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Show The Creation of the Reservation: 1848-1900 31 The land taken by the government was rectangular in shape and included the middle section of the 1868 reservation. Now only a narrow strip of land along the western boundary of the state of Colorado connected the northern part of the 1868 reservation with the southern part. The southern part of the reservation was now a section of land 110 miles long, running from the Utah boundary east along the New Mexico-Colorado border, and fifteen miles wide, beginning with the New Mexico boundary and running due north. For some time the Anglos of northern New Mexico had wanted to move those Southern Utes located at Cimarron and Abiquiu onto the southern portion of the Ute reservation. The Brunot agreement of 1874 had stated that all of the Mouache and Capote Utes not located on the reservation in Colorado were to be moved there and an agency created for them. Originally, the agency was to be located on the southern portion of the reservation so the Southern Utes could reach it without traveling long distances. One agency had been located north of the San Juan Cession but had been so far from the Southern Utes that they had refused to travel there for their rations. Instead they remained in New Mexico. In 1875 the agent at Cimarron, Alexander G. Irvine, reported that about 350 Mouache Utes were located at that agency. The settlers located in the area had complained about the travels of the Utes to and from the Colorado reservation and asked that Irvine attempt to have the Utes moved from the area. Irvine pointed out that the agency buildings were located on leased land not permanently owned by the government. The original intent had been only to use the buildings for a short time before making other arrangements for the Utes. Now the settlers were asking him to see that those arrangements were made. In his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Irvine agreed with the desire of the settlers. The other agent, S. A. Russell, who was seeing to the needs of the Utes at Abiquiu, agreed with Irvine. He felt these Utes should also be moved from northern New Mexico to southwestern Colorado. Two years lapsed before Congress acted on the request of the New Mexicans to have the Utes removed to Colorado. The Cimarron agency was ordered closed in 1876, but the Utes had refused to leave the area. Until a solution could be worked out, the government farmer was left to oversee the needs of the Utes. The solution came as part of |
