I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 984 

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. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2017 

Mr. WITTMAN (for himself, Mr. BEYER, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. CONNOLLY, and Mr. TAYLOR) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

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

6 Recognition Act of 2017’’. 


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

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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. 


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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. 

TITLE VII—EMINENT DOMAIN 

Sec. 701. Limitation. 

1 SEC. 2. INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT OF 1978. 

2 Nothing in this Act affects the application of section 

3 109 of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 

4 1919). 

5 TITLE I—CHICKAHOMINY 

6 INDIAN TRIBE 

7 SEC. 101. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds that— 

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

10 along the Virginia coastline, the Chickahominy In11 dian Tribe was one of about 30 tribes that received 

12 them; 

13 (2) in 1614, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe en14 tered into a treaty with Sir Thomas Dale, Governor 

15 of the Jamestown Colony, under which— 

16 (A) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe agreed 

17 to provide 2 bushels of corn per man and send 

18 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 one of the first 

19 Indians 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 

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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 the existence of a 

3 reservation for the Tribe. 

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 New Kent County, James City 

8 County, Charles City County, and Henrico County, 

9 Virginia. 

10 SEC. 104. 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. 105. 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. 106. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

24 Secretary of the Interior— 


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1 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

2 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe that was ac3 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

4 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

5 New Kent County, James City County, Charles City 

6 County, or Henrico County, Virginia; and 

7 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

8 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 

9 lands are located within the boundaries of New Kent 

10 County, James City County, Charles City County, or 

11 Henrico County, Virginia. 

12 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec13 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

14 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 

15 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

16 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

17 available to the Tribe. 

18 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

19 trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this para20 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

21 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

22 (d) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac23 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

24 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

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


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1 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

2 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

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

4 WATER RIGHTS. 

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

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

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

8 TITLE II—CHICKAHOMINY IN9 DIAN TRIBE—EASTERN DIVI10 SION 

11 SEC. 201. FINDINGS. 

12 Congress finds that— 

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

14 along the Virginia coastline, the Chickahominy In15 dian Tribe was one of about 30 tribes that received 

16 them; 

17 (2) in 1614, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe en18 tered into a treaty with Sir Thomas Dale, Governor 

19 of the Jamestown Colony, under which— 

20 (A) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe agreed 

21 to provide 2 bushels of corn per man and send 

22 warriors to protect the English; and 

23 (B) Sir Thomas Dale agreed in return to 

24 allow the Tribe to continue to practice its own 

25 tribal governance; 


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

2 the Chickahominy from their homeland to the area 

3 around the York River in present-day King William 

4 County, leading to the formation of a reservation; 

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

6 Queen of Pamunkey signed the Treaty of Middle 

7 Plantation on behalf of the Chickahominy; 

8 (5) in 1702, the Chickahominy were forced 

9 from their reservation, which caused the loss of a 

10 land base; 

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

12 in Williamsburg established a grammar school for 

13 Indians called Brafferton College; 

14 (7) a Chickahominy child was one of the first 

15 Indians to attend Brafferton College; 

16 (8) in 1750, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

17 began to migrate from King William County back to 

18 the area around the Chickahominy River in New 

19 Kent and Charles City Counties; 

20 (9) in 1793, a Baptist missionary named 

21 Bradby took refuge with the Chickahominy and took 

22 a Chickahominy woman as his wife; 

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

24 modern-day Chickahominy Indian Tribe began to 

25 appear in the Charles City County census records; 


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

2 Indians in New Kent County that is believed to be 

3 the beginning of the Chickahominy Indian Tribe— 

4 Eastern Division; 

5 (12) other records were destroyed when the 

6 New Kent County courthouse was burned, leaving a 

7 State census as the only record covering that period; 

8 (13) in 1901, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

9 formed Samaria Baptist Church; 

10 (14) from 1901 to 1935, Chickahominy men 

11 were assessed a tribal tax so that their children 

12 could receive an education; 

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

14 to build the first Samaria Indian School, buy sup15 plies, and pay a teacher’s salary; 

16 (16) in 1910, a 1-room school covering grades 

17 1 through 8 was established in New Kent County for 

18 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division; 

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

20 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division 

21 began forming a tribal government; 

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

23 was elected to be Chief; 

24 (19) in 1922, Tsena Commocko Baptist Church 

25 was organized; 


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

2 issued to the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern 

3 Division; 

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

5 Kent County was closed and students were bused to 

6 Samaria Indian School in Charles City County; 

7 (22) in 1967, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe 

8 and the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Divi9 sion lost their schools as a result of the required in10 tegration of students; 

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

12 Tsena Commocko Baptist Church built a new sanc13 tuary to accommodate church growth; 

14 (24) in 1983 the Chickahominy Indian Tribe— 

15 Eastern Division was granted State recognition 

16 along with 5 other Virginia Indian tribes; 

17 (25) in 1985— 

18 (A) the Virginia Council on Indians was 

19 organized as a State agency; and 

20 (B) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe—East21 ern Division was granted a seat on the Council; 

22 (26) in 1988, a nonprofit organization known 

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


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

2 Eastern Band of the Chickahominy presently chairs 

3 the organization. 

4 SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this title: 

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

7 the Secretary of the Interior. 

8 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem9 ber’’ means— 

10 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem11 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

12 this Act; and 

13 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

14 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

15 with this title. 

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

17 Chickahominy Indian Tribe—Eastern Division. 

18 SEC. 203. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

19 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex21 tended to the Tribe. 

22 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ23 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap24 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

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


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1 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon2 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

3 and tribal members. 

4 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en6 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

7 shall be eligible for all future services and benefits 

8 provided by the Federal Government to federally rec9 ognized Indian tribes without regard to the existence 

10 of a reservation for the Tribe. 

11 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de12 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

13 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

14 the area comprised of New Kent County, James City 

15 County, Charles City County, and Henrico County, 

16 Virginia. 

17 SEC. 204. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

18 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

19 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov20 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

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

22 SEC. 205. GOVERNING BODY. 

23 The governing body of the Tribe shall be— 

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

25 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 


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1 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

2 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

3 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

4 SEC. 206. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

6 Secretary of the Interior— 

7 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

8 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe that was ac9 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

10 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

11 New Kent County, James City County, Charles City 

12 County, or Henrico County, Virginia; and 

13 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

14 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 

15 lands are located within the boundaries of New Kent 

16 County, James City County, Charles City County, or 

17 Henrico County, Virginia. 

18 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec19 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

20 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 

21 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

22 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

23 available to the Tribe. 

24 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

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1 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

2 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

3 (d) 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. 207. 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 TITLE III—UPPER MATTAPONI 

15 TRIBE 

16 SEC. 301. FINDINGS. 

17 Congress finds that— 

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

19 the Chickahominy Indian Tribes— 

20 (A) lived approximately 20 miles from 

21 Jamestown; and 

22 (B) were significantly involved in English23 Indian affairs; 


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1 (2) Mattaponi Indians, who later joined the 

2 Chickahominy Indians, lived a greater distance from 

3 Jamestown; 

4 (3) in 1646, the Chickahominy Indians moved 

5 to Mattaponi River basin, away from the English; 

6 (4) in 1661, the Chickahominy Indians sold 

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

8 Mattaponi River; 

9 (5) in 1669, the Chickahominy Indians— 

10 (A) appeared in the Virginia Colony’s cen11 sus of Indian bowmen; and 

12 (B) lived in ‘‘New Kent’’ County, which in13 cluded the Mattaponi River basin at that time; 

14 (6) in 1677, the Chickahominy and Mattaponi 

15 Indians were subjects of the Queen of Pamunkey, 

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

17 King of England; 

18 (7) in 1683, after a Mattaponi town was at19 tacked by Seneca Indians, the Mattaponi Indians 

20 took refuge with the Chickahominy Indians, and the 

21 history of the 2 groups was intertwined for many 

22 years thereafter; 

23 (8) in 1695, the Chickahominy and Mattaponi 

24 Indians— 


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1 (A) were assigned a reservation by the Vir2 ginia Colony; and 

3 (B) traded land of the reservation for land 

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

5 the date of enactment of this Act, is the 

6 Mattaponi Indian Reservation), which had been 

7 owned by the Mattaponi Indians before 1661; 

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

9 Indian School at the College of William and Mary; 

10 (10) in 1726, the Virginia Colony discontinued 

11 funding of interpreters for the Chickahominy and 

12 Mattaponi Indian Tribes; 

13 (11) James Adams, who served as an inter14 preter to the Indian tribes known as of the date of 

15 enactment of this Act as the ‘‘Upper Mattaponi In16 dian Tribe’’ and ‘‘Chickahominy Indian Tribe’’, 

17 elected to stay with the Upper Mattaponi Indians; 

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

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

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

21 the Commonwealth of Virginia, mentioned the 

22 Mattaponi Indians on a reservation in King William 

23 County and said that Chickahominy Indians were 

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

25 Pamunkey Indians; 


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

2 revealed a nucleus of approximately 10 families, all 

3 ancestral to modern Upper Mattaponi Indians, living 

4 in central King William County, Virginia, approxi5 mately 10 miles from the reservation; 

6 (15) during the period of 1853 through 1884, 

7 King William County marriage records listed Upper 

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

9 on the reservation; 

10 (16) during the period of 1884 through the 

11 present, county marriage records usually refer to 

12 Upper Mattaponis as ‘‘Indians’’; 

13 (17) in 1901, Smithsonian anthropologist 

14 James Mooney heard about the Upper Mattaponi In15 dians but did not visit them; 

16 (18) in 1928, University of Pennsylvania an17 thropologist Frank Speck published a book on mod18 ern Virginia Indians with a section on the Upper 

19 Mattaponis; 

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

21 the Upper Mattaponi Indians opposed the use of a 

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

23 census and won a compromise in which the Indian 

24 ancestry of the Upper Mattaponis was recorded but 

25 questioned; 


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

2 (A) the leadership of the Upper Mattaponi 

3 Indians, with the help of Frank Speck and oth4 ers, fought against the induction of young men 

5 of the Tribe into ‘‘colored’’ units in the Armed 

6 Forces of the United States; and 

7 (B) a tribal roll for the Upper Mattaponi 

8 Indians was compiled; 

9 (21) from 1945 to 1946, negotiations took 

10 place to admit some of the young people of the 

11 Upper Mattaponi to high schools for Federal Indians 

12 (especially at Cherokee) because no high school 

13 coursework was available for Indians in Virginia 

14 schools; and 

15 (22) in 1983, the Upper Mattaponi Indians ap16 plied for and won State recognition as an Indian 

17 tribe. 

18 SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS. 

19 In this title: 

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

21 the Secretary of the Interior. 

22 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem23 ber’’ means— 


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1 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem2 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

3 this Act; and 

4 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

5 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

6 with this title. 

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

8 Upper Mattaponi Tribe. 

9 SEC. 303. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

10 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex12 tended to the Tribe. 

13 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ14 ing regulations) of the United States of general ap15 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

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

17 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon18 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

19 and tribal members. 

20 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en22 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

23 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

24 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 


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1 Indian tribes without regard to the existence of a 

2 reservation for the Tribe. 

3 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de4 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

5 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

6 the area within 25 miles of the Sharon Indian 

7 School at 13383 King William Road, King William 

8 County, Virginia. 

9 SEC. 304. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

10 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

11 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov12 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

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

14 SEC. 305. GOVERNING BODY. 

15 The governing body of the Tribe shall be— 

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

17 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

18 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

19 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

20 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

21 SEC. 306. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

23 Secretary of the Interior— 

24 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

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1 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

2 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

3 King William County, Caroline County, Hanover 

4 County, King and Queen County, and New Kent 

5 County, Virginia; and 

6 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

7 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 

8 lands are located within the boundaries of King Wil9 liam County, Caroline County, Hanover County, 

10 King and Queen County, and New Kent County, 

11 Virginia. 

12 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec13 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

14 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 

15 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

16 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

17 available to the Tribe. 

18 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

19 trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this para20 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

21 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

22 (d) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac23 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

24 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

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


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1 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

2 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 

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

4 WATER RIGHTS. 

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

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

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

8 TITLE IV—RAPPAHANNOCK 

9 TRIBE, INC. 

10 SEC. 401. FINDINGS. 

11 Congress finds that— 

12 (1) during the initial months after Virginia was 

13 settled, the Rappahannock Indians had 3 encounters 

14 with Captain John Smith; 

15 (2) the first encounter occurred when the Rap16 pahannock weroance (headman)— 

17 (A) traveled to Quiyocohannock (a prin18 cipal town across the James River from James19 town), where he met with Smith to determine 

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

21 had previously sailed into the Rappahannock 

22 River, killed a Rappahannock weroance, and 

23 kidnapped Rappahannock people; and 

24 (B) determined that Smith was too short 

25 to be that ‘‘great man’’; 


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

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

3 Smith was taken to the Rappahannock principal vil4 lage to show the people that Smith was not the 

5 ‘‘great man’’; 

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

7 exploration of the Chesapeake Bay (July to Sep8 tember 1608), when, after the Moraughtacund Indi9 ans had stolen 3 women from the Rappahannock 

10 King, Smith was prevailed upon to facilitate a peace11 ful truce between the Rappahannock and the 

12 Moraughtacund Indians; 

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

14 tribes meet on the spot of their first fight; 

15 (6) when it was established that both groups 

16 wanted peace, Smith told the Rappahannock King to 

17 select which of the 3 stolen women he wanted; 

18 (7) the Moraughtacund King was given second 

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

20 Wighcocomoco (on the Potomac River) guide, was 

21 given the third woman; 

22 (8) in 1645, Captain William Claiborne tried 

23 unsuccessfully to establish treaty relations with the 

24 Rappahannocks, as the Rappahannocks had not par25 ticipated in the Pamunkey-led uprising in 1644, and 


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1 the English wanted to ‘‘treat with the 

2 Rappahannocks or any other Indians not in amity 

3 with Opechancanough, concerning serving the county 

4 against the Pamunkeys’’; 

5 (9) in April 1651, the Rappahannocks conveyed 

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

7 Fauntleroy; 

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

9 Accopatough, weroance of the Rappahannock Indi10 ans; 

11 (11) in September 1653, Lancaster County 

12 signed a treaty with Rappahannock Indians, the 

13 terms of which treaty— 

14 (A) gave Rappahannocks the rights of 

15 Englishmen in the county court; and 

16 (B) attempted to make the Rappahannocks 

17 more accountable under English law; 

18 (12) in September 1653, Lancaster County de19 fined and marked the bounds of its Indian settle20 ments; 

21 (13) according to the Lancaster clerk of court, 

22 ‘‘the tribe called the great Rappahannocks lived on 

23 the Rappahannock Creek just across the river above 

24 Tappahannock’’; 


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

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

3 Act, is comprised of Richmond and Essex Counties, 

4 Virginia) signed a treaty with Rappahannock Indi5 ans that— 

6 (A) mirrored the Lancaster County treaty 

7 from 1653; and 

8 (B) stated that— 

9 (i) Rappahannocks were to be re10 warded, in Roanoke, for returning English 

11 fugitives; and 

12 (ii) the English encouraged the 

13 Rappahannocks to send their children to 

14 live among the English as servants, who 

15 the English promised would be well-treat16 ed; 

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

18 1652 Act stating that ‘‘there be no grants of land 

19 to any Englishman whatsoever de futuro until the 

20 Indians be first served with the proportion of 50 

21 acres of land for each bowman’’; 

22 (16) in 1669, the colony conducted a census of 

23 Virginia Indians; 

24 (17) as of the date of that census— 


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1 (A) the majority of the Rappahannocks 

2 were residing at their hunting village on the 

3 north side of the Mattaponi River; and 

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

5 were counting only the Indian tribes along the 

6 rivers, which explains why only 30 Rappahan7 nock bowmen were counted on that river; 

8 (18) the Rappahannocks used the hunting vil9 lage on the north side of the Mattaponi River as 

10 their primary residence until the Rappahannocks 

11 were removed in 1684; 

12 (19) in May 1677, the Treaty of Middle Planta13 tion was signed with England; 

14 (20) the Pamunkey Queen Cockacoeske signed 

15 on behalf of the Rappahannocks, ‘‘who were sup16 posed to be her tributaries’’, but before the treaty 

17 could be ratified, the Queen of Pamunkey com18 plained to the Virginia Colonial Council ‘‘that she 

19 was having trouble with Rappahannocks and 

20 Chickahominies, supposedly tributaries of hers’’; 

21 (21) in November 1682, the Virginia Colonial 

22 Council established a reservation for the Rappahan23 nock Indians of 3,474 acres ‘‘about the town where 

24 they dwelt’’; 


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1 (22) the Rappahannock ‘‘town’’ was the hunt2 ing village on the north side of the Mattaponi River, 

3 where the Rappahannocks had lived throughout the 

4 1670s; 

5 (23) the acreage allotment of the reservation 

6 was based on the 1658 Indian land act, which trans7 lates into a bowman population of 70, or an approxi8 mate total Rappahannock population of 350; 

9 (24) in 1683, following raids by Iroquoian war10 riors on both Indian and English settlements, the 

11 Virginia Colonial Council ordered the Rappahan12 nocks to leave their reservation and unite with the 

13 Nanzatico Indians at Nanzatico Indian Town, which 

14 was located across and up the Rappahannock River 

15 some 30 miles; 

16 (25) between 1687 and 1699, the Rappahan17 nocks migrated out of Nanzatico, returning to the 

18 south side of the Rappahannock River at Portobacco 

19 Indian Town; 

20 (26) in 1706, by order of Essex County, Lieu21 tenant Richard Covington ‘‘escorted’’ the Portobac22 cos and Rappahannocks out of Portobacco Indian 

23 Town, out of Essex County, and into King and 

24 Queen County where they settled along the ridgeline 

25 between the Rappahannock and Mattaponi Rivers, 


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1 the site of their ancient hunting village and 1682 

2 reservation; 

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

4 were raised on Thomas Nelson’s Bleak Hill Planta5 tion in King William County; 

6 (28) of those girls— 

7 (A) one married a Saunders man; 

8 (B) one married a Johnson man; and 

9 (C) one had 2 children, Edmund and Car10 ter Nelson, fathered by Thomas Cary Nelson; 

11 (29) in the 19th century, those Saunders, John12 son, and Nelson families are among the core Rappa13 hannock families from which the modern Tribe 

14 traces its descent; 

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

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

17 and Carter Spurlock (all Rappahannock ancestors) 

18 were listed on the tax roles of King and Queen 

19 County and taxed at the county poor rate; 

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

21 in 1821; 

22 (32) those tax records are significant docu23 mentation because the great majority of pre-1864 

24 records for King and Queen County were destroyed 

25 by fire; 


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1 (33) beginning in 1819, and continuing through 

2 the 1880s, there was a solid Rappahannock presence 

3 in the membership at Upper Essex Baptist Church; 

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

5 Christianity by at least some Rappahannock Indians; 

6 (35) while twenty-six identifiable and traceable 

7 Rappahannock surnames appear on the pre-1863 

8 membership list, and twenty-eight were listed on the 

9 1863 membership roster, the number of surnames 

10 listed had declined to twelve in 1878 and had risen 

11 only slightly to fourteen by 1888; 

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

13 a Methodist circuit rider, Joseph Mastin, secured 

14 funds to purchase land and construct St. Stephens 

15 Baptist Church for the Rappahannocks living nearby 

16 in Caroline County; 

17 (37) Mastin referred to the Rappahannocks 

18 during the period of 1850 to 1870 as ‘‘Indians, hav19 ing a great need for moral and Christian guidance’’; 

20 (38) St. Stephens was the dominant tribal 

21 church until the Rappahannock Indian Baptist 

22 Church was established in 1964; 

23 (39) at both churches, the core Rappahannock 

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

25 Nelson, Parker, and Richardson predominate; 


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1 (40) during the early 1900s, James Mooney, 

2 noted anthropologist, maintained correspondence 

3 with the Rappahannocks, surveying them and in4 structing them on how to formalize their tribal gov5 ernment; 

6 (41) in November 1920, Speck visited the 

7 Rappahannocks and assisted them in organizing the 

8 fight for their sovereign rights; 

9 (42) in 1921, the Rappahannocks were granted 

10 a charter from the Commonwealth of Virginia for11 malizing their tribal government; 

12 (43) Speck began a professional relationship 

13 with the Tribe that would last more than 30 years 

14 and document Rappahannock history and traditions 

15 as never before; 

16 (44) in April 1921, Rappahannock Chief 

17 George Nelson asked the Governor of Virginia, 

18 Westmoreland Davis, to forward a proclamation to 

19 the President of the United States, along with an 

20 appended list of tribal members and a handwritten 

21 copy of the proclamation itself; 

22 (45) the letter concerned Indian freedom of 

23 speech and assembly nationwide; 

24 (46) in 1922, the Rappahannocks established a 

25 formal school at Lloyds, Essex County, Virginia; 


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1 (47) prior to establishment of the school, Rap2 pahannock children were taught by a tribal member 

3 in Central Point, Caroline County, Virginia; 

4 (48) in December 1923, Rappahannock Chief 

5 George Nelson testified before Congress appealing 

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

7 school in Virginia; 

8 (49) in 1930, the Rappahannocks were engaged 

9 in an ongoing dispute with the Commonwealth of 

10 Virginia and the United States Census Bureau 

11 about their classification in the 1930 Federal cen12 sus; 

13 (50) in January 1930, Rappahannock Chief 

14 Otho S. Nelson wrote to Leon Truesdell, Chief Stat15 istician of the United States Census Bureau, asking 

16 that the 218 enrolled Rappahannocks be listed as 

17 Indians; 

18 (51) in February 1930, Truesdell replied to 

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

20 given about classifying Indians; 

21 (52) in April 1930, Nelson wrote to William M. 

22 Steuart at the Census Bureau asking about the enu23 merators’ failure to classify his people as Indians, 

24 saying that enumerators had not asked the question 

25 about race when they interviewed his people; 


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

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

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

4 the race question was completely avoided during 

5 interviews; 

6 (54) the Rappahannocks had spoken with Caro7 line and Essex County enumerators, and with John 

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

9 (55) Nelson asked Truesdell to list people as 

10 Indians if he sent a list of members; 

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

12 who concluded that the Bureau’s rule was that peo13 ple of Indian descent could be classified as ‘‘Indian’’ 

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

15 identity was accepted in the local community; 

16 (57) the Virginia Vital Statistics Bureau 

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

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

19 for the Rappahannocks; 

20 (58) therefore, in 1925, the Indian Rights As21 sociation took on the Rappahannock case to assist 

22 the Rappahannocks in fighting for their recognition 

23 and rights as an Indian tribe; 

24 (59) during the Second World War, the 

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1 pahannocks had to fight the draft boards with re2 spect to their racial identities; 

3 (60) the Virginia Vital Statistics Bureau in4 sisted that certain Indian draftees be inducted into 

5 Negro units; 

6 (61) finally, 3 Rappahannocks were convicted of 

7 violating the Federal draft laws and, after spending 

8 time in a Federal prison, were granted conscientious 

9 objector status and served out the remainder of the 

10 war working in military hospitals; 

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

12 were approximately 25 communities of Indians left 

13 in the Eastern United States that were entitled to 

14 Indian classification, including the Rappahannocks; 

15 (63) in the 1940s, Leon Truesdell, Chief Stat16 istician, of the United States Census Bureau, listed 

17 118 members in the Rappahannock Tribe in the In18 dian population of Virginia; 

19 (64) on April 25, 1940, the Office of Indian Af20 fairs of the Department of the Interior included the 

21 Rappahannocks on a list of Indian tribes classified 

22 by State and by agency; 

23 (65) in 1948, the Smithsonian Institution An24 nual Report included an article by William Harlen 

25 Gilbert entitled, ‘‘Surviving Indian Groups of the 


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1 Eastern United States’’, which included and de2 scribed the Rappahannock Tribe; 

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

4 Rappahannocks operated a school at Indian Neck; 

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

6 teach 10 students bused by King and Queen County 

7 to Sharon Indian School in King William County, 

8 Virginia; 

9 (68) in 1965, Rappahannock students entered 

10 Marriott High School (a White public school) by Ex11 ecutive order of the Governor of Virginia; 

12 (69) in 1972, the Rappahannocks worked with 

13 the Coalition of Eastern Native Americans to fight 

14 for Federal recognition; 

15 (70) in 1979, the Coalition established a pot16 tery and artisans company, operating with other Vir17 ginia tribes; 

18 (71) in 1980, the Rappahannocks received 

19 funding through the Administration for Native 

20 Americans of the Department of Health and Human 

21 Services to develop an economic program for the 

22 Tribe; and 

23 (72) in 1983, the Rappahannocks received 

24 State recognition as an Indian tribe. 


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1 SEC. 402. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this title: 

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

4 the Secretary of the Interior. 

5 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem6 ber’’ means— 

7 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem8 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

9 this Act; and 

10 (B) an individual who has been placed on 

11 the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance 

12 with this title. 

13 (3) TRIBE.— 

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

15 means the organization possessing the legal 

16 name Rappahannock Tribe, Inc. 

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

18 not include any other Indian tribe, subtribe, 

19 band, or splinter group the members of which 

20 represent themselves as Rappahannock Indians. 

21 SEC. 403. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 

22 (a) FEDERAL RECOGNITION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal recognition is ex24 tended to the Tribe. 

25 (2) APPLICABILITY OF LAWS.—All laws (includ26 ing regulations) of the United States of general apVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:08 Feb 17, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H984.IH H984

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1 plicability to Indians or nations, Indian tribes, or 

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

3 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.)) that are not incon4 sistent with this title shall be applicable to the Tribe 

5 and tribal members. 

6 (b) FEDERAL SERVICES AND BENEFITS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date of en8 actment of this Act, the Tribe and tribal members 

9 shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided 

10 by the Federal Government to federally recognized 

11 Indian tribes without regard to the existence of a 

12 reservation for the Tribe. 

13 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de14 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 

15 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

16 the area comprised of King and Queen County, 

17 Caroline County, Essex County, and King William 

18 County, Virginia. 

19 SEC. 404. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

20 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

21 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov22 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

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

24 SEC. 405. GOVERNING BODY. 

25 The governing body of the Tribe shall be— 


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

2 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

3 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

4 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

5 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

6 SEC. 406. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

8 Secretary of the Interior— 

9 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

10 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe that was ac11 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

12 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

13 King and Queen County, Stafford County, Spotsyl14 vania County, Richmond County, Essex County, and 

15 Caroline County, Virginia; and 

16 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

17 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 

18 lands are located within the boundaries of King and 

19 Queen County, Richmond County, Lancaster Coun20 ty, King George County, Essex County, Caroline 

21 County, New Kent County, King William County, 

22 and James City County, Virginia. 

23 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec24 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

25 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 


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1 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

2 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

3 available to the Tribe. 

4 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

5 trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this para6 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

7 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

8 (d) 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. 407. 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 TITLE V—MONACAN INDIAN 

20 NATION 

21 SEC. 501. FINDINGS. 

22 Congress finds that— 

23 (1) in 1677, the Monacan Tribe signed the 

24 Treaty of Middle Plantation between Charles II of 

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


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

2 Spotswood negotiated to save the Virginia Indians 

3 from extinction at the hands of the Iroquois; 

4 (3) specifically mentioned in the negotiations 

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

6 Saponi, Ocheneeches (Occaneechi), Stengenocks, and 

7 Meipontskys; 

8 (4) in 1790, the first national census recorded 

9 Benjamin Evans and Robert Johns, both ancestors 

10 of the present Monacan community, listed as 

11 ‘‘white’’ with mulatto children; 

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

13 families; 

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

15 29 families, mostly large, with Monacan surnames, 

16 the members of which are genealogically related to 

17 the present community; 

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

19 Bear Mountain Indian Mission; 

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

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

22 the structure is listed as a landmark on the National 

23 Register of Historic Places; 

24 (9) in 1920, 304 Amherst Indians were identi25 fied in the United States census; 


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1 (10) from 1930 through 1931, numerous letters 

2 from Monacans to the Bureau of the Census re3 sulted from the decision of Dr. Walter Plecker, 

4 former head of the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the 

5 Commonwealth of Virginia, not to allow Indians to 

6 register as Indians for the 1930 census; 

7 (11) the Monacans eventually succeeded in 

8 being allowed to claim their race, albeit with an as9 terisk attached to a note from Dr. Plecker stating 

10 that there were no Indians in Virginia; 

11 (12) in 1947, D’Arcy McNickle, a Salish In12 dian, saw some of the children at the Amherst Mis13 sion and requested that the Cherokee Agency visit 

14 them because they appeared to be Indian; 

15 (13) that letter was forwarded to the Depart16 ment of the Interior, Office of Indian Affairs, Chi17 cago, Illinois; 

18 (14) Chief Jarrett Blythe of the Eastern Band 

19 of Cherokee did visit the Mission and wrote that he 

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

21 Cherokee school’’; 

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

23 Native Americans established the entity known as 

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

25 Mission; 


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1 (16) some important pieces were produced at 

2 Monacan Co-operative Pottery, including a piece 

3 that was sold to the Smithsonian Institution; 

4 (17) the Mattaponi-Pamunkey-Monacan Con5 sortium, established in 1981, has since been orga6 nized as a nonprofit corporation that serves as a ve7 hicle to obtain funds for those Indian tribes from the 

8 Department of Labor under Native American pro9 grams; 

10 (18) in 1989, the Monacan Tribe was recog11 nized by the Commonwealth of Virginia, which en12 abled the Tribe to apply for grants and participate 

13 in other programs; and 

14 (19) in 1993, the Monacan Tribe received tax15 exempt status as a nonprofit corporation from the 

16 Internal Revenue Service. 

17 SEC. 502. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this title: 

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

20 the Secretary of the Interior. 

21 (2) TRIBAL MEMBER.—The term ‘‘tribal mem22 ber’’ means— 

23 (A) an individual who is an enrolled mem24 ber of the Tribe as of the date of enactment of 

25 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 Mon5 acan Indian Nation. 

6 SEC. 503. 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 the existence of a 

23 reservation for the Tribe. 

24 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de25 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 


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1 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

2 the area comprised of all land within 25 miles from 

3 the center of Amherst, Virginia. 

4 SEC. 504. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

5 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

6 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov7 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

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

9 SEC. 505. GOVERNING BODY. 

10 The governing body of the Tribe shall be— 

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

12 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

13 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

14 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

15 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

16 SEC. 506. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

18 Secretary of the Interior— 

19 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

20 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe that was ac21 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

22 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

23 Amherst County, Virginia; and 

24 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

25 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 


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1 lands are located within the boundaries of Amherst 

2 County, Virginia, and those parcels in Rockbridge 

3 County, Virginia (subject to the consent of the local 

4 unit of government), owned by Mr. J. Poole, de5 scribed as East 731 Sandbridge (encompassing ap6 proximately 4.74 acres) and East 731 (encom7 passing approximately 5.12 acres). 

8 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec9 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

10 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 

11 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

12 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

13 available to the Tribe. 

14 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

15 trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this para16 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

17 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

18 (d) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac19 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

20 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

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

22 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

23 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 


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

2 WATER RIGHTS. 

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

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

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

6 TITLE VI—NANSEMOND INDIAN 

7 TRIBE 

8 SEC. 601. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress finds that— 

10 (1) from 1607 until 1646, Nansemond Indi11 ans— 

12 (A) lived approximately 30 miles from 

13 Jamestown; and 

14 (B) were significantly involved in English15 Indian affairs; 

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

17 Nansemonds in communication with each other, the 

18 Christianized Nansemonds in Norfolk County, who 

19 lived as citizens, and the traditionalist Nansemonds, 

20 who lived further west; 

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

22 century sermon book still owned by the Chief’s fam23 ily, a Norfolk County Englishman married a Nanse24 mond woman; 

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

26 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 bow5 men; 

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 non-Whites) 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 Com7 monwealth of 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 the existence of a 

23 reservation for the Tribe. 

24 (2) SERVICE AREA.—For the purpose of the de25 livery of Federal services to tribal members, the 


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1 service area of the Tribe shall be considered to be 

2 the area comprised of the cities of Chesapeake, 

3 Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suf4 folk, and Virginia Beach, Virginia. 

5 SEC. 604. MEMBERSHIP; GOVERNING DOCUMENTS. 

6 The membership roll and governing documents of the 

7 Tribe shall be the most recent membership roll and gov8 erning documents, respectively, submitted by the Tribe to 

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

10 SEC. 605. GOVERNING BODY. 

11 The governing body of the Tribe shall be— 

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

13 of the date of enactment of this Act; or 

14 (2) any subsequent governing body elected in 

15 accordance with the election procedures specified in 

16 the governing documents of the Tribe. 

17 SEC. 606. RESERVATION OF THE TRIBE. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the Tribe, the 

19 Secretary of the Interior— 

20 (1) shall take into trust for the benefit of the 

21 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe that was ac22 quired by the Tribe on or before January 1, 2007, 

23 if such lands are located within the boundaries of 

24 the city of Suffolk, the city of Chesapeake, or Isle 

25 of Wight County, Virginia; and 


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1 (2) may take into trust for the benefit of the 

2 Tribe any land held in fee by the Tribe, if such 

3 lands are located within the boundaries of the city 

4 of Suffolk, the city of Chesapeake, or Isle of Wight 

5 County, Virginia. 

6 (b) DEADLINE FOR DETERMINATION.—The Sec7 retary shall make a final written determination not later 

8 than three years of the date which the Tribe submits a 

9 request for land to be taken into trust under subsection 

10 (a)(2) and shall immediately make that determination 

11 available to the Tribe. 

12 (c) RESERVATION STATUS.—Any land taken into 

13 trust for the benefit of the Tribe pursuant to this para14 graph shall, upon request of the Tribe, be considered part 

15 of the reservation of the Tribe. 

16 (d) GAMING.—The Tribe may not conduct gaming ac17 tivities as a matter of claimed inherent authority or under 

18 the authority of any Federal law, including the Indian 

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

20 any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary 

21 or the National Indian Gaming Commission. 


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

2 WATER RIGHTS. 

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

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

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

6 TITLE VII—EMINENT DOMAIN 

7 SEC. 701. LIMITATION. 

8 Eminent domain may not be used to acquire lands 

9 in fee or in trust for an Indian tribe recognized under this 

10 Act. 

Æ 


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