The act transferred this authority to the Dawes Commission.
Like the Nighthawks, these groups generally refused until 1910 or later to accept the work of the Dawes Commission.
The Cherokee Nation was divided by the Dawes Commission in the 1890s.
Nevertheless, the Dawes Commission began implementing the allotment system.
In 1898, after pressure from Washington, they agreed to an allotment plan administered by the Dawes Commission.
The Dawes Commission required that individuals claim membership in only one tribe, although many people had more than one line of ancestry.
The Dawes Commission was quickly flooded by applicants from all over the country trying to get on the rolls.
More than 250,000 people applied for membership, and the Dawes Commission enrolled just over 100,000.
The Dawes Commission registered tribal members in official rolls, and gave out individual land allotments.
The Dawes Commission held its first meeting here.