The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recognizes November as Native American Heritage Month. This month offers a perfect opportunity to pay tribute to Native Americans who have made significant contributions to the NIH and our great nation. We encourage you to take the time to learn more about Native Americans History using the timeline below.
1614 - Pocahontas (Algonquian Indian) marries English Jamestown colonist John Rolfe in Virginia
1626 - Dutch colonist Peter Minuit buys Manhattan from Indians for $24 worth of goods
1758 - First North American Indian reservation is established in New Jersey
1776 - Continental Congress fails in attempt to recruit 2,000 Indians to fight Revolutionary War
1778 - U.S. signs first Indian treaty, with Delaware Indians
1804-1806 - Sacagawea (Shoshone) accompanies Lewis and Clark on their expedition
1812 - Tecumseh (Shawnee) fights alongside British in the War of 1812
1817 - Indian Country Crimes Act provides for federal jurisdiction of some crimes committed by or against an Indian on Indian land
1824 - Office of Indian Affairs (now Bureau of Indian Affairs) is established
1828 - The Cherokee Phoenix becomes first U.S. newspaper printed in an Indian language
1830 - Indian Removal Act leads to the forced relocation of thousands of Indians om the Southeastern U.S. to west of the Mississippi River. An estimated 4,000 die during the migration
1871 - Indian Appropriations Act of 1871 dissolves the status of tribes as sovereign nations
1876 - Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse (Lakota) defeat George Custer at Battle of Little Bighorn
1886 - Legendary warrior Geronimo (Apache) surrenders to U.S. troops
1886 - We’wha, a Zuni Ihamana (now described as Two-Spirit), met President Grover Cleveland, acting as a cultural ambassador for her people
1890 - Lakota Chief Big Foot is killed with his followers at Wounded Knee
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Sources: Bloomberg, CBS, U.S. Department of Defense, Friends Committee on National Legislation, gradebook.org, Legends of America, NowPublic.com, NRCPrograms.org, Seale Times, eLatinLibrary.com, Time, University of Wisconsin, U.S. Census Bureau, glsen.org/sites/default/files/NAHM_timeline.pdf