American Historical Ephemera & Photography

Letters related to ongoing Indian affairs, litigation, and delegations, highlighted by a powerful letter from Mrs.  Theresa Basina, of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, stating that she is glad to have Mr. Henderson take up a case related to an allotment that was illegally taken from her: "The cold weather is here, and my children are in need of some thing warm [.] This farm was taken away from me because I did not keep up with my taxes, a white man paid them and he was the one that sold it to the man that is living on it at present, I never signed any papers for it ... The Indian Agent here will not do any thing to help me in this regard. Can you tell me in your next letter if you can help me, even my crops from a year ago and my furniture were taken, Now do you think that is fair? I am still living on the reservation, my husband makes a living by hard work, I shall be very thankful to at last locate a man that is a friend of the Indian." 11 September 1921. 4pp, 5 x 8 in. (heavily toned, imprint from rusted paperclip at top edge line). 
 
[With:] BEAULIEU, Gus (1852-1917). Typed letter signed ("Gus H. Beaulieu") to Mr. [Daniel] Henderson. Barrows, MN, 14 July 1917. 3pp, 8 1/2 x 11 in (spotting/discoloration and wear to edges, with discoloration/imprint from rusted paperclip to last page and approx. 1 in. tear extending inward from left edge of first page). Beaulieu discusses an upcoming General Council, efforts to control the White Earth council, and political affiliations amongst various tribal factions.

[Also with:] An additional letter from the Balinas, 16 August 1921; 2 letters from the Department of the Interior (1910 and 1921 respectively) regarding Indian affairs and claims; a letter from Jonathan Marksman of the La Point Band of Chippewa to Henderson, 3 February 1922; a map showing "Lands Ceded by the Klamath and Modoc Tribes and the Yohooskin Sand of Snake Indians, Under the Treaty of Oct. 14, 1864. Also Klamath Reservation within the Same as Surveyed by Geo. Mercer and Wm. Thiel," 1925.

Gus H. Beaulieu (1855-1917), represented the Chippewas for years at Washington, DC, heading many of their delegations, and served as publisher and editor of the White Earth Tomahawk published at White Earth, Minnesota. 

Daniel Brosius Henderson, Sr. (1862-1940) spent the bulk of his career litigating on behalf of America's Native peoples. He was born in Hancock, Maryland, attended the University of Virginia, and by the late 1800s had established a law practice in Kansas City, Missouri. After more than a decade in Missouri, Henderson and his growing family returned to Virginia in 1901. It was in Washington, DC, where the young lawyer would distinguish himself as a prominent attorney with a specialization in Indian claims litigation. Over the course of a decades-long career, he represented the claims of multiple tribes in disputes against the US government, winning a major case for the Klamath tribe in 1937.