Little Shell Band of the Chippewa Tribe

Little Shell tribe is a recognized by the state of Montana

Tribal Headquarters
Little Shell Tribe

P.O. Box 543

Black Eagle, Mt 59414

History
Originally, the Chippewa's, Arapaho, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Cree, and Gros Ventre lived in the Great Lakes region. All were motivated to migrate to the west by the Seven Fires Prophecy. Exactly how long they have lived in Montana is a mystery. It is well known that the Cheyenne practiced the Chippewa's Midewiwin which means they were among the first Chippewa's to enter Montana.

White historians think the Chippewa's arrived to Montana in the 1880s but that is not correct. Chippewa leader chief Rocky Boy, told Indian Inspector Frank Churchill that he was born in Montana somewhere between Anaconda and Butte. Chief Rocky Boy and his brother chief Pennato, were leaders of the Chippewa's of western Montana. Chief Little Shell III was the leader of the Chippewa's of central and eastern Montana.

And the name of this group of western Chippewa's is probably not derived from chief Little Shell III. In the Great Falls, Montana region is the well known Hill 57. Using google earth you can clearly see a shell shape within an edge of the small mountain or plateau. In front of that shell shape is the Chippewa's Hill 57 settlement. Back before Joseph Paul passed away in 1950, as many as 300 to 400 Chippewa's were living there. After Paul's death the population of the Chippewa Hill 57 settlement dramatically dropped. Today, the settlement only has a population of possibly 15 to 20 people.

It could be that the Chippewa's named what is now called Hill 57, Little Shell Mountain. Lewis and Clark knew an Indian village was situated very near Little Shell Mountain in 1805. It was located near where the Sun River enters the Missouri River. Little Shell Mountain is about 1.5 miles from where the Sun River enters the Missouri River.

In 1916-1918, the last Chippewa Exodus in Montana resulted in a group of up to 100 Chippewa's who were forced off of Rocky Boy Reservation rolls, to relocate to Little Shell Mountain or Hill 57. In 1904, chief Rocky Boy commenced a campaign to have a Chippewa Reservation set aside within the Flathead Reservation for the Chippewa's living there. The bill failed to pass.

However, even now some of the Kootenai people know they originally lived in Michigan. And Chief Ignace Paul who was their leader, was not native to Montana. He migrated to the Bitterroot Valley of western Montana in 1816. They claim he was Iroquois but the Paul's of Montana are of Chippewa descent and the Kootenai claim to be originally from Michigan which is Chippewa country.

Kootenai people live in the northwestern part of the Flathead Reservation. Their communities are Big Arm, Elmo, Montana, Dayton Homesite, and Niarada, Montana. In 1909, nearly 200 Chippewa's were relocated to a new Chippewa Reservation between St. Mary, Babb, Montana, and the Canadian border. Around the same time period (1908-1909), Frank Churchill succeeded or nearly succeeded in having a 2,160 sq. mi., Chippewa Reservation set aside in Valley County, Montana. In those times Valley County was just east of the Fort Belknap Reservation.

In 1920 or 1921, what is now known as the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians was formed on either Joseph Paul's ranch near Lewistown, Montana, or on one of his relatives ranch near Lewistown. Howard Paul, who was the son of Joseph Paul, preserved this information. Joseph Paul obviously was an important Montana Chippewa leader.

On June 10, 1939, eight district representatives met at the Great Falls home of Joseph Paul to continue on with the affairs of the Montana Chippewa's. A new election resulted in the three-person committee being elected to continue to govern. One of their goals was to pursue a land claim. Some sort of dispute probably followed which caused friction. On December 17, 1939 Raymond Gray formed the Montana Landless Indians. His actions possibly led to the friction. World War intensified which led to delays. After the fighting diminished a bit, more friction arose. Joseph Dussome became more appealing to the United States.

Raymond Gray was a communist and that made him less appealing to the United States but they still worked with him. It would basically stay unchanged until Joseph Paul passed away in 1950. The Chippewa's of Hill 57 owned a bit of land there and the United States auctioned it off to the highest bidder in 1950. They wanted to use the proceeds to purchase land adjacent to Rocky Boy Reservation for the Hill 57 Chippewa's. Joseph Dussome hired an attorney in 1950 and filed the land claim suit in 1951.

It was Joseph Dussome who used the name the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana. The land claim lawsuit failed. The United States refused to recognize that the Chippewa's lived in Montana before the 1880s.

Current day Little Shell Chippewa's of Montana are descended from the Chippewa's who refused to relocate to Reservations and from the Chippewa's who were forced off of Rocky Boy Reservation rolls in 1916-1918.

Brief Timeline
A.D. 1000

First Chippewa's possibly invaded the Montana region. However, it may have happened centuries earlier or possibly later.

A.D. 1492

A planned expedition to the west was led by an Italian. They sailed towards the west for several months before landing on one of the islands of what is now the Bahamas.

A.D. 1600

Chippewa's from the Montana region were possibly sent to the east to support the Great Lakes Chippewa's in wars against the invading whites and their Indian allies. According to Chippewa author George Copway, the Chippewa's forced their way to the east from the west.

A.D. 1805

Lewis and Clark reached the Great Falls, Montana region on June 13. They discovered the village situated near where the current Hill 57 Chippewa settlement is.

A.D. 1816

Chief Ignace (Aeneas) Paul arrived to the Bitterroot Valley of western Montana. He was possibly the first Paul to live in Montana. If he was, the Montana Paul clan laid down their first roots in western Montana. Antoine Plante had reached Montana a few years before.

A.D. 1850

White settlers commenced to invade the Great Plains from the West and East. Chippewa soldiers were constantly at war against the invading whites and their Indian allies.

A.D. 1877

Last of the Chippewa Wars against the United States were fought in Montana. Many Chippewa's followed prophecy and migrated west into Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Canada.

A.D. 1886 or 1888

Joseph Paul is born near Fort McGinnis, Montana. His birth is strange because his mother may have been Elzear Paul's first wife. She was Rose LaPlante. She passed away in 1881. Click on the worldconnect.genealogy link below to learn about the mother and the mysterious birth of Joseph Paul.

A.D. 1896

Chippewa's are forced to relocate to Canada and the Flathead Reservation. Many, however, continue to refuse to relocate to Reservations.

A.D. 1904

Chippewa's are set aside a Reservation in the northwestern part of the Flathead Reservation.

A.D. 1906

Many Chippewa's are upset about the Land Act's. On November 2, 1906 a group of Chippewa's were stopped in southeastern Montana by United States soldiers. White historians claim the Indians were Utes but they were Chippewa's. They were relocated to the Cheyenne River Reservation of South Dakota.

A.D. 1908

Swan Valley Massacre leads to 4 Chippewa's and one white being killed. The massacre happened a few miles east of the Flathead Reservation. The Valley County Chippewa Reservation was possibly set aside.

A.D. 1909

Up to 200 Chippewa's are relocated to a new Chippewa Reservation on the northwestern part of the Blackfeet Reservation.

A.D. 1910

Chief Pennato leads 100s of Chippewa's off their new Reservation in the Blackfeet Reservation in late 1910. Many fled towards southwest Montana then into Idaho. By early 1911, they are in northern Nevada. A small group of perhaps 12, butchered four white ranchers and one Chinese man. On February 26, 1911 a white posse caught them in northwestern Nevada and killed eight of them. It is known as the Shoshone Mike Massacre.

A.D. 1916

Rocky Boy Reservation is established. Up to 500 Chippewa's were relocated to the new Reservation just west of the Fort Belknap Reservation.

A.D. 1918

Last exodus of the Montana Chippewa's leads to up to 200 Chippewa's being relocated to the Navajo Reservation. Many fled to Hill 57. Between 1900 and 1934, 1,000s of Montana Chippewa's were relocated to the Navajo Reservation. In the 1940s, many were relocated to the Colorado River Indian Reservation of Arizona and California.

A.D. 1921

Joseph Paul forms the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana. He claims the July 16, 1855 Hell Gate Treaty and October 17, 1855 Blackfeet Treaty, are not valid.

A.D. 1934

Indian Reorganization Act is passed. Several 1,000 Chippewa's are still living off Reservation in their own communities. Their communities or enclaves or ghettos, were usually located adjacent to or very near white settlements. Though the number of Chippewa off Reservation communities had dropped since 1900, they were still a few in the 1930s. During the 1930s, the United States relocated 1,000s of Montana Chippewa's to the Navajo Reservation. Land additions were added to the Navajo Reservation in 1930 and 1934, specifically for the landless Chippewa's of Montana and also California and Nevada. Several thousand Montana Chippewa's followed prophecy in the early 20th century and migrated towards California. Between 1906 and the 1930s, up to 50 Rancherias were set aside for the Chippewa's living in California. Many Chippewa Colonies were set aside in Nevada as well.

A.D. 1950

Joseph Paul passed away. To this day the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana are not recognized by the United States. Joseph Paul made certain it would stay that way. The current Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana were in a dispute some time ago which was recently settled. They are after federal recognition.

What you don't know about this group of Chippewa's is the land Joseph Paul claimed. That is nearly all of Montana and parts of several other States. Joseph Dussome tried to settle the dispute. We will keep Joseph Paul's defiance alive!

Reservations
Blackfeet Indian Reservation (Montana)

Flathead Indian Reservation (Montana)

Fort Belknap Indian Reservation (Montana)

Rocky Boy Indian Reservation (Montana)

Important Web Sites

 * Constitution of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana
 * worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi
 * www.bia.gov/idc/groups/xofa/documents/text/idc-001419.pdf
 * digital.library.okstate.edu/kappler/vol6/html_files/v6p0509b.html
 * www.anishinabe-history.com/navajo-reservation-land-additions-map.png