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The U.S. declared war against Britain and the Native Americans mostly sided with the British in an effort to protect their homelands. -
The Indian Removal Act forced the removal of Native Americans from there home lands in the Southeast. They had to move west to avoid conflict.
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Some Native American groups refused to leave. President Martin Van Buren enlists General Winfield Scott and 7,000 troops to speed up the process by holding Native Americans at gunpoint and marching them 1,200 miles. More than 5,000 Cherokee die as a result of the journey. -
U.S. Congress passed the Indian Appropriations Act which setup reservations designated for Native American groups. They could not leave these reservations without permission.
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Lieutenant Colonel George Custer’s troops fight Lakota Sioux and Cheyenne warriors, led by Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, along Little Bighorn River. Custer and his troops are defeated and killed, increasing tensions between Native Americans and white Americans. -
Tribal lands were divided into small sections for farming and given to individual families. Many Native Americans lost land as a result.
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Charles Curtis became the first Native American U.S. Senator and even became a vice president years later. This was proof that Native Americans were beginning to gain some kind of respect.
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This act granted citizenship to all Native Americans born in the territorial limits of the U.S. -
President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the act granting Native American tribes many of the benefits in the Bill of Rights.
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The American Indian Religious Freedom Act is passed, granting Native Americans the right to use certain lands and controlled substances for religious ceremonies.