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Show The Creation of the Reservation: 1848-1900 35 to relocate. The agreement signed by them on March 6th was approved by Congress. In addition to relocating the Utes, the agreement stated that all claim to their reservation would be relinquished. For this they would receive allotments of land along the La Plata River. To seek the approval of the tribal members, a committee of five was to be named by President Hayes. If the agreement was ratified by the tribe, Congress was to give final approval. The commission named for the tribal negotiations included George W. Manypenny, Alfred B. Meacham, John B. Bowman, John J. Russell, and Otto Mears.7 After gathering in Denver, Colorado, on June 28th, the commission left for the Ute agencies. The negotiations began on August 15th, and by September 20th, 581 Southern Utes had ratified the agreement. Shortly afterwards the other Ute bands in Colorado followed the Southern Ute example. By December the agreement had been approved. Immediately the Ute commission began preparation to move the northern bands to the Uintah Reservation in Utah. After a short delay the White River Utes were moved and about one year later the Uncompahgre band was relocated. Removal of the three Southern Ute bands did not proceed as the commission had hoped. The lands designated as the new reservation were poor for agriculture and incapable of supporting the Utes. At the same time the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad had reached Durango and was pushing its way up the Animas River to Silverton. The railroad brought more people to the area who again pressured the Utes for their lands. Once more the Utes were caught between the forces of the civilization process. A new reservation had been established for the Indians, but was declared unsuitable for farming, the occupation the BIA hoped the Indians would embrace. The land hungry Anglos wanted not only the lands of the old reservation but the lands of the proposed reservation. Although the citizens of Colorado pressured Congress for a decision on this dilemma, a solution was not found for a number of years. Two alternatives were presented but each was turned down. One was to move the Colorado Utes onto the Ute reservations in eastern Utah, but the other bands did not want the Southern Utes relocated there 7 Thompson, "Southern Ute Lands, 1848-1899," p. 57. |