Modoc People

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Guide to Modoc People ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and other agency records.

Modoc Indians- Winama or Tobey Riddle, standing between an agent & her husband,Frank(left) with 4 Modoc women,by Edward Muybridge, 1873 NO. 72.jpg

Various Spellings: Modoc, Modac, Moadoc

The Modoc Tribe is primarily associated with the states of California and Oklahoma[1].

Ancestral homeland: southern Oregon and northern California

Tribal Headquarters

Modoc Tribe of Oklahoma
515 G Street Southeast
Miami, OK 74354
Phone: 918-542-1190
Website

Population: 1984: 200 enrollment. [2]

History

Brief Timeline

  • 1864: Modoc and Klamath ceded land and moved to Klamath Reservation in Oregon
  • 1870: Captain Jack (Kintpuash) set out to create a homeland for the Modoc tribe; in Lost Valley
  • 1872: Modoc uprising; Captain James Jackson set out from Fort Klamath with orders to take the Modoc's back to the Klamath Reservation.
  • 1872: Surviving Modoc's sent to live in Indian Territory among the Quapaw Tribe
  • 1909: Fifty-one Modoc allowed to return to Klamath Reservation
  • 1978: The Modoc Tribe of Oklahoma obtained federal recognition
  • 1991: Constitution approved

Agencies

Digger Agency

Quapaw and Seneca Agency 1873-1880

Superintendancy

Oregon Superintendency

Central Superintendency

Reservations

Klamath Reservation

Additional References

Frederick Webb Hodge, in his Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico, gave a more complete history of the Modoc tribe, with estimations of the population of the tribe at various time periods. Additional details are given in John Swanton's The Indian Tribes of North America.

Keith A. Murray. The Modocs and Their War, Norman, OK. University of OK. Press, 1969. FS Library Book 970.3 M721m

Records

The majority of records of individuals were those created by the agencies. Some records may be available to tribal members through the tribal headquarters.They were (and are) the local office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and were charged with maintaining records of the activities of those under their responsibility. Among these records are:


Correspondence and Census

Tribe Agency Location of Original Records

Pre-1880 Correspondence

M234 RG 75

Rolls 962

Roll Number

FS Library

Film

Number

Post-1885 Census

M595 RG 75 Rolls 693

Roll Number

FS Library

Film

Number

Modoc Digger Agency, 1916-20 San Franisco - - Rolls 224-28 575589
Modoc Quapaw and Seneca Agencies, 1873-80

Washington D.C.

and Fort Worth

Rolls 703-13 - Rolls 410-12, 487-89 581405-581410, and 581498-581499

Land and Property

Tribally owned: 57.93 acres [3]

Treaty

Vital Records

Important Websites

Bibliography

References

  1. Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs, Federal Register, Vol. 67, No. 134, 12 July 2002 Available online
  2. Indian Reservations A State and Federal Handbook. Compiled by The Confederation of American Indians, New York, N.Y. McFarland and Co. Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina, c. 1986. FS Library book 970.1 In2 page 229
  3. Indian Reservations A State and Federal Handbook. Compiled by The Confederation of American Indians, New York, N.Y. McFarland and Co. Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina, c. 1986. FS Library book 970.1 In2 page 228