Indian Agent

In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with Native Americans tribes on behalf of the U.S. government.

The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the United States first included development of the position of Indian agent in 1793 under the Second Trade and Intercourse Act (or The Nonintercourse Act) This required land sales by/from Indians to be federally licensed and permitted. The legislation also authorized the President of the United States to "appoint such persons, from time to time, as temporary agents to reside among the Indians," and guide them into forced acculturation of American society by changing their agricultural practices and domestic activities. Eventually, the government ceased using the term temporary from the Indian agent's job title.

From the close of the 18th century to nearly 1828, Congress maintained the position that it was legally responsible for the protection of Indians from non-Indians, and in establishing this responsibility it "continue[d] to deal with Indian tribes by utilizing agents to negotiate treaties under the jurisdiction of the Department of War."

In the 1830s, the primary role of Indian agents was to assist in commercial trading supervision between traders and Indians, while agents possessed the authority to both issue and revoke commercial trading licenses.

In 1849, the Bureau of Indian Affairs decided to place the position of Indian agent under civilian jurisdiction. This came at a time when many white Americans saw the role of Indian agent as largely inefficient and dishonest in monetary and severalty dealings with various Indian tribes.

By 1850, many citizens had been calling for reform of the agents in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Their wish had been granted when in 1869 the bureau created the civilian-controlled Board of Indian Commissioners. The board "never more deeply felt, that Indian agents should be appointed solely for merit and fitness for their work…and should be retained in the service when they prove themselves to be efficient and helpful by their character and moral influence." This civilian run board was charged "with responsibility for supervising the disbursement of Indian appropriations" from state and federal governments. However, the United States Army command was extremely dissatisfied of the transfer of the Bureau of Indian Affairs from the Department of War to the Department of the Interior by 1849, so they began to make public complaints about the corruptive nature of the civilian presence in the job of Indian agent. Despite its deeply felt convictions that its Indian agents were appointed and removed on merit, the civilian Board of Commissioners was frequently deemed corrupt, portrayed derogatorily in print and propaganda, and inadvertently assumed the scapegoat for the perceived inefficiency of Indian-White affairs: the Indian agent.

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