Papers of the Women's National Indian Association

Organization founded by Mary Lucinda Bonney and Amelia Stone Quinton in 1879. Initially named the Central Indian Committee, and then the Indian Treaty-Keeping and Protective Association (1881-1882), it worked to prevent white settlers from encroaching on American Indian lands. A reform organization advocating Christianization and assimilation of American Indians, it was instrumental in the passage of the General Allotment Act of 1887. Led throughout most of its influential years by the indefatigable Amelia Stone Quinton, the Association in its heyday had 60 branch organizations in 27 states. Known for its ability to influence Indian policy on a national level, the organization also supported Christian missions on reservations throughout the country. Its name changed to Women's National Indian Association in 1882, and its efforts came to focus largely on Christian missionary work among the Indians and efforts to promote their assimilation into white society. The organization changed its name to National Indian Association in 1901. While the organization must have generated a mountain of correspondence in its 72 years of existence, very little is found among the papers.It dissolved itself in 1951.