Council Bluffs Subagency (Iowa)

The Council Bluffs Subagency was located near Council Bluffs, Iowa, on the east side of the Missouri River.

Indian Tribes Associated With This Agency
United Band of Ottawa, Chippewa, and Potawatomi

History
The Council Bluffs Subagency was established in 1837, at the same time as the Council Bluffs Agency was created on the west side of the Missouri River. The Indians for which it was responsible had moved from Michigan and Illinois and were living on the east side of the Missouri River near Council Bluffs. This Subagency was discontinued in 1847. The Ottawa and Chippewa, for which this subagency had been responsible, had moved to the Osage River Agency. The Potawatomi had their own agent for about a year, but in 1848, they joined with the Fort Leavenworth Agency

Agents and Appointment Dates
Edwin James April 28, 1837, Stephen Cooper April 4, 1839, James Deaderick September 2, 1841, John B. Luce July 12, 1842, Richard S. Elliot March 24, 1843, and Robert B. Mitchell October 14, 1845

Records
Agencies and subagencies were created as administrative offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and its predecessors. Their purpose was (and is) to manage Indian affairs with the tribes, to enforce policies, and to assist in maintaining the peace. The names and location of these agencies may have changed, but their purpose remained basically the same. Many of the records of genealogical value (for the tribe and tribal members) were created by and maintained by the agencies.

The records of the Council Bluffs Subagency, if any have survived, would be part of the records of the St. Louis Superintendency of the Office of Indian Affairs, to which the subagency reported during the time it was located in Wisconsin and Iowa.