110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1294

AN ACT

To extend Federal recognition to the Chickahominy Indian 

Tribe, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock 

Tribe, Inc., the Monacan Indian Nation, and the 

Nansemond Indian Tribe.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal 

4 Recognition Act of 2007’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

6 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—CHICKAHOMINY INDIAN TRIBE 

Sec. 101. Findings. 

Sec. 102. Definitions. 

Sec. 103. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 104. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 105. Governing body. 

Sec. 106. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 107. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 

Sec. 108. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia. 

TITLE II—CHICKAHOMINY INDIAN TRIBE—EASTERN DIVISION 

Sec. 201. Findings. 

Sec. 202. Definitions. 

Sec. 203. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 204. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 205. Governing body. 

Sec. 206. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 207. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 

Sec. 208. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia. 

TITLE III—UPPER MATTAPONI TRIBE 

Sec. 301. Findings. 

Sec. 302. Definitions. 

Sec. 303. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 304. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 305. Governing body. 

Sec. 306. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 307. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 

Sec. 308. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia. 

TITLE IV—RAPPAHANNOCK TRIBE, INC. 

Sec. 401. Findings. 

Sec. 402. Definitions. 

Sec. 403. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 404. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 405. Governing body. 

Sec. 406. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 407. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 
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Sec. 408. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia. 

TITLE V—MONACAN INDIAN NATION 

Sec. 501. Findings. 

Sec. 502. Definitions. 

Sec. 503. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 504. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 505. Governing body. 

Sec. 506. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 507. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 

Sec. 508. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia. 

TITLE VI—NANSEMOND INDIAN TRIBE 

Sec. 601. Findings. 

Sec. 602. Definitions. 

Sec. 603. Federal recognition. 

Sec. 604. Membership; governing documents. 

Sec. 605. Governing body. 

Sec. 606. Reservation of the Tribe. 

Sec. 607. Hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, and water rights. 

Sec. 608. Jurisdiction of State of Virginia.

1 TITLE I—CHICKAHOMINY 

2 INDIAN TRIBE 

3 SEC. 101. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds that—

5 (1) in 1607, when the English settlers set shore 

6 along the Virginia coastline, the Chickahominy In7 dian Tribe was 1 of about 30 tribes that received 

8 them; 

9 (2) in 1614, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe en10 tered into a treaty with Sir Thomas Dale, Governor 

11 of the Jamestown Colony, under which—

12 (A) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe agreed 

13 to provide 2 bushels of corn per man and send 

14 warriors to protect the English; and 
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1 (B) Sir Thomas Dale agreed in return to 

2 allow the Tribe to continue to practice its own 

3 tribal governance; 

4 (3) in 1646, a treaty was signed which forced 

5 the Chickahominy from their homeland to the area 

6 around the York Mattaponi River in present-day 

7 King William County, leading to the formation of a 

8 reservation; 

9 (4) in 1677, following Bacon’s Rebellion, the 

10 Queen of Pamunkey signed the Treaty of Middle 

11 Plantation on behalf of the Chickahominy; 

12 (5) in 1702, the Chickahominy were forced 

13 from their reservation, which caused the loss of a 

14 land base; 

15 (6) in 1711, the College of William and Mary 

16 in Williamsburg established a grammar school for 

17 Indians called Brafferton College; 

18 (7) a Chickahominy child was 1 of the first In19 dians to attend Brafferton College; 

20 (8) in 1750, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

21 began to migrate from King William County back to 

22 the area around the Chickahominy River in New 

23 Kent and Charles City Counties; 
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1 (9) in 1793, a Baptist missionary named 

2 Bradby took refuge with the Chickahominy and took 

3 a Chickahominy woman as his wife; 

4 (10) in 1831, the names of the ancestors of the 

5 modern-day Chickahominy Indian Tribe began to 

6 appear in the Charles City County census records; 

7 (11) in 1901, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

8 formed Samaria Baptist Church; 

9 (12) from 1901 to 1935, Chickahominy men 

10 were assessed a tribal tax so that their children 

11 could receive an education; 

12 (13) the Tribe used the proceeds from the tax 

13 to build the first Samaria Indian School, buy sup14 plies, and pay a teacher’s salary; 

15 (14) in 1919, C. Lee Moore, Auditor of Public 

16 Accounts for Virginia, told Chickahominy Chief 

17 O.W. Adkins that he had instructed the Commis18 sioner of Revenue for Charles City County to record 

19 Chickahominy tribal members on the county tax rolls 

20 as Indian, and not as white or colored; 

21 (15) during the period of 1920 through 1930, 

22 various Governors of the Commonwealth of Virginia 

23 wrote letters of introduction for Chickahominy 

24 Chiefs who had official business with Federal agen25 cies in Washington, DC; 
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1 (16) in 1934, Chickahominy Chief O.O. Adkins 

2 wrote to John Collier, Commissioner of Indian Af3 fairs, requesting money to acquire land for the 

4 Chickahominy Indian Tribe’s use, to build school, 

5 medical, and library facilities and to buy tractors, 

6 implements, and seed; 

7 (17) in 1934, John Collier, Commissioner of In8 dian Affairs, wrote to Chickahominy Chief O.O. 

9 Adkins, informing him that Congress had passed the 

10 Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as the ‘‘In11 dian Reorganization Act’’) (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.), 

12 but had not made the appropriation to fund the Act; 

13 (18) in 1942, Chickahominy Chief O.O. Adkins 

14 wrote to John Collier, Commissioner of Indian Af15 fairs, asking for help in getting the proper racial 

16 designation on Selective Service records for Chicka17 hominy soldiers; 

18 (19) in 1943, John Collier, Commissioner of In19 dian Affairs, asked Douglas S. Freeman, editor of 

20 the Richmond News-Leader newspaper of Richmond, 

21 Virginia, to help Virginia Indians obtain proper ra22 cial designation on birth records; 

23 (20) Collier stated that his office could not offi24 cially intervene because it had no responsibility for 

25 the Virginia Indians, ‘‘as a matter largely of histor-
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1 ical accident’’, but was ‘‘interested in them as de2 scendants of the original inhabitants of the region’’; 

3 (21) in 1948, the Veterans’ Education Com4 mittee of the Virginia State Board of Education ap5 proved Samaria Indian School to provide training to 

6 veterans; 

7 (22) that school was established and run by the 

8 Chickahominy Indian Tribe; 

9 (23) in 1950, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

10 purchased and donated to the Charles City County 

11 School Board land to be used to build a modern 

12 school for students of the Chickahominy and other 

13 Virginia Indian tribes; 

14 (24) the Samaria Indian School included stu15 dents in grades 1 through 8; 

16 (25) In 1961, Senator Sam Ervin, Chairman of 

17 the Subcommittee on Constitutional Rights of the 

18 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, requested 

19 Chickahominy Chief O.O. Adkins to provide assist20 ance in analyzing the status of the constitutional 

21 rights of Indians ‘‘in your area’’; 

22 (26) in 1967, the Charles City County school 

23 board closed Samaria Indian School and converted 

24 the school to a countywide primary school as a step 
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1 toward full school integration of Indian and non-In2 dian students; 

3 (27) in 1972, the Charles City County school 

4 board began receiving funds under the Indian Self5 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

6 U.S.C. 458aa et seq.) on behalf of Chickahominy 

7 students, which funding is provided as of the date 

8 of enactment of this Act under title V of the Indian 

9 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 

10 (25 U.S.C. 458aaa et seq.); 

11 (28) in 1974, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

12 bought land and built a tribal center using monthly 

13 pledges from tribal members to finance the trans14 actions; 

15 (29) in 1983, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

16 was granted recognition as an Indian tribe by the 

17 Commonwealth of Virginia, along with 5 other In18 dian tribes; and 

19 (30) in 1985, Governor Gerald Baliles was the 

20 special guest at an intertribal Thanksgiving Day 

21 dinner hosted by the Chickahominy Indian Tribe. 

22 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 

23 In this title: 

24 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

25 the Secretary of the Interior. 
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1 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem2 ber’’ means—

3 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem4 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

5 this Act; and 

6 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

7 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

8 with this title. 

9 (3) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the 

10 Chickahominy Indian Tribe. 

11 SEC. 103. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

12 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex14 tended to the Tribe. 

15 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ16 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap17 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

18 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

19 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon20 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

21 and tribal members. 

22 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en24 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

25 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 
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1 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

2 Indian tribes without regard to—

3 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

4 Tribe; or 

5 (B) the location of the residence of any 

6 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva7 tion. 

8 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de9 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

10 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

11 the area comprised of New Kent County, James City 

12 County, Charles City County, and Henrico County, 

13 Virginia. 

14 SEC. 104. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

15 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

16 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov17 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

18 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 105. GOVERNING BODY. 

20 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

21 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

22 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

23 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

24 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

25 the governing documents of the Tribe. 
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1 SEC. 106. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

3 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

4 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 

5 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

6 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 

7 boundaries of New Kent County, James City County, 

8 Charles City County, or Henrico County, Virginia. The 

9 Secretary shall make a final determination within three 

10 years of the date which the tribe submits a request for 

11 land to be taken into trust. Any land taken into trust for 

12 the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this paragraph shall 

13 be considered part of the reservation of the Tribe. 

14 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac15 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

16 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

17 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

18 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

19 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

20 SEC. 107. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

21 WATER RIGHTS. 

22 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

23 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

24 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 
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1 SEC. 108. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer3 cise jurisdiction over—

4 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

5 and 

6 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 

7 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

8 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 

9 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC10 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

11 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

12 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 

13 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de14 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

15 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

16 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

17 TITLE II—CHICKAHOMINY IN18 DIAN TRIBE—EASTERN DIVI19 SION 

20 SEC. 201. FINDINGS. 

21 Congress finds that—

22 (1) in 1607, when the English settlers set shore 

23 along the Virginia coastline, the Chickahominy In24 dian Tribe was 1 of about 30 tribes that received 

25 them; 
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1 (2) in 1614, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe en2 tered into a treaty with Sir Thomas Dale, Governor 

3 of the Jamestown Colony, under which—

4 (A) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe agreed 

5 to provide 2 bushels of corn per man and send 

6 warriors to protect the English; and 

7 (B) Sir Thomas Dale agreed in return to 

8 allow the Tribe to continue to practice its own 

9 tribal governance; 

10 (3) in 1646, a treaty was signed which forced 

11 the Chickahominy from their homeland to the area 

12 around the York River in present-day King William 

13 County, leading to the formation of a reservation; 

14 (4) in 1677, following Bacon’s Rebellion, the 

15 Queen of Pamunkey signed the Treaty of Middle 

16 Plantation on behalf of the Chickahominy; 

17 (5) in 1702, the Chickahominy were forced 

18 from their reservation, which caused the loss of a 

19 land base; 

20 (6) in 1711, the College of William and Mary 

21 in Williamsburg established a grammar school for 

22 Indians called Brafferton College; 

23 (7) a Chickahominy child was 1 of the first In24 dians to attend Brafferton College; 
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1 (8) in 1750, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

2 began to migrate from King William County back to 

3 the area around the Chickahominy River in New 

4 Kent and Charles City Counties; 

5 (9) in 1793, a Baptist missionary named 

6 Bradby took refuge with the Chickahominy and took 

7 a Chickahominy woman as his wife; 

8 (10) in 1831, the names of the ancestors of the 

9 modern-day Chickahominy Indian Tribe began to 

10 appear in the Charles City County census records; 

11 (11) in 1870, a census revealed an enclave of 

12 Indians in New Kent County that is believed to be 

13 the beginning of the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—

14 Eastern Division; 

15 (12) other records were destroyed when the 

16 New Kent County courthouse was burned, leaving a 

17 State census as the only record covering that period; 

18 (13) in 1901, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

19 formed Samaria Baptist Church; 

20 (14) from 1901 to 1935, Chickahominy men 

21 were assessed a tribal tax so that their children 

22 could receive an education; 

23 (15) the Tribe used the proceeds from the tax 

24 to build the first Samaria Indian School, buy sup25 plies, and pay a teacher’s salary; 
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1 (16) in 1910, a 1-room school covering grades 

2 1 through 8 was established in New Kent County for 

3 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division; 

4 (17) during the period of 1920 through 1921, 

5 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division 

6 began forming a tribal government; 

7 (18) E.P. Bradby, the founder of the Tribe, 

8 was elected to be Chief; 

9 (19) in 1922, Tsena Commocko Baptist Church 

10 was organized; 

11 (20) in 1925, a certificate of incorporation was 

12 issued to the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern 

13 Division; 

14 (21) in 1950, the 1-room Indian school in New 

15 Kent County was closed and students were bused to 

16 Samaria Indian School in Charles City County; 

17 (22) in 1967, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

18 and the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Divi19 sion lost their schools as a result of the required in20 tegration of students; 

21 (23) during the period of 1982 through 1984, 

22 Tsena Commocko Baptist Church built a new sanc23 tuary to accommodate church growth; 
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1 (24) in 1983 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—

2 Eastern Division was granted State recognition 

3 along with 5 other Virginia Indian tribes; 

4 (25) in 1985—

5 (A) the Virginia Council on Indians was 

6 organized as a State agency; and 

7 (B) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—East8 ern Division was granted a seat on the Council; 

9 (26) in 1988, a nonprofit organization known 

10 as the ‘‘United Indians of Virginia’’ was formed; and 

11 (27) Chief Marvin ‘‘Strongoak’’ Bradby of the 

12 Eastern Band of the Chickahominy presently chairs 

13 the organization. 

14 SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this title: 

16 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

17 the Secretary of the Interior. 

18 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem19 ber’’ means—

20 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem21 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

22 this Act; and 

23 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

24 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

25 with this title. 
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1 (3) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the 

2 Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division. 

3 SEC. 203. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

4 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex6 tended to the Tribe. 

7 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ8 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap9 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

10 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

11 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon12 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

13 and tribal members. 

14 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en16 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

17 shall be eligible for all future services and benefits 

18 provided by the Federal Government to federally rec19 ognized Indian tribes without regard to—

20 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

21 Tribe; or 

22 (B) the location of the residence of any 

23 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva24 tion. 
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1 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de2 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

3 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

4 the area comprised of New Kent County, James City 

5 County, Charles City County, and Henrico County, 

6 Virginia. 

7 SEC. 204. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

8 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

9 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov10 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

11 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 205. GOVERNING BODY. 

13 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

14 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

15 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

16 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

17 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

18 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

19 SEC. 206. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

21 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

22 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 

23 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

24 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 

25 boundaries of New Kent County, James City County, 
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1 Charles City County, or Henrico County, Virginia. The 

2 Secretary shall make a final determination within three 

3 years of the date which the tribe submits a request for 

4 land to be taken into trust. Any land taken into trust for 

5 the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this paragraph shall 

6 be considered part of the reservation of the Tribe. 

7 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac8 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

9 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

10 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

11 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

12 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

13 SEC. 207. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

14 WATER RIGHTS. 

15 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

16 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

17 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 

18 SEC. 208. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer20 cise jurisdiction over—

21 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

22 and 

23 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 

24 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

25 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 
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1 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC2 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

3 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

4 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 

5 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de6 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

7 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

8 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

9 TITLE III—UPPER MATTAPONI 

10 TRIBE 

11 SEC. 301. FINDINGS. 

12 Congress finds that—

13 (1) during the period of 1607 through 1646, 

14 the Chickahominy Indian Tribes—

15 (A) lived approximately 20 miles from 

16 Jamestown; and 

17 (B) were significantly involved in English18 Indian affairs; 

19 (2) Mattaponi Indians, who later joined the 

20 Chickahominy Indians, lived a greater distance from 

21 Jamestown; 

22 (3) in 1646, the Chickahominy Indians moved 

23 to Mattaponi River basin, away from the English; 
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1 (4) in 1661, the Chickahominy Indians sold 

2 land at a place known as ‘‘the cliffs’’ on the 

3 Mattaponi River; 

4 (5) in 1669, the Chickahominy Indians—

5 (A) appeared in the Virginia Colony’s cen6 sus of Indian bowmen; and 

7 (B) lived in ‘‘New Kent’’ County, which in8 cluded the Mattaponi River basin at that time; 

9 (6) in 1677, the Chickahominy and Mattaponi 

10 Indians were subjects of the Queen of Pamunkey, 

11 who was a signatory to the Treaty of 1677 with the 

12 King of England; 

13 (7) in 1683, after a Mattaponi town was at14 tacked by Seneca Indians, the Mattaponi Indians 

15 took refuge with the Chickahominy Indians, and the 

16 history of the 2 groups was intertwined for many 

17 years thereafter; 

18 (8) in 1695, the Chickahominy and Mattaponi 

19 Indians—

20 (A) were assigned a reservation by the Vir21 ginia Colony; and 

22 (B) traded land of the reservation for land 

23 at the place known as ‘‘the cliffs’’ (which, as of 

24 the date of enactment of this Act, is the 
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1 Mattaponi Indian Reservation), which had been 

2 owned by the Mattaponi Indians before 1661; 

3 (9) in 1711, a Chickahominy boy attended the 

4 Indian School at the College of William and Mary; 

5 (10) in 1726, the Virginia Colony discontinued 

6 funding of interpreters for the Chickahominy and 

7 Mattaponi Indian Tribes; 

8 (11) James Adams, who served as an inter9 preter to the Indian tribes known as of the date of 

10 enactment of this Act as the ‘‘Upper Mattaponi In11 dian Tribe’’ and ‘‘Chickahominy Indian Tribe’’, 

12 elected to stay with the Upper Mattaponi Indians; 

13 (12) today, a majority of the Upper Mattaponi 

14 Indians have ‘‘Adams’’ as their surname; 

15 (13) in 1787, Thomas Jefferson, in Notes on 

16 the Commonwealth of Virginia, mentioned the 

17 Mattaponi Indians on a reservation in King William 

18 County and said that Chickahominy Indians were 

19 ‘‘blended’’ with the Mattaponi Indians and nearby 

20 Pamunkey Indians; 

21 (14) in 1850, the census of the United States 

22 revealed a nucleus of approximately 10 families, all 

23 ancestral to modern Upper Mattaponi Indians, living 

24 in central King William County, Virginia, approxi25 mately 10 miles from the reservation; 
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1 (15) during the period of 1853 through 1884, 

2 King William County marriage records listed Upper 

3 Mattaponis as ‘‘Indians’’ in marrying people residing 

4 on the reservation; 

5 (16) during the period of 1884 through the 

6 present, county marriage records usually refer to 

7 Upper Mattaponis as ‘‘Indians’’; 

8 (17) in 1901, Smithsonian anthropologist 

9 James Mooney heard about the Upper Mattaponi In10 dians but did not visit them; 

11 (18) in 1928, University of Pennsylvania an12 thropologist Frank Speck published a book on mod13 ern Virginia Indians with a section on the Upper 

14 Mattaponis; 

15 (19) from 1929 until 1930, the leadership of 

16 the Upper Mattaponi Indians opposed the use of a 

17 ‘‘colored’’ designation in the 1930 United States 

18 census and won a compromise in which the Indian 

19 ancestry of the Upper Mattaponis was recorded but 

20 questioned; 

21 (20) during the period of 1942 through 1945—

22 (A) the leadership of the Upper Mattaponi 

23 Indians, with the help of Frank Speck and oth24 ers, fought against the induction of young men 
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1 of the Tribe into ‘‘colored’’ units in the Armed 

2 Forces of the United States; and 

3 (B) a tribal roll for the Upper Mattaponi 

4 Indians was compiled; 

5 (21) from 1945 to 1946, negotiations took 

6 place to admit some of the young people of the 

7 Upper Mattaponi to high schools for Federal Indians 

8 (especially at Cherokee) because no high school 

9 coursework was available for Indians in Virginia 

10 schools; and 

11 (22) in 1983, the Upper Mattaponi Indians ap12 plied for and won State recognition as an Indian 

13 tribe. 

14 SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this title: 

16 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

17 the Secretary of the Interior. 

18 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem19 ber’’ means—

20 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem21 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

22 this Act; and 

23 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

24 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

25 with this title. 
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1 (3) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the 

2 Upper Mattaponi Tribe. 

3 SEC. 303. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

4 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex6 tended to the Tribe. 

7 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ8 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap9 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

10 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

11 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon12 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

13 and tribal members. 

14 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en16 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

17 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

18 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

19 Indian tribes without regard to—

20 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

21 Tribe; or 

22 (B) the location of the residence of any 

23 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva24 tion. 
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1 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de2 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

3 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

4 the area within 25 miles of the Sharon Indian 

5 School at 13383 King William Road, King William 

6 County, Virginia. 

7 SEC. 304. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

8 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

9 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov10 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

11 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 305. GOVERNING BODY. 

13 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

14 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

15 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

16 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

17 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

18 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

19 SEC. 306. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

21 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

22 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 

23 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

24 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 

25 boundaries of King William County, Caroline County, 
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1 Hanover County, King and Queen County, and New Kent 

2 County, Virginia. The Secretary shall make a final deter3 mination within three years of the date which the tribe 

4 submits a request for land to be taken into trust. Any 

5 land taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant 

6 to this paragraph shall be considered part of the reserva7 tion of the Tribe. 

8 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac9 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

10 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

11 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

12 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

13 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

14 SEC. 307. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

15 WATER RIGHTS. 

16 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

17 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

18 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 

19 SEC. 308. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer21 cise jurisdiction over—

22 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

23 and 

24 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 
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1 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

2 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 

3 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC4 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

5 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

6 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 

7 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de8 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

9 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

10 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

11 TITLE IV—RAPPAHANNOCK 

12 TRIBE, INC. 

13 SEC. 401. FINDINGS. 

14 Congress finds that—

15 (1) during the initial months after Virginia was 

16 settled, the Rappahannock Indians had 3 encounters 

17 with Captain John Smith; 

18 (2) the first encounter occurred when the Rap19 pahannock weroance (headman)—

20 (A) traveled to Quiyocohannock (a prin21 cipal town across the James River from James22 town), where he met with Smith to determine 

23 whether Smith had been the ‘‘great man’’ who 

24 had previously sailed into the Rappahannock 
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1 River, killed a Rappahannock weroance, and 

2 kidnapped Rappahannock people; and 

3 (B) determined that Smith was too short 

4 to be that ‘‘great man’’; 

5 (3) on a second meeting, during John Smith’s 

6 captivity (December 16, 1607 to January 8, 1608), 

7 Smith was taken to the Rappahannock principal vil8 lage to show the people that Smith was not the 

9 ‘‘great man’’; 

10 (4) a third meeting took place during Smith’s 

11 exploration of the Chesapeake Bay (July to Sep12 tember 1608), when, after the Moraughtacund Indi13 ans had stolen 3 women from the Rappahannock 

14 King, Smith was prevailed upon to facilitate a peace15 ful truce between the Rappahannock and the 

16 Moraughtacund Indians; 

17 (5) in the settlement, Smith had the 2 Indian 

18 tribes meet on the spot of their first fight; 

19 (6) when it was established that both groups 

20 wanted peace, Smith told the Rappahannock King to 

21 select which of the 3 stolen women he wanted; 

22 (7) the Moraughtacund King was given second 

23 choice among the 2 remaining women, and Mosco, a 

24 Wighcocomoco (on the Potomac River) guide, was 

25 given the third woman; 
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1 (8) in 1645, Captain William Claiborne tried 

2 unsuccessfully to establish treaty relations with the 

3 Rappahannocks, as the Rappahannocks had not par4 ticipated in the Pamunkey-led uprising in 1644, and 

5 the English wanted to ‘‘treat with the 

6 Rappahannocks or any other Indians not in amity 

7 with Opechancanough, concerning serving the county 

8 against the Pamunkeys’’; 

9 (9) in April 1651, the Rappahannocks conveyed 

10 a tract of land to an English settler, Colonel Morre 

11 Fauntleroy; 

12 (10) the deed for the conveyance was signed by 

13 Accopatough, weroance of the Rappahannock Indi14 ans; 

15 (11) in September 1653, Lancaster County 

16 signed a treaty with Rappahannock Indians, the 

17 terms of which treaty—

18 (A) gave Rappahannocks the rights of 

19 Englishmen in the county court; and 

20 (B) attempted to make the Rappahannocks 

21 more accountable under English law; 

22 (12) in September 1653, Lancaster County de23 fined and marked the bounds of its Indian settle24 ments; 
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1 (13) according to the Lancaster clerk of court, 

2 ‘‘the tribe called the great Rappahannocks lived on 

3 the Rappahannock Creek just across the river above 

4 Tappahannock’’; 

5 (14) in September 1656, (Old) Rappahannock 

6 County (which, as of the date of enactment of this 

7 Act, is comprised of Richmond and Essex Counties, 

8 Virginia) signed a treaty with Rappahannock Indi9 ans that—

10 (A) mirrored the Lancaster County treaty 

11 from 1653; and 

12 (B) stated that—

13 (i) Rappahannocks were to be re14 warded, in Roanoke, for returning English 

15 fugitives; and 

16 (ii) the English encouraged the 

17 Rappahannocks to send their children to 

18 live among the English as servants, who 

19 the English promised would be well-treat20 ed; 

21 (15) in 1658, the Virginia Assembly revised a 

22 1652 Act stating that ‘‘there be no grants of land 

23 to any Englishman whatsoever de futuro until the 

24 Indians be first served with the proportion of 50 

25 acres of land for each bowman’’; 
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1 (16) in 1669, the colony conducted a census of 

2 Virginia Indians; 

3 (17) as of the date of that census—

4 (A) the majority of the Rappahannocks 

5 were residing at their hunting village on the 

6 north side of the Mattaponi River; and 

7 (B) at the time of the visit, census-takers 

8 were counting only the Indian tribes along the 

9 rivers, which explains why only 30 Rappahan10 nock bowmen were counted on that river; 

11 (18) the Rappahannocks used the hunting vil12 lage on the north side of the Mattaponi River as 

13 their primary residence until the Rappahannocks 

14 were removed in 1684; 

15 (19) in May 1677, the Treaty of Middle Planta16 tion was signed with England; 

17 (20) the Pamunkey Queen Cockacoeske signed 

18 on behalf of the Rappahannocks, ‘‘who were sup19 posed to be her tributaries’’, but before the treaty 

20 could be ratified, the Queen of Pamunkey com21 plained to the Virginia Colonial Council ‘‘that she 

22 was having trouble with Rappahannocks and 

23 Chickahominies, supposedly tributaries of hers’’; 

24 (21) in November 1682, the Virginia Colonial 

25 Council established a reservation for the Rappahan-
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1 nock Indians of 3,474 acres ‘‘about the town where 

2 they dwelt’’; 

3 (22) the Rappahannock ‘‘town’’ was the hunt4 ing village on the north side of the Mattaponi River, 

5 where the Rappahannocks had lived throughout the 

6 1670s; 

7 (23) the acreage allotment of the reservation 

8 was based on the 1658 Indian land act, which trans9 lates into a bowman population of 70, or an approxi10 mate total Rappahannock population of 350; 

11 (24) in 1683, following raids by Iroquoian war12 riors on both Indian and English settlements, the 

13 Virginia Colonial Council ordered the 

14 Rappahannocks to leave their reservation and unite 

15 with the Nanzatico Indians at Nanzatico Indian 

16 Town, which was located across and up the Rappa17 hannock River some 30 miles; 

18 (25) between 1687 and 1699, the 

19 Rappahannocks migrated out of Nanzatico, return20 ing to the south side of the Rappahannock River at 

21 Portobacco Indian Town; 

22 (26) in 1706, by order of Essex County, Lieu23 tenant Richard Covington ‘‘escorted’’ the 

24 Portobaccos and Rappahannocks out of Portobacco 

25 Indian Town, out of Essex County, and into King 
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1 and Queen County where they settled along the 

2 ridgeline between the Rappahannock and Mattaponi 

3 Rivers, the site of their ancient hunting village and 

4 1682 reservation; 

5 (27) during the 1760s, 3 Rappahannock girls 

6 were raised on Thomas Nelson’s Bleak Hill Planta7 tion in King William County; 

8 (28) of those girls—

9 (A) 1 married a Saunders man; 

10 (B) 1 married a Johnson man; and 

11 (C) 1 had 2 children, Edmund and Carter 

12 Nelson, fathered by Thomas Cary Nelson; 

13 (29) in the 19th century, those Saunders, John14 son, and Nelson families are among the core Rappa15 hannock families from which the modern Tribe 

16 traces its descent; 

17 (30) in 1819 and 1820, Edward Bird, John 

18 Bird (and his wife), Carter Nelson, Edmund Nelson, 

19 and Carter Spurlock (all Rappahannock ancestors) 

20 were listed on the tax roles of King and Queen 

21 County and taxed at the county poor rate; 

22 (31) Edmund Bird was added to the tax roles 

23 in 1821; 

24 (32) those tax records are significant docu25 mentation because the great majority of pre-1864 
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1 records for King and Queen County were destroyed 

2 by fire; 

3 (33) beginning in 1819, and continuing through 

4 the 1880s, there was a solid Rappahannock presence 

5 in the membership at Upper Essex Baptist Church; 

6 (34) that was the first instance of conversion to 

7 Christianity by at least some Rappahannock Indians; 

8 (35) while 26 identifiable and traceable Rappa9 hannock surnames appear on the pre-1863 member10 ship list, and 28 were listed on the 1863 member11 ship roster, the number of surnames listed had de12 clined to 12 in 1878 and had risen only slightly to 

13 14 by 1888; 

14 (36) a reason for the decline is that in 1870, 

15 a Methodist circuit rider, Joseph Mastin, secured 

16 funds to purchase land and construct St. Stephens 

17 Baptist Church for the Rappahannocks living nearby 

18 in Caroline County; 

19 (37) Mastin referred to the Rappahannocks 

20 during the period of 1850 to 1870 as ‘‘Indians, hav21 ing a great need for moral and Christian guidance’’; 

22 (38) St. Stephens was the dominant tribal 

23 church until the Rappahannock Indian Baptist 

24 Church was established in 1964; 
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1 (39) at both churches, the core Rappahannock 

2 family names of Bird, Clarke, Fortune, Johnson, 

3 Nelson, Parker, and Richardson predominate; 

4 (40) during the early 1900’s, James Mooney, 

5 noted anthropologist, maintained correspondence 

6 with the Rappahannocks, surveying them and in7 structing them on how to formalize their tribal gov8 ernment; 

9 (41) in November 1920, Speck visited the 

10 Rappahannocks and assisted them in organizing the 

11 fight for their sovereign rights; 

12 (42) in 1921, the Rappahannocks were granted 

13 a charter from the Commonwealth of Virginia for14 malizing their tribal government; 

15 (43) Speck began a professional relationship 

16 with the Tribe that would last more than 30 years 

17 and document Rappahannock history and traditions 

18 as never before; 

19 (44) in April 1921, Rappahannock Chief 

20 George Nelson asked the Governor of Virginia, 

21 Westmoreland Davis, to forward a proclamation to 

22 the President of the United States, along with an 

23 appended list of tribal members and a handwritten 

24 copy of the proclamation itself; 
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1 (45) the letter concerned Indian freedom of 

2 speech and assembly nationwide; 

3 (46) in 1922, the Rappahannocks established a 

4 formal school at Lloyds, Essex County, Virginia; 

5 (47) prior to establishment of the school, Rap6 pahannock children were taught by a tribal member 

7 in Central Point, Caroline County, Virginia; 

8 (48) in December 1923, Rappahannock Chief 

9 George Nelson testified before Congress appealing 

10 for a $50,000 appropriation to establish an Indian 

11 school in Virginia; 

12 (49) in 1930, the Rappahannocks were engaged 

13 in an ongoing dispute with the Commonwealth of 

14 Virginia and the United States Census Bureau 

15 about their classification in the 1930 Federal cen16 sus; 

17 (50) in January 1930, Rappahannock Chief 

18 Otho S. Nelson wrote to Leon Truesdell, Chief Stat19 istician of the United States Census Bureau, asking 

20 that the 218 enrolled Rappahannocks be listed as 

21 Indians; 

22 (51) in February 1930, Truesdell replied to 

23 Nelson saying that ‘‘special instructions’’ were being 

24 given about classifying Indians; 
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1 (52) in April 1930, Nelson wrote to William M. 

2 Steuart at the Census Bureau asking about the enu3 merators’ failure to classify his people as Indians, 

4 saying that enumerators had not asked the question 

5 about race when they interviewed his people; 

6 (53) in a followup letter to Truesdell, Nelson 

7 reported that the enumerators were ‘‘flatly denying’’ 

8 his people’s request to be listed as Indians and that 

9 the race question was completely avoided during 

10 interviews; 

11 (54) the Rappahannocks had spoken with Caro12 line and Essex County enumerators, and with John 

13 M.W. Green at that point, without success; 

14 (55) Nelson asked Truesdell to list people as 

15 Indians if he sent a list of members; 

16 (56) the matter was settled by William Steuart, 

17 who concluded that the Bureau’s rule was that peo18 ple of Indian descent could be classified as ‘‘Indian’’ 

19 only if Indian ‘‘blood’’ predominated and ‘‘Indian’’ 

20 identity was accepted in the local community; 

21 (57) the Virginia Vital Statistics Bureau 

22 classed all nonreservation Indians as ‘‘Negro’’, and 

23 it failed to see why ‘‘an exception should be made’’ 

24 for the Rappahannocks; 
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1 (58) therefore, in 1925, the Indian Rights As2 sociation took on the Rappahannock case to assist 

3 the Rappahannocks in fighting for their recognition 

4 and rights as an Indian tribe; 

5 (59) during the Second World War, the 

6 Pamunkeys, Mattaponis, Chickahominies, and 

7 Rappahannocks had to fight the draft boards with 

8 respect to their racial identities; 

9 (60) the Virginia Vital Statistics Bureau in10 sisted that certain Indian draftees be inducted into 

11 Negro units; 

12 (61) finally, 3 Rappahannocks were convicted of 

13 violating the Federal draft laws and, after spending 

14 time in a Federal prison, were granted conscientious 

15 objector status and served out the remainder of the 

16 war working in military hospitals; 

17 (62) in 1943, Frank Speck noted that there 

18 were approximately 25 communities of Indians left 

19 in the Eastern United States that were entitled to 

20 Indian classification, including the Rappahannocks; 

21 (63) in the 1940s, Leon Truesdell, Chief Stat22 istician, of the United States Census Bureau, listed 

23 118 members in the Rappahannock Tribe in the In24 dian population of Virginia; 
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1 (64) on April 25, 1940, the Office of Indian Af2 fairs of the Department of the Interior included the 

3 Rappahannocks on a list of Indian tribes classified 

4 by State and by agency; 

5 (65) in 1948, the Smithsonian Institution An6 nual Report included an article by William Harlen 

7 Gilbert entitled, ‘‘Surviving Indian Groups of the 

8 Eastern United States’’, which included and de9 scribed the Rappahannock Tribe; 

10 (66) in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the 

11 Rappahannocks operated a school at Indian Neck; 

12 (67) the State agreed to pay a tribal teacher to 

13 teach 10 students bused by King and Queen County 

14 to Sharon Indian School in King William County, 

15 Virginia; 

16 (68) in 1965, Rappahannock students entered 

17 Marriott High School (a white public school) by ex18 ecutive order of the Governor of Virginia; 

19 (69) in 1972, the Rappahannocks worked with 

20 the Coalition of Eastern Native Americans to fight 

21 for Federal recognition; 

22 (70) in 1979, the Coalition established a pot23 tery and artisans company, operating with other Vir24 ginia tribes; 
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1 (71) in 1980, the Rappahannocks received 

2 funding through the Administration for Native 

3 Americans of the Department of Health and Human 

4 Services to develop an economic program for the 

5 Tribe; and 

6 (72) in 1983, the Rappahannocks received 

7 State recognition as an Indian tribe. 

8 SEC. 402. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this title: 

10 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

11 the Secretary of the Interior. 

12 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem13 ber’’ means—

14 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem15 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

16 this Act; and 

17 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

18 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

19 with this title. 

20 (3) TRIBE.—

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ 

22 means the organization possessing the legal 

23 name Rappahannock Tribe, Inc. 

24 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ does 

25 not include any other Indian tribe, subtribe, 
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1 band, or splinter group the members of which 

2 represent themselves as Rappahannock Indians. 

3 SEC. 403. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

4 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex6 tended to the Tribe. 

7 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ8 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap9 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

10 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

11 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon12 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

13 and tribal members. 

14 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en16 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

17 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

18 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

19 Indian tribes without regard to—

20 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

21 Tribe; or 

22 (B) the location of the residence of any 

23 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva24 tion. 
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1 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de2 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

3 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

4 the area comprised of King and Queen County, 

5 Caroline County, Essex County, Spotsylvania Coun6 ty, Stafford County, and Richmond County, Vir7 ginia. 

8 SEC. 404. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

9 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

10 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov11 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

12 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 405. GOVERNING BODY. 

14 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

15 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

16 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

17 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

18 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

19 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

20 SEC. 406. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

22 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

23 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 

24 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

25 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 
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1 boundaries of King and Queen County, Stafford County, 

2 Spotsylvania County, Richmond County, Essex County, 

3 and Caroline County, Virginia. The Secretary shall make 

4 a final determination within three years of the date which 

5 the tribe submits a request for land to be taken into trust. 

6 Any land taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe pur7 suant to this paragraph shall be considered part of the 

8 reservation of the Tribe. 

9 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac10 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

11 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

12 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

13 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

14 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

15 SEC. 407. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

16 WATER RIGHTS. 

17 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

18 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

19 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 

20 SEC. 408. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer22 cise jurisdiction over—

23 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

24 and 

25 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 
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1 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

2 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 

3 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC4 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

5 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

6 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 

7 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de8 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

9 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

10 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

11 TITLE V—MONACAN INDIAN 

12 NATION 

13 SEC. 501. FINDINGS. 

14 Congress finds that—

15 (1) In 1677, the Monacan Tribe signed the 

16 Treaty of Middle Plantation between Charles II of 

17 England and 12 Indian ‘‘Kings and Chief Men’’; 

18 (2) in 1722, in the Treaty of Albany, Governor 

19 Spotswood negotiated to save the Virginia Indians 

20 from extinction at the hands of the Iroquois; 

21 (3) specifically mentioned in the negotiations 

22 were the Monacan tribes of the Totero (Tutelo), 

23 Saponi, Ocheneeches (Occaneechi), Stengenocks, and 

24 Meipontskys; 
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1 (4) in 1790, the first national census recorded 

2 Benjamin Evans and Robert Johns, both ancestors 

3 of the present Monacan community, listed as 

4 ‘‘white’’ with mulatto children; 

5 (5) in 1782, tax records also began for those 

6 families; 

7 (6) in 1850, the United States census recorded 

8 29 families, mostly large, with Monacan surnames, 

9 the members of which are genealogically related to 

10 the present community; 

11 (7) in 1870, a log structure was built at the 

12 Bear Mountain Indian Mission; 

13 (8) in 1908, the structure became an Episcopal 

14 Mission and, as of the date of enactment of this Act, 

15 the structure is listed as a landmark on the National 

16 Register of Historic Places; 

17 (9) in 1920, 304 Amherst Indians were identi18 fied in the United States census; 

19 (10) from 1930 through 1931, numerous letters 

20 from Monacans to the Bureau of the Census re21 sulted from the decision of Dr. Walter Plecker, 

22 former head of the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the 

23 State of Virginia, not to allow Indians to register as 

24 Indians for the 1930 census; 
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1 (11) the Monacans eventually succeeded in 

2 being allowed to claim their race, albeit with an as3 terisk attached to a note from Dr. Plecker stating 

4 that there were no Indians in Virginia; 

5 (12) in 1947, D’Arcy McNickle, a Salish In6 dian, saw some of the children at the Amherst Mis7 sion and requested that the Cherokee Agency visit 

8 them because they appeared to be Indian; 

9 (13) that letter was forwarded to the Depart10 ment of the Interior, Office of Indian Affairs, Chi11 cago, Illinois; 

12 (14) Chief Jarrett Blythe of the Eastern Band 

13 of Cherokee did visit the Mission and wrote that he 

14 ‘‘would be willing to accept these children in the 

15 Cherokee school’’; 

16 (15) in 1979, a Federal Coalition of Eastern 

17 Native Americans established the entity known as 

18 ‘‘Monacan Co-operative Pottery’’ at the Amherst 

19 Mission; 

20 (16) some important pieces were produced at 

21 Monacan Co-operative Pottery, including a piece 

22 that was sold to the Smithsonian Institution; 

23 (17) the Mattaponi-Pamunkey-Monacan Con24 sortium, established in 1981, has since been orga25 nized as a nonprofit corporation that serves as a ve-
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1 hicle to obtain funds for those Indian tribes from the 

2 Department of Labor under Native American pro3 grams; 

4 (18) in 1989, the Monacan Tribe was recog5 nized by the State of Virginia, which enabled the 

6 Tribe to apply for grants and participate in other 

7 programs; and 

8 (19) in 1993, the Monacan Tribe received tax9 exempt status as a nonprofit corporation from the 

10 Internal Revenue Service. 

11 SEC. 502. DEFINITIONS. 

12 In this title: 

13 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

14 the Secretary of the Interior. 

15 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem16 ber’’ means—

17 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem18 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

19 this Act; and 

20 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

21 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

22 with this title. 

23 (3) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the Mon24 acan Indian Nation. 
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1 SEC. 503. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

2 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex4 tended to the Tribe. 

5 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ6 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap7 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

8 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

9 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon10 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

11 and tribal members. 

12 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en14 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

15 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

16 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

17 Indian tribes without regard to—

18 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

19 Tribe; or 

20 (B) the location of the residence of any 

21 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva22 tion. 

23 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de24 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

25 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 
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1 the area comprised of all land within 25 miles from 

2 the center of Amherst, Virginia. 

3 SEC. 504. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

4 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

5 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov6 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

7 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 505. GOVERNING BODY. 

9 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

10 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

11 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

12 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

13 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

14 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

15 SEC. 506. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

17 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

18 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 

19 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

20 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 

21 boundaries of Amherst County, Virginia. The Secretary 

22 shall make a final determination within three years of the 

23 date which the tribe submits a request for land to be taken 

24 into trust. Any land taken into trust for the benefit of 
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1 the Tribe pursuant to this paragraph shall be considered 

2 part of the reservation of the Tribe. 

3 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac4 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

5 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

6 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

7 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

8 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

9 SEC. 507. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

10 WATER RIGHTS. 

11 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

12 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

13 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 

14 SEC. 508. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer16 cise jurisdiction over—

17 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

18 and 

19 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 

20 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

21 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 

22 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC23 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

24 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

25 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 
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1 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de2 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

3 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

4 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

5 TITLE VI—NANSEMOND INDIAN 

6 TRIBE 

7 SEC. 601. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds that—

9 (1) from 1607 until 1646, Nansemond Indi10 ans—

11 (A) lived approximately 30 miles from 

12 Jamestown; and 

13 (B) were significantly involved in English14 Indian affairs; 

15 (2) after 1646, there were 2 sections of 

16 Nansemonds in communication with each other, the 

17 Christianized Nansemonds in Norfolk County, who 

18 lived as citizens, and the traditionalist Nansemonds, 

19 who lived further west; 

20 (3) in 1638, according to an entry in a 17th 

21 century sermon book still owned by the Chief’s fam22 ily, a Norfolk County Englishman married a 

23 Nansemond woman; 

24 (4) that man and woman are lineal ancestors of 

25 all of members of the Nansemond Indian tribe alive 
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1 as of the date of enactment of this Act, as are some 

2 of the traditionalist Nansemonds; 

3 (5) in 1669, the 2 Nansemond sections ap4 peared in Virginia Colony’s census of Indian 

5 bowmen; 

6 (6) in 1677, Nansemond Indians were signato7 ries to the Treaty of 1677 with the King of Eng8 land; 

9 (7) in 1700 and 1704, the Nansemonds and 

10 other Virginia Indian tribes were prevented by Vir11 ginia Colony from making a separate peace with the 

12 Iroquois; 

13 (8) Virginia represented those Indian tribes in 

14 the final Treaty of Albany, 1722; 

15 (9) in 1711, a Nansemond boy attended the In16 dian School at the College of William and Mary; 

17 (10) in 1727, Norfolk County granted William 

18 Bass and his kinsmen the ‘‘Indian privileges’’ of 

19 clearing swamp land and bearing arms (which privi20 leges were forbidden to other nonwhites) because of 

21 their Nansemond ancestry, which meant that Bass 

22 and his kinsmen were original inhabitants of that 

23 land; 

24 (11) in 1742, Norfolk County issued a certifi25 cate of Nansemond descent to William Bass; 
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1 (12) from the 1740s to the 1790s, the tradi2 tionalist section of the Nansemond tribe, 40 miles 

3 west of the Christianized Nansemonds, was dealing 

4 with reservation land; 

5 (13) the last surviving members of that section 

6 sold out in 1792 with the permission of the State of 

7 Virginia; 

8 (14) in 1797, Norfolk County issued a certifi9 cate stating that William Bass was of Indian and 

10 English descent, and that his Indian line of ancestry 

11 ran directly back to the early 18th century elder in 

12 a traditionalist section of Nansemonds on the res13 ervation; 

14 (15) in 1833, Virginia enacted a law enabling 

15 people of European and Indian descent to obtain a 

16 special certificate of ancestry; 

17 (16) the law originated from the county in 

18 which Nansemonds lived, and mostly Nansemonds, 

19 with a few people from other counties, took advan20 tage of the new law; 

21 (17) a Methodist mission established around 

22 1850 for Nansemonds is currently a standard Meth23 odist congregation with Nansemond members; 

24 (18) in 1901, Smithsonian anthropologist 

25 James Mooney—
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1 (A) visited the Nansemonds; and 

2 (B) completed a tribal census that counted 

3 61 households and was later published; 

4 (19) in 1922, Nansemonds were given a special 

5 Indian school in the segregated school system of 

6 Norfolk County; 

7 (20) the school survived only a few years; 

8 (21) in 1928, University of Pennsylvania an9 thropologist Frank Speck published a book on mod10 ern Virginia Indians that included a section on the 

11 Nansemonds; and 

12 (22) the Nansemonds were organized formally, 

13 with elected officers, in 1984, and later applied for 

14 and received State recognition. 

15 SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this title: 

17 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

18 the Secretary of the Interior. 

19 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem20 ber’’ means—

21 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem22 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

23 this Act; and 
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1 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

2 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

3 with this title. 

4 (3) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the 

5 Nansemond Indian Tribe. 

6 SEC. 603. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

7 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex9 tended to the Tribe. 

10 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ11 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap12 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

13 bands of Indians (including the Act of June 18, 

14 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon15 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

16 and tribal members. 

17 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en19 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

20 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

21 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

22 Indian tribes without regard to—

23 (A) the existence of a reservation for the 

24 Tribe; or 
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1 (B) the location of the residence of any 

2 tribal member on or near any Indian reserva3 tion. 

4 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de5 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

6 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

7 the area comprised of the cities of Chesapeake, 

8 Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suf9 folk, and Virginia Beach, Virginia. 

10 SEC. 604. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

11 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

12 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov13 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

14 the Secretary before the date of enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 605. GOVERNING BODY. 

16 The governing body of the Tribe shall be—

17 (1) the governing body of the Tribe in place as 

18 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

19 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

20 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

21 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

22 SEC. 606. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fee lands which the Tribe seeks 

24 to convey to the United States to be held in trust shall 

25 be considered by the Secretary of the Interior under part 
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1 151 of title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

2 successor regulation) if such lands are located within the 

3 boundaries of the city of Suffolk, the city of Chesapeake, 

4 or Isle of Wight County, Virginia. The Secretary shall 

5 make a final determination within three years of the date 

6 which the tribe submits a request for land to be taken 

7 into trust. Any land taken into trust for the benefit of 

8 the Tribe pursuant to this paragraph shall be considered 

9 part of the reservation of the Tribe. 

10 (b) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac11 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

12 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

13 Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or under 

14 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

15 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

16 SEC. 607. HUNTING, FISHING, TRAPPING, GATHERING, AND 

17 WATER RIGHTS. 

18 Nothing in this title expands, reduces, or affects in 

19 any manner any hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or 

20 water rights of the Tribe and members of the Tribe. 

21 SEC. 608. JURISDICTION OF STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The State of Virginia shall exer23 cise jurisdiction over—

24 (1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; 

25 and 
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1 (2) all civil actions that arise on, 

2 lands located within the State of Virginia that are owned 

3 by, or held in trust by the United States for, the Tribe. 

4 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF STATE JURISDICTION BY SEC5 RETARY.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to 

6 accept on behalf of the United States, after consulting 

7 with the Attorney General of the United States, all or any 

8 portion of the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia de9 scribed in subsection (a) upon verification by the Secretary 

10 of a certification by a tribe that it possesses the capacity 

11 to reassume such jurisdiction. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 8, 2007. 

Attest:

Clerk. 
110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1294

AN ACT

To extend Federal recognition to the Chickahominy 

dian Nation, and the Nansemond Indian Tribe.the Rappahannock Tribe, Inc., the Monacan InEastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, Indian Tribe, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—