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Reservations

Definition

Areas of land set aside for Native American tribes by the U.S. government. These areas were intended to provide a permanent homeland for Native Americans.

Analogy

Imagine reservations as separate rooms in a house where different family members live. Each room represents a specific tribe's designated area, allowing them to maintain their cultural identity within their own space.

Related terms

Indian Removal Act: An 1830 law signed by President Andrew Jackson which forcibly relocated Native American tribes from their ancestral lands to territories west of the Mississippi River.

Dawes Act: Also known as the General Allotment Act of 1887, this law aimed to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American society by dividing reservations into individual allotments for tribal members.

Indian Reorganization Act: Passed in 1934, this act sought to reverse some negative effects of previous policies on Native Americans and restore tribal self-government.