affidavits
- Licenses
- Court orders
Dawes Enrollment Cards (1898–1914)
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Cherokee enrollment card
What is this collection?
Enrollment cards, also referred to as “census cards,” were prepared by the staff of the Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes, commonly known as the Dawes Commission. The cards record information provided by applications submitted by members of the same family group or household and include notations of the actions taken.
What can I find?
- Name
- Age
- Degree of Indian blood
- Relationship to the head of the family group
- Parents' names
Eastern Cherokee Applications (1906–1909)
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Roll of Eastern Cherokees 1906
What is this collection?
The images within this title are applications submitted for shares of the money that was appropriated for the Eastern Cherokee Indians by Congress on June 30, 1906.
What can I find?
- Name
- Address
- Age
- Relation to Head of House
Enrollment of Eastern Cherokee by Guion Miller (1908-1910)
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Roll Of Eastern Cherokee, May 28, 1909
What is this collection?
The Guion Miller Roll is perhaps the most important source for Cherokee genealogical research. In certifying the eligibility of the Cherokees, Miller used earlier census lists and rolls that had been made of the Cherokees by Hester, Chapman, Drennen, and others between 1835 and 1884. Copies of some of these rolls and the indexes to them are filed with the Guion Miller records and are part of this publication. There are an estimated 90,000 individual applicants from throughout North America included within this publication.
What can I find?
- Applicants’ name & Indian name
- Residence
- Date and place of birth
- Marriage status
- Name of husband or wife
- Names of siblings, parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents, and great grandparents
Cherokee Indian Agency TN (1801-1835)
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Fiscal record from 1804
What is this collection?
This publication, NARA M208, includes the records of the agent of Indian Affairs in Tennessee. The agent’s duties included preserving or restoring peace and inducing Indians to cede their lands and move to areas less threatened by white encroachment.
What can I find?
- Correspondence
- Agency letter books
- Fiscal records
- Records of the Agent for the Department of War in Tennessee
- Records of the Agent for Cherokee Removal
- Miscellaneous records
Rinehart Photos - Native Americans (1898)
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Frank A. Rinehart's 1898 Native American photographs, unique in their quality and dignity.
What is this collection?
Frank A. Rinehart, a commercial photographer in Omaha, Nebraska, was commissioned to photograph the 1898 Indian Congress, part of the Trans-Mississippi International Exposition. More than five hundred Native Americans from thirty-five tribes attended the conference
What can I find?
- Photographs of over 100 Native Americans
- Name
- Tribe Name