Authorization to Recruit/Enroll

Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell informs the Commissioner of Indian Affairs that the War Department has transferred the buildings at the Carlisle Barracks to the Interior Department and that Special Agent Richard Henry Pratt is authorized to create an Indian school at the Barracks using the buildings. He also grants authority for Pratt…

Telegram from Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra Hayt to Richard Henry Pratt informing him that Hayt has given permission for an increased recruitment quota from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Agency. The new number of young people will be 25. 

Hayt also tells Pratt that the party of young people from Indian Territory will be meeting him…

Telegram from Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra Hayt to the Agent of Cheyenne and Arapaho Agency John D. Miles which tells Miles that he has permission to recruit 25 young people to be sent to Carlisle. 

Hayt orders Miles to have a physician certify these young people's health then send them to Winfield, Kansas to meet Pratt on…

Letter from Pratt to Rev. A. H. Donaldson at Fort Defiance, Arizona, stating that he welcomes Navajo students at the school. He describes the religious affiliations of the staff and the role of religion at the school. 

This material is from the Richard Henry Pratt papers, donated by his family to Yale University in 1959 and 1976.…

Pratt writes to the Rev. A. H. Donaldson in New Mexico, forwarding a copy of a Department of Interior letter authorizing Navajo children to be admitted to the Carlisle Indian School.

This material is from the Richard Henry Pratt papers, donated by his family to Yale University in 1959 and 1976. Selected content from the Pratt collection…

Richard Henry Pratt argues to the Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz that his approval for the school to recruit 15 Navajo students is insufficient, and he would like to recruit 50. Pratt writes that the Presbyterian Church has had 10 years to educate the Navajo nation and has failed to make significant progress, but if the Carlisle Indian…

Richard Henry Pratt asks E. J. Brooks to send him instructions for adding additional pupils to the Carlisle Indian School. He references Sheldon Jackson's mission to recruit Navajo and Pueblo students. Finally, he believes that Spotted Tail's decision to return his family members will work to the school's advantage and that Spotted Tail will…

Richard Henry Pratt informs Acting Commissioner of Indian Affairs E. J. Brooks that during their recent visit the Kiowa, Comanche, Apache and Wichita chiefs told him that they would like more of their children enrolled at the school. In particular, Pratt writes that he promised Chief Tsodearko to intercede with the Bureau and ask for permission…

Richard Henry Pratt states that the "long pending Ute matter" is almost finished, meaning that they will be able to recruit 50 students from that nation. Pratt requests to recruit these students himself.

Note: This item was copied from U.S. National Archives microfilm reels (M234), which were filmed from the original documents found in…

Richard Henry Pratt requests authority to travel to the Sisseton, Green Bay, and La Pointe agencies in order to recruit 25 new students. As he would like more than half to be girls, he also requests to bring a female assistant on the trip.

Note: This item was copied from U.S. National Archives microfilm reels (M234), which were filmed…

Richard Henry Pratt informs the Commissioner of Indian Affairs that he has received a letter from Alice C. Fletcher that the military officer in charge of the Sitting Bull prisoners at Fort Randell does not have permission to turn children over to her to take to Carlisle. Fletcher also notes that Charlotte Four Horns is anxious to come to…

Richard Henry Pratt forwards a request from Anna Ely to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to instruct the Pawnee Agency to send Pawnee children to Carlisle.

Inspector J. M. Haworth recommends that the Pawnee Agency send ten Pawnee students to Carlisle five of whom were to be girls.

Richard Henry Pratt seeks to clarify his earlier letter regarding enrolling additional students from the Pueblo Agency. He writes that he is satisfied with the current allotment of students from the Indian Territory and Dakota but could have additional students due to the success of the outing program.

Richard Henry Pratt requests permission to return 48 students of the Carlisle Indian School. Pratt notes that of those being returned 23 students are being sent home due to the expiration of their terms and 25 for various reasons. In addition, he requests permission to bring to Carlisle 70 students.

Richard Henry Pratt requests full authority and instructions from the Office of Indian Affairs to travel West and recruit new students as soon as possible.

Secretary of the Interior Lucius Q. C. Lamar orders the Assistant Secretary of the Interior H. L. Muldrew to provide Richard Henry Pratt with orders authorizing him to transfer members of the Apache Nation being held prisoner at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida to the Carlisle Indian School.

Richard Henry Pratt informs the Office of Indian Affairs that 101 pupils are due to be returned to their homes after having spent five years at the Carlisle Indian School. Pratt digresses from his request to cover transportation for these pupils by discussing the fact that he feels their futures are much more uncertain by returning them to…

Wrap for telegraph from Richard Henry Pratt in which he describes difficulties in securing pupils, asks authority from the Office of Indian Affairs authority for 150 students, and opportunity to answer adverse allegations.

The telegraph itself is not included.

Richard Henry Pratt informs the Office of Indian Affairs that the Office letter to William P. Campbell at the Crow Agency does not provide him authority to recruit students from the agency school. Campbell does state that many of the pupils and their parents are willing to have children enrolled at Carlisle.

Richard Henry Pratt requests authority to bring in an additional 275 students from various agencies for the upcoming fiscal year. Pratt notes that the school currently has 611 students, but he expects to lose about 175 due to expiration of enrollment terms. Further he states that he was in negotiation to bring in students from various agencies…

M. P. Wyman, U.S. Indian Agent for the Crow Agency, asks if he is authorized to provide students to William P. Campbell for the Carlisle Indian School from two contract and one agency school in ratio to attendance.

Richard Henry Pratt requests instructions on securing students for the 1892-1893 school year.

Richard Henry Pratt requests special authority to show U.S. Indian Agents while obtaining students for the Carlisle Indian School. Pratt refers to Office Circular of April 21, 1893 and a law which provides for coercion in the Indian Appropriation Bill of the current year and subsequent year.

W. N. Hailmann, Superintendent of Indian Schools, recommends to Daniel M. Browning that he provides authority to Richard Henry Pratt to take students from any agency for the Carlisle Indian School.