Court case
Mashpee Tribe v. New Seabury Corp.
A jury found the Mashpee were not a tribe in 1976, and the First Circuit affirmed dismissal of their land claim.
- Citation
- 592 F.2d 575 (1st Cir. 1979)
- Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, 1st Cir.
- Year
- 1979
- Nations
- Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe
- Treaty at issue
- none
- Effect on land rights
- eroded
What happened
The plaintiff, calling itself the Mashpee Tribe, claimed to be a tribe of Indians that had lived in and around the town of Mashpee, Massachusetts, continuously since time immemorial. Its suit rested on the Indian Nonintercourse Act, which was first passed in 1790 and bars land conveyances from Indian tribes unless made by treaty or convention. The tribe said its tribal land was taken from it between 1834 and 1870 without the required federal consent. The suit, filed August 26, 1976, was against a defendant class representing landowners in the town.
The district court severed the question of whether the plaintiff was a tribe for a separate trial. The Mashpee asked for a delay until the Department of the Interior decided whether to recognize it as a tribe; the court denied that, and the trial began October 17, 1977. It lasted 40 days.
The jury answered special questions. It found that the proprietors of Mashpee and their families constituted an Indian tribe on March 31, 1834 and March 3, 1842, but not on July 22, 1790, June 23, 1869 or May 28, 1870. It also found no tribe on August 26, 1976, and no continuous tribal existence. The court dismissed the case, and the First Circuit rejected each of the plaintiff's claims of error and affirmed.
The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe later obtained official acknowledgement from the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 2007, according to a 2016 federal court opinion.
Good to know. This decided only whether the Mashpee were a tribe for this 1970s lawsuit; the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe was federally acknowledged in 2007.
Summarized with AI assistance from 4 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error
What the sources say, and how this was checked
Well supported by the sources below.
Plaintiff claims that its tribal land was taken from it between 1834 and 1870 without the required federal consent.
Mashpee Tribe v. New Seabury Corp., 592 F.2d 575 (1st Cir. 1979) (Harvard Caselaw Access Project)The trial lasted 40 days and was submitted to the jury on special interrogatories January 4, 1978.
Mashpee Tribe v. New Seabury Corp., 592 F.2d 575 (1st Cir. 1979) (Harvard Caselaw Access Project)Having rejected each of plaintiff's assignments of error, we must affirm the judgment of the district court.
Mashpee Tribe v. New Seabury Corp., 592 F.2d 575 (1st Cir. 1979) (Harvard Caselaw Access Project)The Mashpees are a federally recognized tribe that obtained official acknowledgement from the BIA in 2007.
Littlefield v. United States Department of the Interior, 199 F. Supp. 3d 391 (D. Mass. 2016) (Harvard Caselaw Access Project)
Research notes. This opinion decided whether the plaintiff was a tribe for purposes of the 1970s suit; it does not decide the present status of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, which was federally acknowledged in 2007 (per the Littlefield opinion). The opinion spells the town 'Mashpee' and 'Marshpee'. The old claim that Carcieri v. Salazar later affected their trust-land petition is covered in the separate Mashpee Wampanoag/Carcieri entry. Dismissal followed the jury's answers; the First Circuit also left part of the judgment, relating to a deferred appeal, aside.
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Connections
Links marked “suggested” were matched automatically by name or date and have not yet been reviewed by a person.
Doctrine applied 3
Policy era 1
- Self-Determination1970suggested
Nations named 1
- Mashpee Wampanoag Tribesuggested
Sources
The record’s fields
- Holding
- Upheld a jury finding that the Mashpee were a 'tribe' in 1834 and 1842 but not in 1790 or at suit, defeating a Nonintercourse Act land claim. The Tribe won federal acknowledgment in 2007.
- Kind
- Court case
- Confidence
- High