IAP Crow Creek Agency

Operating under the name Upper Missouri Agency in 1861, the agency was renamed Crow Creek Agency in 1874. By 1871 the agency was located at Soldier Creek on the east bank of the Missouri River, about eight miles from present day Crow Creek.

The Lower Yanktonai were settled at Crow Creek Agency after the treaty of 1859 ceded all lands of the Yankton and Yanktonais to the federal government, a result of the Spirit Lake massacre.

After the 1862 uprising in Minnesota, members of the Lower Agency Mdewakanton and Wahpekute bands of Santee and Winnebago Indians were moved to Crow Creek. The Winnebagos were removed to the Omaha reservation in Nebraska in 1865. In 1866, after the arrival of several hundred Lower Yanktonai, Sicangu, and Oohenunpa, the Santee were removed to a separate reservation in Nebraska. The following year, the Sicangu and Oohenunpa settled on the west bank of the Missouri River across from the Crow Creek Agency at Lower Brule Agency.

Drifting Goose, leader of the Hunkpati band of Yanktonai, is remembered for refusing to sign the 1859 treaty. He was proud of the fact that he "signed nothing" and gave up "nothing." His scare tactics against non-Indians forced President Rutherford Hayes to set aside a 65,000-acre reservation along the James River for his Hunkpati band. A year later, in 1880, Drifting Goose and his people gave up their reservation and settled at Crow Creek Agency.

Today the reservation is located along the east bank of the Missouri River in central South Dakota in Hughes, Hyde, and Buffalo counties. The land base is 125,591 acres. Contemporary artist Oscar Howe (1915-1983) and writer Elizabeth Cook-Lynn are from Crow Creek Agency.

Agency Records: Ration issue book, 1880-1882; land allotment books, 1880-1881.

Superintendents’ Annual Narrative and Statistical Reports from Field Jurisdictions of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, 1910-1938 (M1011).

Correspondence, 1870-1945. These records are housed at the National Archives, Central Plains Region, in Kansas City, MO and were microfilmed by the SD State Archives. Copies of this film may be purchased from the SDSA.

This record series consists of several sub-series with varying arrangements. Much of the file consists of correspondence including subject correspondence, decimal correspondence, correspondence received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, general correspondence, letters received at Lower Brule, and copies of letters sent to the Commissioner. Interspersed throughout the correspondence are records regarding land, including surveys, allotments, transactions, inheritance, and leases.

Nara Roll # SD Archives Roll # Inclusive Materials

1 6572 Subject Correspondence File-Land 1893-1926 (land allotments):

Advertising Indian Lands 1907-1911-Land allotments 1911

2 6573 Subject Correspondence File-Land 1893-1926 (land allotments):

Land Allotments 1911-Land Misc. 1910

3 6574 Subject Correspondence File-Land 1893-1926: Land Misc. 1910-

Land Surveys (first document 1910)

4 6575 Subject Correspondence File-Land 1893-1926: Land Surveys 1910,

Decimal Correspondence File Code 310-Transfer of Land

5 6576 Decimal Correspondence File Code 310-Transfer of Land

6 6577 Decimal Correspondence File Code 310-Transfer of Land

7 6578 Decimal Correspondence File Code 310-Transfer of Land

8 6579 Decimal Correspondence File Code 310-Transfer of Land, Field

Notes of Survey Dakota Sioux Reserve 1875

9 6580 Field Notes of Survey Dakota Sioux Reserve 1875, Siouxland Certificate Stubs

(Treaty of April 29, 1868) 1881-1885, Letters Pertaining to Survey of Land and Allotments

1886-1887, Record Book of Allottees and Related Records 1889-1896, Land

Allotment Register, Act of March 2 1889, 1891-1895, Sale of Land Deceased Indians 1904-1909

10 6581 Land Allotments: Sale of Indian Lands Deceased Indians 1904-

1909, Record of the Sale of Land Belonging to Estates of Deceased

Indian Allottees 1904-1909

11 6582 Miscellaneous Land Records 1934-1935, Applications for

Allotments 1908-1915, Application for Fee Simple Patents 1919-

1914, Wills 1910-1916, Deed Book Volume I 1920-1922,

Rehabilitation Loan Land Deeds 1939-1941, Land Transactions

1936-1941: Rural Credit Board #1, 1936-L.L. Stephens #256, 1936

12 6583 Land Transactions 1936-1941: George A. Schmitt #300, 1936-

Rural Credit Board #3-A, 1937(part.)

13 6584 Land Transactions 1936-1941: Rural Credit Board #3-A, 1937(cont.)-

W.S. Walbridge #10, 1937(part.)

14 6585 Land Transactions 1936-1941: W.S. Walbridge #10, 1937(cont.)-

Avery P. Long #22, 1937(part.)

15 6586 Land Transactions 1936-1941: Avery P. Long #22, 1937(cont.)-

Lower Brule Contractual #27ABC, 1940(part.)

16 6587 Land Transactions 1936-1941: Lower Brule Contractual #27ABC

1940(cont.)-Lyman Co. #24&79, 1941, Inherited Interests in

Estates, CA 1930�s: Inherited Estates Crow Creek, A-J(Jennesse)

17 6588 Inherited Interests in Estates, CA 1930�s: Inherited Estates Crow

Creek, Q-Z and other agencies

18 6589 Inherited Interests in Estates CA 1930�s, Lease Register 1906-1924,

Record Book of Leases 1919-1924, Sale of Grazing Privileges 1929

-1938, Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

19 6590 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

20 6591 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

21 6592 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

22 6593 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

23 6594 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

24 6595 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943

25 6596 Lease Accounting Cards (form 5-396) 1925-1943, Lease

Accounting Cards, Grazing Permits, and Lease Correspondence

1932-1940, Lease 1926-1936(part.)

26 6597 Lease Accounting Cards, Grazing Permits, and Lease

Correspondence 1932-1940(cont.), Powers of Attorney for Grazing,

Permits on Allotted Lands (form 5-513) 1931-1934, Register of

Correspondence Received 1902-1910(part.)

27 6598 Register of Correspondence Received 1902-1910(cont.), Copies of

Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land April 18, 1906-

March, 1909

28 6599 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land

March 23, 1909-July 14, 1910

29 6600 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land Oct.

24, 1910-June 5, 1911, Copies of Letter Sent to the Commissioner

Concerning Land Sept. 16, 1907-Nov.27, 1908

30 6601 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land Nov.

28, 1908-Dec.9, 1909

31 6602 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land Dec.

9, 1909-May 4, 1910

32 6603 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Concerning Land May

4, 1910-May 27, 1910, Correspondence Received from the

Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Dec.18, 1872-March 23, 1874

33 6604 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

March 25, 1874-Feb. 5, 1880

34 6605 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

Feb. 20, 1880-April 3, 1882

35 6606 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

April 5, 1882-March 2, 1885

36 6607 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

Feb. 28, 1885-March 22, 1887

37 6608 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

March 26, 1877-March 6, 1890

38 6609 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

March 26, 1890-Feb. 10, 1893

39 6610 Correspondence Received from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs

Feb. 10, 1893-1895

40 6611 General Correspondence Received 1878-1895

41 6612 General Correspondence Received (Misc. Letters) 1881-1886

42 6613 General Correspondence Received (Misc. Letters) 1886-1889

43 6614 General Correspondence Received (Misc. Letters) 1889-1893

44 6615 General Correspondence Received (Misc. Letters) 1893-Oct. 1894

45 6616 General Correspondence Received (Misc. Letters) Nov. 1894-Sept.

1895

46 6617 Letters Received at Lower Brule 1913-1917 A through C

47 6618 Letters Received at Lower Brule 1913-1917 D through I

48 6619 Letters Received at Lower Brule 1913-1917 I through N

49 6620 Letters Received at Lower Brule 1913-1917 O through W

50 6621 Letters Received at Lower Brule 1913-1917 W, Copies of Letters

Sent to the Commissioner 1869-1872

51 6622 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Feb.26, 1878-June 1880

52 6623 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner June 1880-Feb. 1882

53 6624 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner June 7, 1883-March 6,

1885

54 6625 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner 1885-May 16, 1887

55 6626 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner May 17, 1887-May 28,

1889

56 6627 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner May 28, 1889-April 10,

1891

57 6628 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner April 11, 1897-1892

58 6629 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner 1892-1893

59 6630 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner 1893-1895

60 6631 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner 1896-1897

61 6632 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Dec. 1, 1897-Dec.26,

1898

62 6633 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Dec. 10, 1899-March 1

1900

63 6634 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner March 1, 1900-May 27,

1901

64 6635 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner June 1, 1901-May 16,

1902

65 6636 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner May 17, 1902-April 6,

1903

66 6637 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner April 7 1903-Feb.27,

1904

67 6638 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Feb.27, 1904-March 28,

1905

68 6639 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner March 28, 1905-April 6

1907

69 6640 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner April 9, 1907-Dec. 21,

1907

70 6641 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Dec. 21, 1907-Aug. 31,

1908

71 6642 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner Aug. 31, 1908-July 26,

1909

72 6643 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner July 27, 1909-1910

73 6644 Copies of Letters Sent to the Commissioner 1910

SD State Archives, 605-773-3804, fax 605-773-6041; email archref@state.sd.us