Treaties are important. In the 1850s, most tribal members could not read, so tribal leaders insisted that their missionary read old Ottawa treaties aloud on cold winter evenings. On June 24th, 1862, the Ottawas signed the second-to-last treaty they would make with the United States government. Signed in Washington D.C in the midst of the Civil War, this treaty paved the way for Ottawa University, American citizenship, and the Ottawas’ first experiences with allotment and termination.

According to the treaty, the Ottawa tribal “organization, and their relations with the United States as an Indian tribe shall be dissolved and terminated at the expiration of five years from the ratification…and every one of them, shall be deemed and declared to be citizens of the United States.” The treaty also provided for the allotment of the Ottawa reservation in Kansas, with most members receiving 80 or 160 acres.

As Kansas filled up with settlers, the Ottawas faced mounting pressure for their lands. As successful farmers and businessmen, the Ottawas thought they could navigate American society if provided equality with their white counterparts, and rather than face removal, the Ottawas agreed to the termination of their formal political relationship with the United States and the allotment of their communal lands in return for “all the rights, privileges, and immunities” of American citizenship.

To aid in the transition to citizenship, the treaty set aside “twenty thousand acres…for the purpose of endowing a school for the benefit of said Ottawas.” The treaty stipulated, “the children of the Ottawas and their descendants, no matter where they may emigrate, shall have the right to enter said school and enjoy all the privileges thereof.”

The Ottawas held up their end of the bargain. Shortly after the treaty, Ottawas enlisted in the Union Army and even started voting in political elections; however, the Ottawa Indian Agent embezzled tribal funds, Kansas law and incoming settlers did not treat the Ottawas as equal citizens, and sale of the land set aside to establish an educational institution for the Ottawas’ benefit fell into corrupt hands, including those of John Tecumseh (Tauy) Jones, a Chippewa adopted by the Ottawas. For over a century after its founding, Ottawa tribal members saw little benefit from the educational institution their lands had established through this treaty.

Although tribal members optimistically imagined a new political relationship as full American citizens, Ottawa disappointment with the results led the Tribe to buy a new reservation and move to Indian Territory following a new treaty in 1867.