Land area

Land of the Menomini in Wisconsin, ceded 1856 (area 403)

Shape traced from the 1899 maps; approximate. Open on the map

1854
Set aside as a reservation
By Menominee at Falls of Wolf River, Wisconsin (1854)
1856
Named in the record
By Stockbridge and Munsee at Stockbridge, Wisconsin (1856)
1856
Ceded to the United States
By Menominee at Keshena, Wisconsin (1856)
1871
Partly ceded to the United States
The 1899 record: “All except 18 sections of their reserve to be appraised and sold”

In the record

Part of the Menominee's 1854 Wolf River home; two townships in its southwest corner were ceded in 1856 for the Stockbridge and Munsee, and an 1871 act ordered all but 18 sections sold. The area covers about 65 thousand acres in what is now Wisconsin.

How it was taken: a treaty or agreement. The OSU treaty text records a council agreement to sell land for a stated price per acre; the preamble says the Menominee had no objection to the new neighbors.

Written from the records linked here; open any of them for its sources.

See this cession on the map

Shapes come from C. C. Royce’s 1899 maps as georeferenced by the US Forest Service. They are approximate and are not legal descriptions of land. Royce recorded land the United States treated as ceded; the shape does not show a nation’s territory.

Who is doing the work

Land return and Native-led work nearby

Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) Nation government Ojibwe treaty rights in ceded territories, natural resource stewardship, manoomin, and a Land Conservancy program… Give on their site Website
Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin Nation government Restoration of about 200,000 acres to reservation status (1975)
Stockbridge-Munsee Community (Band of Mohican Indians) Nation government 372 acres on Monument Mountain's north slope (finalized Apr 2025; $2.5M, $2.26M state grant)

Native legal and land defense, nationally

Native American Rights Fund (NARF) Native-led Litigation and legal advocacy for tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, land and resources Give on their site Website
NDN Collective (LANDBACK Campaign) Native-led LANDBACK campaign (launched 2020; Mount Rushmore closure and return of Black Hills public lands), Indigenous… Give on their site Website
Indian Land Tenure Foundation (ILTF) Native-led Land recovery and control by tribes and individual Indian landowners Website
Decolonizing Wealth Project (Indigenous Earth Fund; California Tribal Land Return) Native-led Reparative philanthropy Give on their site Website

Gifts go straight to each organization; this atlas takes nothing. Listing is not endorsement: how organizations are listed.

Connections

Links marked “suggested” were matched automatically by name or date and have not yet been reviewed by a person.

Sources

Royce, Indian Land Cessions (1899), Schedule entry dated 1854-05-12primary record
Kappler, Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties, text for 1854-05-12primary record
Royce, Indian Land Cessions (1899), Schedule entry dated 1856-02-05primary record
Kappler, Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties, text for 1856-02-05primary record
Royce, Indian Land Cessions (1899), Schedule entry dated 1856-02-11primary record
Kappler, Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties, text for 1856-02-11primary record
Royce’s map sheet: Wisconsin 2 (Library of Congress)primary record
USDA Forest Service, Tribal Lands Ceded to the United States (digitized Royce maps)reference work

The record’s fields

Area number in the 1899 record: 403
Dates in the 1899 record: 1854-05-12; 1856-02-05; 1856-02-11; 1871-02-06
Kind of instrument: Treaty or agreement
Peoples as named in the 1899 record: Menomini
States: WI
Counties: Shawano
Map sheets in the 1899 record: Wisconsin 2
Geometry: Approximate shape from Royce’s 1899 maps

Research notes

geometry_role is 'cession' for every USFS feature: no field in the source distinguishes cessions from reservations.

Kind: Land area
Confidence: Medium

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