Page View
United States. Office of Indian Affairs / Annual report of the commissioner of Indian affairs, for the year 1905
Part I ([1905])
Reports concerning Indians in Kansas, pp. 224-227
PDF (1.9 MB)
Page 225
REPORTS CONCERNING INDIANS6 IN KANSAS. 225 lucrative and pleasant surrounding. He was compelled to go outside of the reservation to secure a suitable boarding place. There should be a small cot- tage built on the school grounds for the home of the teacher in this school. There is very little opposition to formal leasing on this reservation. Iowa Reservation.-The lawless element on this reservation has been given severe punishment during the year. Many undesirable persons have been com- pelled to leave the reservation, and the whole reservation will be well in hand when the Department of Justice shall have completed the work now begun of removing informal lessees. With formal leases and a decent class of lessees, it is hoped that by another year a better condition will obtain. A much better term of school has been maintained this year than heretofore, and thj attendance and progress fairly satisfactory. There are very few formal leases on this reservation at present, but the action taken by the office in supporting the recommendation of the superintendent is having a very salutary effect. All the desirable class of lessees and the Indians are anxious to take out formal leases. This much has been brought about by the action of the Department of Justice in removing informal lessees. 0. C. EDWARDS, Superintendent and Special Disbursing Agent. REPORT OF SUPERINTENDENT IN CHARGE OF POTAWATOMI. HOYT, KANS., August 26, 1905. The conditions upon the reservation are practically the same as reported for .the fiscal year 1904. From visits made over the reservation and from informa- tion gained through these visits I am convinced that labor conditions in this tribe are improving, and that a greater inumber of Indians are engaged in farm- ing than for the previous year, and more interest taken by many of them in making, improvements on their allotments. There have been erected several good, substantial trame cottages, and others will be built the coming year. Contracts are already made for several buildings to be erected this fall. The population of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Indians, the only tribe in this agency, shown by the census, as corrected June 30, 1905, is as follows: Males 18 years of age and over----------------------------182 Females 14 years of age and over--------------------------160 School children 6 to 16 years of age------------------------175 Children under 6 years of age------------------------------84 Total---------------------------------------------601 Reservation.-The Potawatomi diminished reservation is 11 miles square, and is located in Jackson County, Kans.; is north and west from Topeka, the capital of the State, 26 miles. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad runs on the east side of the reservation, affording a fine market for the produce raised and for the surplus hay, which is a very considerable item of income to the Indians. Hoyt, on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, is the post-office and telegraphic address of this agency, and the nearest railroad sta- tion, situated 10 miles from the school and agency, which is reached from this point by private conveyance. Allotments.-In addition to. the 588 allotments made to the members of the tribe under the act of 1887, 224 additional allotments have been made under the act of March 3, 1903 (Indian appropriation act), to the children born since the allotment of 1894 and to the absentee members of the tribe, making a total of 812 allotments under my charge. All of the surplus land on the reservation has been taken up by these allotments, except a few fractional lots, and the matter of surplus land settled, which relieves this office of many perplexing difficulties. The allotment of this surplus land was accomplished without fric- tion, and no complaint has been made to the office, and so far as I am informed all of the allottees are satisfied. The number of leases in effect for farming and grazing purposes under my supervision number about 250, and will probably reach over 300 when the late allotments are approved. I consider it advisable to continue the leasing of these lands for a few years, as quite a per cent of the money received as rental INn 1905-15
As a work of the United States government, this material is in the public domain.| For information on re-use see: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/Copyright