1884
John L. Webster and Andrew L. Poppleton represent Omaha Indian John Elk, who has separated from his tribe and has sought to register to vote but has been refused. Based on the precedent of the 1879 Dundy decision, they are suing the voting registrar and the U.S. government to have Elk’s right to vote confirmed. The government is represented by District Attorney Genio M. Lambertson. Justice Gray finds against Elk.
1887
The General Allotment Act, also known as the Dawes Severalty Act, sponsored by Senator Henry L. Dawes, is passed by Congress. It provides for every Indian head of household to receive a small allotment of reservation land and for citizenship to be granted to those landholders—subject to approval by state law. Indian reservation land not allotted is to be confiscated by the government.
1890
Congress declares that every adult male Indian in the Indian Territory is eligible to enroll to vote—legislators are keen for Indian Territory to become the next state of the Union, but they need a set number of enrolled voters to qualify. Few Indians enroll.
1901
To increase the number of voters in the Indian Territory so that it can gain statehood, Congress declares that every Indian adult male is a registered voter. It will take another seven years for voter numbers to reach the level required for the territory to become the new state of Oklahoma.
1924
The Snyder Act grants the vote to all male adult Indians in the United States who do not already possess it. But the act must be ratified via complementary legislation by the states. Many states do not pass the necessary legislation.
1926
A congressional investigation into the operation and repercussions of the Dawes Severalty Act reveals a catalog of woes and wrongs. The allotment process has been a disaster for Native Americans, breaking up tribes and families, creating enormous financial and social problems.
1934
The Indian Reorganization Act sets out to correct damage caused by the Dawes Act. The allotment system is abolished. Over 2 million “surplus” acres are returned to tribal control. Members of the Ponca tribe in Nebraska are given back eight hundred acres for tribal use.
1945
The U.S. government announces a policy of abolishing some Indian tribes to reduce the cost of subsidizing reservations. The Ponca tribe is not affected.
1948
After lengthy court actions, the last states to legislate to grant Indians the vote, Arizona and New Mexico, finally do so.
1962
In a bill sponsored by Senator Frank Church of Idaho, Congress officially abolishes the Ponca tribe of Nebraska. The eight hundred acres previously returned to the tribe are confiscated.
1988
After years of agitation by the Northern Ponca Restoration Committee, the Nebraska state legislature officially recognizes the existence of the Ponca tribe of Nebraska.
1989
Nebraska Senators James J. Exon and J. Robert Kerry introduce a bill into the U.S. Senate calling for the restoration of the Ponca tribe of Nebraska.
1990
The Ponca Restoration Act is passed by unanimous vote in Congress. President George H.W. Bush signs the act into law. The Episcopalian Church, which owns the 160 acres on which the old Ponca agency building sits, cedes the land to the Ponca tribe of Nebraska. To prevent the tribe from gaining tax advantages, the federal government declines to give the area federal reservation status.
1993
Helped by dancers and drummers from the Ponca tribe of Oklahoma— which has retained many of the dance customs of old—Standing Bear’s people, the Ponca tribe of Nebraska, hold their first dance festival, a powwow, in 114 years, beside the old agency building.
TODAY
There are now more than 1,300 members of the Ponca tribe of Nebraska and 3,000 members of the Ponca tribe of Oklahoma. Next August, as they do every August, the Ponca tribe of Nebraska, the Ponca tribe of Oklahoma, and the Omaha tribe of Nebraska and Iowa will be holding their annual powwow festivals. All are welcome.