Favorable or Unfavorable #224: Henry L. Dawes

[vcczar]

HL Dawes of MA is best known for the Dawes Act, which was well-intentioned. Many believed the Native Americans were on the verge of extinction, so quick assimilation to Western culture was urgent. Tribes had communal land, so Dawes broke them up into private properties, hoping to instill sense of capitalism and property ownership into them. In doing so, Native Americans losts tens of thousands of acres and tribes members were often placed distantly away from family members, and the private property element led to uneven distribution of quality of land. Some had no way to hunt for food. This resulted in a large crisis for many tribal people, at least for the first generation of those living under this system. Later generations adapted better. An amendment to the Dawes Act helped lead to OK statehood.

His actions:

Dawes, Henry L.	1868	Received stocks during the Credit Mobilier scandal but more or less got away unblemished
Dawes, Henry L.	1869	moderate post-Stevens chair of House Approps Committee
Dawes, Henry L.	1872	Role in creating Yellowstone National Park
Dawes, Henry L.	1880	Supports Edmunds for GOP nom with a focus on stopping Grant and Blaine
Dawes, Henry L.	1881	Influential Senate Indian Affairs Committee Chair. Served during the Dawes Act
Dawes, Henry L.	1887	Introduces Dawes Act to assimilate tribes by dividing their communal tribal land into individual properties for tribes people
Dawes, Henry L.	1893	Chairs Dawes Commission to enforce the Dawes Act, but it creates a crisis for tribes members