Treaty with the Arikara, 1825 (Atkinson-O'Fallon treaties)
In 1825 the Arikara (Ricara) agreed to peace, U.S. supremacy and licensed trade; the treaty cedes no land.
- Signed
- July 18, 1825
- Senate
- Ratified
What happened
What happened
On July 18, 1825, Brigadier General Henry Atkinson and Major Benjamin O'Fallon, commissioners for the United States, signed a treaty with chiefs and warriors of the Ricara (Arikara) Tribe. The Statutes at Large spell the name "Ricara."
The opening says the aim was "to put an end to an unprovoked hostility on the part of the Ricara Tribe of Indians against the United States, and to restore harmony." The commissioners agreed to give peace to the tribe, "the Chiefs and Warriors thereof having first made suitable concessions for the offence." The text does not say what the offence was.
Article 1 promises "a firm and lasting peace." In Article 2 the tribe admitted that it resides within the territorial limits of the United States, acknowledged its supremacy, and claimed its protection. It also admitted the right of the United States to regulate trade and intercourse with it. In Article 3 the United States agreed to receive the tribe into its friendship and protection. Trade was to take place at places the President designated, and only with licensed American citizens. The tribe promised to protect traders and to hand over unlicensed foreigners.
The treaty contains no land cession and states no acreage. The treaty was proclaimed on February 6, 1826.
Summarized with AI assistance from 3 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
Supported by the sources below; some details rest on one source.
Henceforth there shall be a firm and lasting peace between the
Statutes at Large, vol. 7 (GovInfo)acknowledge their supremacy
Statutes at Large, vol. 7 (GovInfo)Proclamation, Feb. 6, 1826
Treaty with the Arikara Tribe, 1825 (Oklahoma State University Tribal Treaties Database)
Research notes. The 'unprovoked hostility' is the treaty's own framing; no source cited describes the events behind it.
What happened next
Everything the record holds about this land and this treaty, in order: what earlier agreements said, what this one did, and what the United States, the courts and the nations did afterwards.
Who is doing the work today
The nations connected to this treaty come first, then groups returning land and defending treaty rights. Support goes directly to them.
Who is doing the work
This history belongs to living nations. Start with them:
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.
Sources
Sources
- digitreaties.org/treaties/treaty/57698865reference work
Research notes
Stat. page; Kappler page from OSU slug.
Shapes are approximate and are not legal descriptions of land, title or jurisdiction.