Indigenous Peoples of Indiana

To learn how to get started with American Indian research, find research facilities, and American Indian websites click here.

Start your search for records of an American Indian ancestor in other records since Indians are often found in the same records as all other Americans. After you finish those records, turn to records specifically about Indians. Opportunities for genealogical research for American Indians are good because more government records have been created for Indians than for any other ethnic group. Many Indian records must still be obtained from their original archive or library.

It is important to study the history of the tribe, such as migration patterns, marriage and naming customs, and affiliations with government agencies or churches. Because some tribes moved several times, records about them may be in many locations. If you have evidence of Indian ancestry, there are some unique records you can use. Note, however, that many traditions of Indian ancestry are unfounded. Before you can effectively search American Indian records, you should:


 * Identify a specific ancestor who was Indian and learn where the ancestor lived.
 * Identify his or her tribe.
 * Study the history of the tribe.

Among the major tribes that lived in what is now Indiana were the Delaware, Kickapoo, Miami, Mound Builders, Piankashaw, Potawatomi, Shawnee, and Wea. After 1794, treaties were made that opened up large areas of land for settlement. At the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811, the Indians were defeated, and white settlements then proceeded at an increased rate. By the 1840s, most of the Indians had moved westward to other lands, either voluntarily or by force.

American Indian Sources
Census indexes are available that list the American Indians in the 1900 and 1910 censuses. See the "Minorities" section above for these sources.

Other sources are:


 * Beckwith, Hiram Williams. The Illinois and Indiana Indians. New York, New York: Arno Press, 1975. (Family History Library book 970.1 B389i; fiche 6087719.) This book gives histories of the various tribes in Indiana.
 * Rafert, Stewart. American-Indian Genealogical Research in the Midwest: Resources and Perspectives. National Genealogical Society Quarterly 76 (September 1988): 212-24. (Family History Library book 973 B2ng.) This article mentions useful local, county, and federal records to search for information on Americans Indians.

Online Resources

http://www.native-languages.org/indiana.htm

http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/indiana/index.htm

http://www.in.gov/history/2509.htm

Tribes and Bands of Indiana
The following list of American Indians who have lived in Indiana has been compiled from Hodge's Handbook of American Indians... and from Swanton's The Indian Tribes of North America. Some may simply be variant spellings for the same tribe.


 * Chippewa
 * Delaware
 * Erie
 * Illinois
 * Iroquois
 * Kaskaskia
 * Kickapoo
 * Mesopelea
 * Miami
 * Neutrals
 * Piankashaw
 * Potawatomi
 * Seneca
 * Shawnee
 * Wea
 * Wyandot

Bands
Wee-sau, Ash-Kum, Mau-ke-Kose, Wee-si-o-nas, Com-o-za of Patiwatan, Motas, Mes-Quaw-uck, Che-case, Aub-ba-mau-bee, Upper Kispoko Band of Shawnee

Potawatomie Bands:
Okaw-mause, Kee-waw-nee, Nee-Boast, Ma Che Saw (Mat chis jaw), Naswaw kee (Nees wawgh gee), Quash-quaw, pee pin ah was, Mach kah tah mo may, No tawkah, To I sas, Che quaw ka ko or Che chaw kosa, Ma sac, Memorn i nee, Me mot way or Me shing go me sia, Me to sin ia, Wee san

Reservations
From the mid-1800s, the official policy of the United States government toward the American Indian was to confine each tribe to a specific parcel of land called a reservation. Agencies were established on or near each reservation. A government representative, usually called an agent (or superintendent) was assigned to each agency. Their duties included maintaining the peace, making payments to the Native Americans based on the stipulations of the treaties with each tribe, and providing a means of communication between the native population and the federal government.

Sometimes, a single agency had jurisdiction over more than one reservation. And sometimes, if the tribal population and land area required it, an agency may have included sub-agencies.

The boundaries of reservations, over time, have changed. Usually, that means the reservations have been reduced in size. Sometimes, especially during the later policy of "termination," the official status of reservations was ended altogether.

The following list of reservations has been compiled from the National Atlas of the United States of America, the Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America , and other sources. There are current federally-recognized reservations in Indiana.


 * Godfrey Reservation
 * Meshingomesia Reservation
 * Osandiah Reservation
 * Ozahshinquah Reservation
 * Tahkonong Reservation
 * Wapapincha Reservation
 * Wife of Benjamin Reservation

Agencies of the Bureau of Indian Affairs
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 were created by these offices.

The following list of agencies that have operated or now exist in Indiana has been compiled from Hill's Office of Indian Affairs..., Hill's Guide to Records in the National Archives Relating to American Indians , and others.


 * Fort Wayne Agency 1824-30
 * Indiana Agency 1824-1850
 * Miami Subagency 1824-1853

Family History Library
In the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog many American Indian records are listed under:

INDIANA - NATIVE RACES

See also the Family History Library Catalog’s Subject Search under the name of the tribe, for example:

DELAWARE INDIANS

MIAMI INDIANS

SHAWNEE INDIANS


 * Lyman Copeland Draper Collection which includes:

Tecumseh Papers 9Shawnee Chief-1768-1823  Family History Library film: 889237 &amp; 887238


 * Moravian Church Records

1870 and 1880 index to Blacks, Mulatto and Indians

1870 Census 5 films Family History Library 1st  film 1509480

1880 Census 8 films Family History Library 1st film 1509284

See Also:

 * Indiana Church Records for a list of missions
 * Indiana History for a calendar of events
 * Indiana Military Records for a list of forts