Can you recognize Uncle Jim?

 

I received this inquiry about my great great-uncle James Tufts, the judge and acting Governor in Montana circa 1868. As acting Governor of the territory, he also served as Superintendent of Indian Affairs. He and W. J. Cullen negotiated a treaty with the Shoshone Indian nation. This photograph might memorialize the signing of that treaty.(click on image for better view)

The following information accompanied the picture:

Chief Tendoy and the “mixed band of Shoshone, Bannock, and Sheepeater people who signed a treaty on September 24, 1868 in Laurin, Montana, about 10 miles from the territorial capital in Virginia City, Montana. That treaty ultimately remained unratified.

Commissioner/Major W.J. Cullen oversaw four treaties with four separate tribes in Montana in 1868, and I’m trying to determine if this photo could have been taken at the treaty signed on Thursday, September 24, 1868, with Tendoy’s people. The photo indicates a reference to an Indian treaty on its margins, but which treaty and with which tribe remains an open question.

The treaty was negotiated and signed in Laurin, as I mentioned earlier. Your great uncle’s name appears on the cover of the treaty packet and again on the second to the last page with the rest of the signatories. This is what the National Archives represents as their official copy. I’ve seen other copies—one at the Montana historical society, a bit different in format, but essentially the same thing.

Keep in mind, the treaty was never ratified by the U.S. Senate. The House of Representatives discontinued any future treaty making as of March 3, 1871. This particular treaty and a few others were in the “Senate’s In Box,” as it were, on that date, so that consigned them to the unratified treaty status. Quite unfortunate.

These people, Tendoy’s people, sometimes called the Lemhi Shoshone, were the descendants of Sacajawea, making it doubly disappointing. Ultimately, its failure to be ratified cost them a permanent reservation. They would up being moved 200 miles south to Fort Hall, (Idaho).

The inquirer also passed along a copy of the treaty, with President Johnson’s letter to the Senate and a copy of an article from the Montana Post from October 2, 1868. I can provide them upon request.

I did find a couple pictures of James when I wrote my story for my blog site in 2015 (link here) Without a better detailed photograph, I cannot see anyone’s faces to confirm identity. Maybe the original at the Montana Historical Society is more detailed or can be re scanned at higher resolution. In the meantime, please put your investigative skills to work and look through any old files to see if there are pictures of James Tufts. We are looking for any other pictures of James Tufts that might be used to identify him or W. J. Cullen to confirm that this is, in fact, the photograph taken to commemorate the treaty signing. I have pictures of James’ brother, Timothy Tufts and descendants of his, but none of James. I have been going through the old letters of these family members but have found no mention of the treaty signing and a picture. Please contact me at ttuftsy@comcast.net if you have any additional information on this photograph or event. Thanks in advance.