Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Land Grab Universities

This map from Margaret Pearce appears in the latest High Country News.
Map by Margaret Pearce for High Country News

The article details how the Morrill Act created land grant universities by confiscating Native American land (in purple above). Here is a detailed view since the map above is hard to read at this size.
Map by Margaret Pearce for High Country News
Interestingly the land seizures were not just for college campuses but also lands far away that were taken to grow the university endowments. This map shows parcels of land owned by the University of California. Another map shows Cornell's lands stretching all the way across the country.

Map by Margaret Pearce for High Country News
There is now an interactive website where you can choose a school and see the lands ceded with some nice looking 3D graphics.
https://www.landgrabu.org

 Here a map of many colored dots shows lands taken in the treaties of Mendota and Traverse des Sioux in 1851, relinquishing nearly all Dakota territory in Mni Sota Makoce, “The Land Where the Waters Reflect the Clouds.” The treaty was signed only after withholding rations, threats of violence, and the destruction of agriculture and game.
Map by Margaret Pearce for High Country News
Many more great maps and the article are here, and there's a lot to explore on the interactive website

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