What this timeline covers
Older events, including the colonial era, the Apache Wars and the creation of the reservations, are covered in other timelines on this site. This one picks up in the early twentieth century and concentrates on how Apache nations rebuilt institutions, asserted self-government and worked to keep their languages and cultural knowledge alive. It lists broad national laws and general kinds of development, since each of the Apache nations (Western Apache groups, Chiricahua and Fort Sill Apache, Mescalero, Jicarilla, Lipan and Plains Apache) has its own detailed record.
Two cautions apply. First, this is a general overview and not a complete or current record, and it does not name current programs or leaders. For present-day facts, use each nation’s official website. Second, some laws listed below applied to all federally recognized tribes. They are included because they changed conditions for Apache nations, not because they were Apache-specific.
1920s to 1950s: citizenship, constitutions and claims
1924. The Indian Citizenship Act extended U.S. citizenship to Native Americans born in the country. State laws sometimes still limited voting for years afterward, and Arizona and New Mexico were among the later states to guarantee Native voting rights in practice, in the late 1940s.
1934. The Indian Reorganization Act ended allotment of tribal land under the Dawes Act and encouraged tribes to adopt constitutions and elected councils. Several Apache nations organized under it during the 1930s. Some communities embraced the change and others criticized it as imposing outside forms of government. Both views have a place in the record.
1946. The Indian Claims Commission Act created a forum in which tribes could bring claims against the United States for past losses, usually for compensation rather than land. Several Apache nations filed claims in the following decades, and the Indian Claims Commission remains an important and sometimes disputed source of history about land loss.
1950s. Federal policy turned toward “termination” and relocation, which aimed to end federal responsibilities and move individuals to cities. Apache nations were not generally terminated, but many individuals moved, and urban Apache communities grew in later decades.
1960s to 1980s: rights, self-determination and religion
1968. The Indian Civil Rights Act applied many Bill of Rights-style protections to tribal governments. Tribal courts and codes developed further in the following years.
1972. The Indian Education Act created federal support for programs meeting the needs of Native students.
1975. The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act allowed tribes to contract to run programs that federal agencies had managed. The Indian Self-Determination Act is widely seen as one of the main shifts that let Apache nations expand their own schools, health services and natural-resource management.
1978. The Indian Child Welfare Act set standards for the placement of Native children in foster care and adoption, partly in response to the large numbers of children removed from their families. The American Indian Religious Freedom Act of the same year stated federal policy to protect Native religious practice, though its enforcement has been limited.
1980s. Many tribes increased tribal enterprises, and the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act set a framework for tribal gaming. Apache tribal business ventures include forestry, ranching, tourism, recreation and, in some nations, gaming and energy resources. They vary widely, and this site does not evaluate any of them.
1990s: language and cultural protection
1990. Two federal laws were passed that matter for cultural work. The Native American Languages Act declared a federal policy to support Native languages after generations of suppression in schools. The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act established procedures for returning certain human remains and cultural items to descendants and tribes. The process of NAGPRA repatriation Apache communities have taken part in is gradual and ongoing.
1990s. More nations opened or expanded museums, cultural centers and historic-site programs. For example, the White Mountain Apache Tribe operates a cultural center and museum at Fort Apache, a former Army post that is now part of the tribe’s own cultural and educational life. Other nations maintain their own centers and archives. The wider category of tribal museums and cultural centers includes some run by Mescalero, Jicarilla and other nations.
2000s to the present
Developments in this period are generally ongoing, and the notes below describe trends, not particular dates.
- Language programs. Several Apache communities run language classes, immersion or bilingual programs, recordings, dictionaries and teacher training. Apache language revitalization has been a stated priority in many places because the number of fluent speakers has been shrinking, with generational differences from one community to another.
- Native-controlled schooling. Some nations operate or partner with schools and higher-education programs, reflecting the broader movement toward Native-controlled schooling.
- Land and water. Land claims, water-rights settlements and disputes over sacred places have continued. Nations pursue these through courts, Congress, negotiation and public advocacy, and outcomes differ.
- Recognition and community. Some Apache communities, including Lipan Apache descendants, continue to seek or sustain recognition through different routes.
Where to find current information
Because laws, leaders, programs and enterprises change, the best sources for current milestones are the official websites and communications of the nations themselves, for example the Mescalero Apache Tribe, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, the White Mountain Apache Tribe, the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Fort Sill Apache Tribe and the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma. This site is independent and speaks for none of them.