Dawes Act of 1887

Cultural  

1. A federal law intended to turn Native Americans into farmers and landowners by providing cooperating families with 160 acres of reservation land for farming or 320 acres for grazing. In the eyes of supporters, this law would “civilize” the Indians by weaning them from their nomadic life, by treating them as individuals rather than as members of their tribes, and by readying them for citizenship. Although generally well intentioned, the law undermined Indian culture, in part by restricting their hunting rights on former reservation lands. Much of the best reservation land eventually passed into the hands of whites.

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Example Sentences

Marshall’s words were entrenched when Congress became trustee of all Indian lands and resources under the Dawes Act of 1887.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 7, 2016

Like legions of others, Bruno acquired his holdings under the Dawes Act of 1887.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Dawes Act of 1887 had substituted severalty for tribal landholdings among the Indians.

From The New Nation by Dodd, William E.