Land area
Land of the Paiute, Shoshoni and others in Oregon, ceded 1872 (area 537)
- 1871
Named in the record
The 1899 record: “President withdraws for eighteen months tract of country from which to select a reservation known as Malheur reservation”
- 1872
Taken back by the United States
The 1899 record: “President restores to public domain remainder of tract temporarily withdrawn by Executive order of Mar. 14, 1871”
In the record
Withdrawn in Oregon in 1871 so a Malheur reservation could be chosen from it; the rest was returned to the public domain in 1872. The area covers about 13 million acres in what is now Oregon.
The 1899 record names Shoshone (Shoshoni) as the people of this land.
Today, Eastern Shoshone Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming, Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation and Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada (Four constituent bands: Battle Mountain Band; Elko Band; South Fork Band; and Wells Band) carry the history of the people named here.
Written from the records linked here; open any of them for its sources.
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
This history belongs to living nations. Start with them:
- Eastern Shoshone Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming
- Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation
Land return and Native-led work nearby
- Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians Nation government Rocky Shores parcel near Yachats (about 7 acres, purchase pending as of Oct 2026)
- Indigenous Land Relationship Fund (Oregon Land Justice Project / Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts), allied host Native-led Funds Indigenous-led projects to reclaim and reconnect to land and First Foods in Oregon Give on their site Website
- Na'ah Illahee Fund Native-led Indigenous-led regranting for Land Back (building on E'lip Tilikum Land Conservancy), land and water protection,… Give on their site Website
- Potlatch Fund Native-led Native philanthropy and grantmaking to Native individuals and Native-led organizations Give on their site Website
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.
Nations named for this land 27
- Bannockmatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Bishop Paiute Tribematched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Bridgeport Indian Colonymatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Burns Paiute Tribematched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Duckwater Shoshone Tribematched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Ely Shoshone Tribe of Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Fort Independence Indian Community of Paiute Indians of the Fort Independence Reservation, Californiamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribes of the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation, Nevada and Oregonmatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians of the Kaibab Indian Reservation, Arizonamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Las Vegas Tribe of Paiute Indians of the Las Vegas Indian Colony, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Lone Pine Paiute-Shoshone Tribematched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Lovelock Paiute Tribe of the Lovelock Indian Colony, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
Show all 27
- Moapa Band of Paiute Indians of the Moapa River Indian Reservation, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah (Cedar Band of Paiutes, Kanosh Band of Paiutes, Koosharem Band of Paiutes, Indian Peaks Band of Paiutes, and Shivwits Band of Paiutes)matched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Paiute-Shoshone Tribe of the Fallon Reservation and Colony, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe of the Pyramid Lake Reservation, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe of Arizonamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Shoshone (Shoshoni)as named in the 1899 recordsuggested
- Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservationmatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Summit Lake Paiute Tribe of Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada (Four constituent bands: Battle Mountain Band; Elko Band; South Fork Band; and Wells Band)matched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute Tribe of the Benton Paiute Reservation, Californiamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Walker River Paiute Tribe of the Walker River Reservation, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Western Shoshone (Newe)matched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Yerington Paiute Tribe of the Yerington Colony & Campbell Ranch, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
- Yomba Shoshone Tribe of the Yomba Reservation, Nevadamatched by the Forest Service, under reviewsuggested
Located in 1
Sources
- Royce, Indian Land Cessions (1899), Schedule entry dated 1871-03-14primary record
- Royce, Indian Land Cessions (1899), Schedule entry dated 1872-09-12primary record
- Royce’s map sheet: Oregon 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
- 537
- Dates in the 1899 record
- 1871-03-14; 1872-09-12
- Kind of instrument
- Executive order
- Peoples as named in the 1899 record
- Paiute; Shoshoni; Snake
- States
- OR
- Counties
- Crook; Deschutes; Grant; Harney; Lake; Malheur
- Map sheets in the 1899 record
- Oregon 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