Montauk Point land claim

Last updated

Stephen Talkhouse Stephen-talkhouse.jpg
Stephen Talkhouse

The Montauk Point land claim was a series of three lawsuits brought by Chief Wyandank Pharaoh, nephew of the Stephen Talkhouse who died in the same year (1879) that the tribe lost the last remaining vestige of their territory in the New York state courts, claiming Montauk Point on behalf of the Montaukett Indians, against the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and its predecessors in title.

Contents

The first suit, Montauk Tribe of Indians v. Long Island R.R. Co., brought by Wyandank Pharaoh in the name of the tribe, was dismissed because the tribe had not been explicitly authorized by the state to sue in its own name. [1]

As recommended by the Appellate Division's opinion, the second suit, Johnson v. Long Island R.R. Co., was brought in the name of Eugene A. Johnson, a citizen and tribal member. The New York Court of Appeals disavowed the previous dicta of the Appellate Division, and held that neither an individual Indian nor a tribe could sue in court without enabling legislation. [2]

The tribe failed in its efforts to convince the federal government to pass legislation enabling the tribe to bring the claim in federal court. In 1906, the state passed a statute enabling the tribe to sue, and Wyandank Pharaoh brought a third suit, Pharaoh v. Benson, in the name of the tribe. Reaching the merits, the New York courts held that the tribe no longer existed and that the transactions were valid. [3] Since the litigation, the Montauks have failed in their efforts to obtain compensation from the federal and state government, and much of the land in question has come to be held by public parks. [4]

Background

Map of the Long Island Rail Road, circa 1876 LIRR map 1876.svg
Map of the Long Island Rail Road, circa 1876

Circa 1875, the Montauk tribe began renting out Montauk Point for pasturage through the Proprietors' Company; the company took possession of the grazing allotments, and paid the tribe an annuity. [5] Circa 1880, the shareholders of the company disagreed over whether the lands should continue to be leased, or whether they should be re-apportioned. [5] In 1878, Robert M. Grinnell sued Edward M. Baker et al. for partition and division of the allotments. [6] In Grinnell v. Baker (unreported), the court ordered the lands sold at public auction (subject to the Montauk claim), with the proceeds distributed equally among the non-Indian lessees, rather than the Montauk tribe. [5]

The auction took place at the home of Jehial Parsons. [7] Arthur W. Benson bought the 11,000 acres (45 km2) at auction for $151,000 in 1879. [5] [8] In turn, Benson sold 5,000 acres (20 km2) of the land to the Long Island Rail Road for $600,000. [5]

Benson hired Nathaniel Dominey to negotiate the removal of the Montauks still living on the reservation. [5] At a later, Senate Sub-Committee hearing, Dominey testified that eight Indians remained on the reservation at the time, including: future Chief Wyandank Pharaoh (10 years old at the time), his mother, and two of her brothers. [5] Later, Dominey experienced a change of heart and cooperated with the Montauks in their claim, and turning over his letters from Benson. [7] Dominey testified that he compensated Wyandank Pharaoh's mother with a $100 semi-annual annuity and two houses, to be inherited by Pharaoh, $80 each to her two brothers, and $10 to Wyandank. [3]

Arthur Benson had viewed Montauk as "his private playground"; after his death, his son approached Austin Corbin, President and controlling shareholder of the Long Island Rail Road, and Charles Pratt, of Standard Oil, about the possibility of voiding his fathers will and opening Montauk to development. [7] Montauk Point was purchased by Corbin and Pratt in 1895. [9]

On October 30, 1895, Chief Wyandank Pharaoh returned from a research trip to Brooklyn and Washington, D.C. to gather evidence to pursue a claim. [9] Pharaoh declared his intentions to undertake a hunting trip on the disputed land and initiate a lawsuit if he was interfered with. [9]

The New York Times blamed Chief Pharaoh for the dispute:

If King Wyandank Pharaoh of the Montauk Tribe of Indians had not given for $10 the living members of the Montauk tribe might now be wealthy, instead of being poor and fighting for their rights with a desperate hope of regaining at least part of what they claim to be their lawful heritage. [5]

Montauk Tribe of Indians v. Long Island R.R. Co. (App. Div. 1898)

Supreme Court

Judge Edgar M. Cullen delivered the opinion of the Appellate Division. Cullen 4138870042 29c35feb8f o.jpg
Judge Edgar M. Cullen delivered the opinion of the Appellate Division.

Chief Wyandank Pharaoh, on behalf of the tribe, filed suit, stating a cause of action for ejectment on February 5, 1897. [10] [11] For proof of tribal status, the tribe cited a partition action decided by Judge Dykman and the 1890 United States Census. [11] The complaint valued the land at approximately $300,000. [11]

On June 5, 1897, Judge Wilmot Moses Smith of the New York Supreme Court set a hearing date for June 19 in Patchogue to hear the oral arguments for the defendants' demurrer. [12] The matter was transferred to Judge Samuel T. Maddox in Brooklyn. [11] Judge Maddox granted the demurrer, dismissing the action but allowing the tribe to re-plead if they paid costs. [11]

Appellate Division

The Montauk's, represented by ex-judge George M. Curtis, filed a notice of appeal on December 22, 1897. [11] Before the Appellate Division, the Montauk's case was argued by Leman B. Treadwell, with Francis M. Morrison (both Boston lawyers [5] ) also on the brief. [1] Alfred A. Gardner argued on behalf of the LIRR, with William J. Kelly on the brief. [1] The Appellate Division panel consisted of Judges Goodrich, Edgar M. Cullen, Willard Bartlett, Hatch, and Woodward. [1]

The Appellate Division of the Second Department unanimously affirmed the judgment of the Suffolk Special Term on April 19, 1898. [13] Citing Strong v. Waterman and Seneca Nation of Indians v. Christy , Judge Cullen noted that "no provision had been made by law for bringing ejectment to recover possession of [Indians]" and "as a body or tribe, the Indians have no corporate name by which they can institute such a suit." [1] Judge Cullen suggested that the tribe either petition the legislature for enabling legislation to allow them to sue as a tribe, or have individual members bring the suit. [1] [13]

Johnson v. Long Island R.R. Co. (N.Y. 1900)

Judge Edward T. Bartlett held that neither an individual Indian nor a tribe could sue, unless authorized by state statute. Bartlett 4016404287 3fc9835108 o.jpg
Judge Edward T. Bartlett held that neither an individual Indian nor a tribe could sue, unless authorized by state statute.

Supreme Court

Eugene A. Johnson, a U.S. citizen of Montauk descent, and a member of the tribe since birth, brought a similar suit in his own name, on behalf of himself and other similarly interested. [13] The Special Term sustained a demurrer. [13]

Appellate Division

The divided panel of the Appellate Division of the Second Department reversed on July 1, 1899. [2] [13] In a per curiam opinion, joined by all but Judge Willard Bartlett, the Appellate Division held:

While the right to maintain this action in its present form is not free from doubt, still, as it is brought in accordance with the view expressed by us on the prior appeal, we think we should adhere to our former decision, and allow the question to be finally determined by the court of appeals. [14]

Court of Appeals

The Appellate Division certified three questions to the Court of Appeals:

1. Has the plaintiff in this action legal capacity to sue?
2. Is there a defect of the parties plaintiff in this action, in that the members of the alleged Montauk Tribe of Indians are not made parties plaintiff?
3. Does the complaint herein state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action? [15]

Before the Court of Appeals, Treadwell and Morrison again argued for the Montauks, while Gardner and Kelly again argued for the LIRR. [2]

The New York Court of Appeals reversed the Appellate Division, and affirmed the Special Term, on April 17, 1900. [13] The court answered all three certified questions in the negative, without costs to either party. [16] Judge Edward T. Bartlett, joined by Judges Denis O'Brien, Albert Haight, and Celora E. Martin, held that Johnson had no capacity to bring a suit on the tribe's behalf. [2] [13] The Court held that Indians, as wards of the state, had no right to sue unless conferred by statute: [13]

A decision holding that this action could be maintained either by the tribe, or an individual member thereof on behalf of himself and all others who should come in and contribute, would be contrary to the policy and practice which have been long established in our treatment of the Indian tribes. They are regarded as the wards of the state, and, generally speaking, possessed of only such rights to appear and litigate in courts of justice as are conferred upon them by statute. [17]

Chief Judge Alton B. Parker concurred in the result, without separate opinion; Judges Irving G. Vann and Landon dissented, without opinion. [2] [13]

Senate Indian Affairs Sub-Committee hearing (1900)

The Fifth Avenue Hotel, the site of the Sub-Committee hearing FifthAvenueHotel1860 framecrop.jpg
The Fifth Avenue Hotel, the site of the Sub-Committee hearing

Chief Pharaoh, along with representatives of the Shinnecock Tribe, Narragansett Tribe, and Mohegan Tribe, testified before a Sub-Committee of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee on September 22, 1900, at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. [5] The Sub-Committee consisted of Senators John M. Thurston (R-NE) and Orville H. Platt (R-CT). [5] In addition to Pharaoh, the testifying Indians were: Rev. Eugene A. Johnson, Nathan J. Cuffee, and James Cuffee (of the Montauk Council), John Noka, Joshua Noka, and Donald Seeter (of the Narragansett Council), David Kellis (of the Shinnecock Council). [5] Maria Crippen and Dr. William H. Johnson of the Montauk tribe were among the spectators. [5]

Rev. Johnson testified that there were 300 living members of the Montauk tribe. [5] Johnson also testified that the New York state legislature had denied the Montauks a hearing because they were not "persons." [5] Johnson argued that the Montauks could not alienate property without the consent of both New York and the federal government. [5] He valued the disputed property at $3,000,000. [5]

The tribes requested special legislation to allow them to bring their land claims, for fraud, in the United States circuit court. [5] The Montauks and Shinnecocks claimed 11,000 acres (45 km2) of Montauk Point; the Narragansetts an eight-square-mile tract near Narragansett Bay; the Mohegans a reservation in and near Norwich, Connecticut. [5] Tredwell and Morrison continued to represent the tribes before the hearing. [5]

State enabling legislation (1906)

A bill granting the Montauks permission to sue was introduced in February 1903. [18] The Montauk's lawyer, Charles O. Maas, was the key lobbyist for the bill. [19]

On April 10, 1906, the New York legislature passed a statute enabling the Montauk tribe to bring suit, [20] The act contained the following proviso: "the question as to the existence of the Montauk Tribe of Indians shall be a question of law and fact to be determined by the court." [19] Judge Blackmar interpreted the act as "providing that the act should not be construed as conferring tribal rights on any individuals, but that the question of the existence of the Montauk Tribe should be determined by the court." [21]

Pharaoh v. Benson (N.Y. 1918)

The former Montauk LIRR station house Old Montauk Station & Bike Rack.JPG
The former Montauk LIRR station house

Supreme Court

Pursuant to the enabling act, Chief Wyandank Pharaoh brought a third suit on behalf of the tribe in 1906. [8] The named defendants were: Jane Ann Benson and Mary Benson, the executrices of Arthur Benson's will, John J. Pierrepoint and Henry R. Hoyt, the executors and trustees of Frank Sherman Benson's will, Mary Benson, the Montauk Company, the Montauk Dock and Improvement Company, Alfred W. Hoyt, the Montauk Extension Railroad Company, and the Long Island Rail Road. [8] An area of 4,200 acres (17 km2) was named in the third complaint (1,200 acres (4.9 km2) of it adjacent to the LIRR). [3] [8]

Chief Pharaoh was represented by Maas and Lawrence W. Trowbridge (of counsel). [8] The defendants were represented by Daly, Hoyt & Mason (for the Bensons), Austin & McLanahan (for the Dock and Improvement Co.), A. T. Mason (for Pierrepoint and Henry Hoyt), P. Tecumseh Sherman (for Alfred Hoyt), and Joseph Keany (for the LIRR). [3] [8] According to a 1910 Q&A in the New York Times, the lawyers fees were "long since supposed to have eclipsed the value of the land in litigation." [22]

The trial took place, without a jury, before Judge Abel Blackmar of the Supreme Court of Suffolk County, Special Term. [23] Fourteen of the sixteen living Montauk men appeared as witnesses at trial. [8]

Judge Blackmar, ruled against the Montauks on October 11, 1910. [8] According to Blackmar, the Montauks individually conveyed all their lands and claims to Arthur Benson between 1885 and 1894, in exchange for $100 to $250 each, except for Wyandank Pharaoh who received only $10, plus between 5 and 45 acres (20,000 and 182,000 m2) in Freetown and East Hampton, plus a $240 annuity to be divided per capita. [8]

Judge Blackmar also relied upon a December 1686 patent granted by Governor Thomas Dongan to the freeholders of East Hampton, granting them the exclusive right to purchase Indian lands in the area. [8] Benson had separately purchased the fee rights from the descendants of the patentees. [8]

Judge Blackmar also held that the Montauks were no longer a tribe: [22]

During this long period the number of the Indians was greatly reduced. Their blood became so mixed that in many of them Indian traits were obliterated. They had no internal government, and they lived a sort of shiftless life, hunting, fishing, cultivating the ground 'Indian fashion' as a witness called it, and often leaving for long periods and working in some menial capacity for the whites. [24]

Indian Fields Montauk Big Reed Nature Trail Indian Fields Montauk Big Reed Nature Trail.jpg
Indian Fields Montauk Big Reed Nature Trail

Appellate Division

On appeal, the Montauks found a new lawyer: Allen Caruthers. [25]

The Appellate Division—composed of Judges Jenks, Burr, Rich, Stapleton, and Putnam—affirmed on October 16, 1914. [3] On appeal, the Montauks were represented by Allen Caruthers, while the defendants were represented by Charles K. Carpenter, with Alexander T. Mason and George T. Austin on the brief. [3] Judge Burr, for a unanimous court, wrote the opinion. [3]

Court of Appeals

The Court of Appeals—composed of Chief Judge Frank Harris Hiscock and Judges Emory A. Chase, Frederick Collin, William Herman Cuddeback, John W. Hogan, McLaughlin, and Frederick E. Crane —affirmed (per curiam, without opinion) on January 29, 1918, without costs. [3]

Aftermath

Montauk Point State Park Montauk Point Light in storm.jpg
Montauk Point State Park
Hither Hills State Park Hither-hills1.jpg
Hither Hills State Park

Federal lobbying

Maas departed for Washington, D.C. after the passage of the state enabling legislation. [19] The Interior Department endorsed the idea on July 7, 1906. [19]

In January 1921, Senator James Wolcott Wadsworth, Jr. (R-NY) and Representative Homer P. Snyder (R-NY) introduced legislation and asked the Interior Secretary to report to Congress on the Montauk's tribal status and the merits of their land claim. [26] The Secretary prepared a report agreeing with the conclusions of Judge Blackmar and the New York appellate courts in Pharaoh v. Benson. [27] The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs received the report on April 22, 1922, and introduced the Wadsworth bill that June; the bill did not make it out of committee. [28]

In 1996, represented by Bell, Boyd & Lloyd, the Montauks filed a letter of intent with the Branch of Acknowledgement and Research of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the first step towards federal recognition. [29] The petition for recognition was submitted on June 23, 1998. [30] The tribe received a request for documents from the BIA in January 1999. [31]

State lobbying

On February 14, 1922, New York state assemblyman John J. O'Connor introduced legislation to compensate the Montauks. [32] The bill excluded James Waters and the other members of the Montauk diaspora. [33] The bill would have created a three-person committee—composed of two assembly members and one state senator—to determine whether the land claim had been meritorious. [33] The bill never reached the floor. [33]

Montaukett burial grounds

In 1983, Fort Hill Associates and Signal Hill Associates applied to the town of East Hampton for a permit to build homes on North Neck hill, above the Montauk's ancestral burial ground. [34] As quoted in the New York Times, the East Hampton town supervisor said, "Who cares about a bunch of dead Indians?" [34] The Montauketts won a temporary injunction in court that July. [34] That November, the town board voted to purchase the 30 acres (120,000 m2) for $1.4 million and preserve the burial ground. [34]

In 1989, developers announced plans touching on a different Montaukett burial ground in North Neck. [35] After protests, the town government agreed to preserve the site in 1991. [36]

State parks

In 1984, the federal government announced plans to sell Montauk Air Force Station, a 278 acres (1.1 km2) air force installation southwest of Montauk Point, to real estate developers. [35] New York State and the Town of East Hampton sued to block the sale. [35] The land was eventually turned over to the New York State Park Service, becoming Camp Hero State Park. [35] The state purchased 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) of Hither Woods in 1986 and created Hither Hills State Park. [35] In 1988, the state purchased 777 acres (3.1 km2) more to augment the park. [35]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Montauk Tribe of Indians v. Long Island R.R. Co., 51 N.Y.S. 142 (App. Div. 1898).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Johnson v. Long Island R.R. Co., 61 N.Y.S. 1139 (App. Div. 1899) (per curiam), rev'd, 56 N.E. 992 (N.Y. 1900).
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pharaoh v. Benson, 126 N.Y.S. 1035 (Sup. Ct. 1910), aff'd, 149 N.Y.S. 438 (App. Div. 1914), aff'd, 119 N.E. 1072 (N.Y. 1918) (per curiam).
  4. ↑ Laskin, David (27 August 1989). "History at the Tip of Long Island - the New York Times". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 2018-05-10. Retrieved 2018-05-09.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Indians Claim Lands, New York Times, Sept. 23, 1900, at 15.
  6. ↑ Pharaoh, 149 N.Y.S. at 440.
  7. 1 2 3 John A. Strong & Philip Wyppensenwah-Rabito, More on How Montauk Was Parceled Out, New York Times letter to the editor, at LI11.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Indians Can't Get Lands, New York Times, Oct. 12, 1910, at 6.
  9. 1 2 3 Montauks to Make a Test Case, New York Times, Oct. 30, 1895, at 1.
  10. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 120.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Indians Want the Land, New York Times, Dec. 22, 1897, at 1.
  12. ↑ Indians' Claim for Montauk Point, New York Times, June 5, 1897, at 21.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Legal Notes: Rights of Indian Tribes, New York Times, Apr. 29, 1900, at 16.
  14. ↑ Johnson, 61 N.Y.S. at 1139 (citation omitted).
  15. ↑ Johnson, 56 N.E. at 992.
  16. ↑ Johnson, 56 N.E. at 468.
  17. ↑ Johnson, 56 N.E. at 467-68.
  18. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 125.
  19. 1 2 3 4 Strong, 2001, at 127.
  20. ↑ 1906 N.Y. Laws, ch. 177.
  21. ↑ Pharaoh, 127 N.Y.S. at 1038.
  22. 1 2 Queries and Answers, New York Times, Nov. 6, 1910, at X11.
  23. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 128.
  24. ↑ Pharaoh, 126 N.Y.S. at 1037-38.
  25. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 141.
  26. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 147-48.
  27. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 150-52.
  28. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 152.
  29. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 167.
  30. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 174.
  31. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 174-75.
  32. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 149-50.
  33. 1 2 3 Strong, 2001, at 150.
  34. 1 2 3 4 Strong, 2001, at 160.
  35. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Strong, 2001, at 162.
  36. ↑ Strong, 2001, at 163.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montauk, New York</span> Hamlet in New York State

Montauk is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York, on the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 4,318.

Benson may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Hampton (town), New York</span> Town in New York, United States

The Town of East Hampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, at the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town in the state of New York. At the time of the 2020 United States census, it had a total population of 28,385.

<i>Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co.</i> 1928 American tort law case

Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co., 248 N.Y. 339, 162 N.E. 99 (1928), is a leading case in American tort law on the question of liability to an unforeseeable plaintiff. The case was heard by the New York Court of Appeals, the highest state court in New York; its opinion was written by Chief Judge Benjamin Cardozo, a leading figure in the development of American common law and later a United States Supreme Court justice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schaghticoke people</span> Native American tribe of the Eastern Woodlands

The Schaghticoke are a Native American tribe of the Eastern Woodlands who historically consisted of Mahican, Potatuck, Weantinock, Tunxis, Podunk, and their descendants, peoples indigenous to what is now New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. The remnant tribes amalgamated in the area near the Connecticut-New York border after many losses, including the sale of some Schaghticoke and members of neighboring tribes into slavery in the Caribbean in the 1600s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montaukett</span> Native American tribe - Montaukett

The Montaukett ("Metoac"), more commonly known as Montauk are an Algonquian-speaking Native American people from the eastern and central sections of Long Island, New York.

Wyandanch (c. 1620 – 1659 was a sachem of the Montaukett Indians in the mid-17th century on eastern Long Island. Initially he was a minor chief among the Montaukett, but due to his skillful manipulation of various alliances and his accommodating stance towards the European colonists who gave him substantial military and economic support, he eventually became an influential "alliance chief".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Talkhouse</span>

Stephen Talkhouse was a Montaukett Native American of the late 19th century who was famed for his 25-50 mile daily round trip walks from Montauk, New York to East Hampton and Sag Harbor. Landmarks along the route have been named for him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin Corbin</span> American railroad executive

Austin Corbin was a 19th-century American banking and railroad entrepreneur. He consolidated the rail lines on Long Island, bringing them under the profitable umbrella of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). He was the owner of Manhattan Beach, a resort in Brooklyn, New York City, from which he barred Jews. He was also the owner of the Sunnyside Plantation in Chicot County, Arkansas, from 1886 to his death in 1896, where he used convict laborers and later brought Italian immigrants to work on the land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shinnecock Indian Nation</span>

The Shinnecock Indian Nation is a federally recognized tribe of historically Algonquian-speaking Native Americans based at the eastern end of Long Island, New York. This tribe is headquartered in Suffolk County, on the southeastern shore. Since the mid-19th century, the tribe's landbase is the Shinnecock Reservation within the geographic boundaries of the Town of Southampton. Their name roughly translates into English as "people of the stony shore".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montauk County Park</span>

Montauk County Park, formerly known as Theodore Roosevelt County Park, is located approximately three miles (4.8 km) east of Montauk, New York. The park is 1,157 acres (4.68 km2) in size, running from Montauk Highway north to Block Island Sound and is bordered on the east by Montauk Point State Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Pond Bay</span> Bay off Long Island Sound at Montauk, New York

Fort Pond Bay is a bay off Long Island Sound at Montauk, New York that was site of the first port on the end of Long Island. The bay has a long naval and civilian history.

Arthur W. Benson (c.1798–1889) was a president of Brooklyn Gas Light who developed the New York City suburbs of Bensonhurst and Montauk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metoac</span>

Metoac is an erroneous term used by some to group together the Munsee-speaking Lenape (west), Quiripi-speaking Unquachog (center) and Pequot-speaking Montaukett (east) American Indians on what is now Long Island in New York state. The term was invented by amateur anthropologist and U.S. Congressman Silas Wood in the mistaken belief that the various native settlements on the island each comprised distinct tribes.

<i>Mohegan Indians v. Connecticut</i> 18th century indigenous land rights case in Great Britain

Mohegan Indians v. Connecticut (1705–1773) was the first indigenous land rights litigation in history in a common law jurisdiction. James Youngblood Henderson, professor of law, calls the case "the first major legal test of indigenous tenure." Robert Clinton calls it the "first formal litigation of North American Indian rights."

County of Oneida v. Oneida Indian Nation of New York State, 470 U.S. 226 (1985), was a landmark United States Supreme Court case concerning aboriginal title in the United States. The case, sometimes referred to as Oneida II, was "the first Indian land claim case won on the basis of the Nonintercourse Act."

Seneca Nation of Indians v. Christy, 162 U.S. 283 (1896), was the first litigation of aboriginal title in the United States by a tribal plaintiff in the Supreme Court of the United States since Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831). It was the first such litigation by an indigenous plaintiff since Fellows v. Blacksmith (1857) and its companion case of New York ex rel. Cutler v. Dibble (1858). The New York courts held that the 1788 Phelps and Gorham Purchase did not violate the Nonintercourse Act, one of the provisions of which prohibits purchases of Indian lands without the approval of the federal government, and that the Seneca Nation of New York was barred by the state statute of limitations from challenging the transfer of title. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the merits of lower court ruling because of the adequate and independent state grounds doctrine.

Fellows v. Blacksmith, 60 U.S. 366 (1857), is a United States Supreme Court decision involving Native American law. John Blacksmith, a Tonawanda Seneca, sued agents of the Ogden Land Company for common law claims of trespass, assault, and battery after he was forcibly evicted from his sawmill by the Company's agents. The Court affirmed a judgement in Blacksmith's favor, notwithstanding the fact that the Seneca had executed an Indian removal treaty and the Company held the exclusive right to purchase to the land by virtue of an interstate compact ratified by Congress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hilda Lindley House</span>

The Hilda Lindley House is a former U.S. Army fire control station in Indian Field in Montauk, New York. The house is named for the woman who lived there and saved Indian Field from development in the 1970s, but who had her house taken from her by Suffolk County as a result.

Poggatacut also known as Youghco or Poggatticut, was sachem of the Manhasset Indian people of Shelter Island, New York and elder brother to Montaukett Sachem Wyandanch. Sachem Poggatacut and his wife Aswaw granted possession to Lion Gardiner for Gardiners Island in 1639. It was conveyed when they deeded Manchonat, an Island between the north and south fork in exchange for goods and alliance. By 1644 he had united the Corchaug, Shinnecock, Manhassets and Montaukett before retreating as Grand Sachem to his redoubt on Shelter Island, relinquishing control over the tribes to his younger brother, sachem Wyandanch. As “Sachem of Paumanacke", as Long Island was called, he was empowered to make treaties for the Montauketts.

References


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.