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{{Short description|Urban Aboriginal American settlements in the United States}}
{{about|urban Aboriginal American settlements in the United States|European colonies in India|European colonies in India|settlements of Indians outside of India|Indian diaspora}}
{{confused|Urban Indian reserve|Little India}}
{{Citations missing|date=May 2008}}
An '''Indian colony''' is a [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] settlement associated with an [[United States urban area|urban area]]. Although some of them became official [[Indian reservation]]s, they differ from most reservations in that they are placed where Native Americans could find employment in mainstream American economy. Many were originally formed without [[List of federally recognized tribes|federal]] encouragement or sanction.

==Locations and establishment==
Indian colonies are especially common in [[Nevada]].  As the [[Great Basin]] [[ecosystem]] is very fragile, native lifeways became untenable soon after white settlement due to livestock over-grazing, water diversions and the felling of [[Pinyon pine]] groves.  At that time there were few official reservations in the area, and those that did exist were poorly run, even by contemporary standards. Many Native Americans chose instead to seek jobs in white ranches, [[farm]]s and cities.  The areas in which they settled became known as Indian Camps or Colonies.  In some cases they owned the land they settled on, in other cases they settled on public land.  Starting in the early twentieth century, the federal government began establishing [[Indian trust territories]] for the colonies on public land. 

Following the [[Indian Reorganization Act]] of 1934, many of the Indian colonies gained federal recognition as tribes.  Many of the tribes formed this way are unusual in that they include members from different nations.  For example, the [[Reno-Sparks Indian Colony]] has members with [[Washoe (tribe)|Washoe]], [[Northern Paiute|Paiute]] and [[Shoshone]] heritage.

==Examples==
The following is an incomplete list of Indian Colonies in the [[United States]]:
{| {{Table|sort}}
! Indian Colony !! Group
|-
| [[Battle Mountain, Nevada]]
| [[Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada]], Battle Mountain Band
|-
| [[Bishop, California]]
| [[Bishop Colony]]
|-
| [[Burns, Oregon]]
| [[Burns Paiute Indian Colony]]
|-
| [[Bridgeport, California]]
| [[Bridgeport Paiute Indian Colony of California]]
|-
| [[Carson City, Nevada]]
| [[Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California]], Carson Community Council
|-
| [[Dresslerville, Nevada]]
| [[Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California]], Dresslerville Council
|-
| Elem, California
| [[Elem Indian Colony]]
|-
| [[Elko, Nevada]]
| [[Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada]], Elko Band
|-
| [[Ely, Nevada]]
| [[Ely Shoshone Tribe of Nevada]]
|-
| [[Fallon, Nevada]]
| [[Paiute-Shoshone Tribe of the Fallon Reservation and Colony]]
|-
| [[Las Vegas, Nevada]]
| [[Las Vegas Tribe of Paiute Indians of the Las Vegas Indian Colony]]
|-
| [[Lovelock, Nevada]]
| [[Lovelock Paiute Tribe of the Lovelock Indian Colony]]
|-
| [[Reno, Nevada]]
| [[Reno-Sparks Indian Colony]]
|-
| [[Carson City, Nevada]]
| [[Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California]], Stewart Community Council<ref>[http://www.washoetribe.us/content/view/61/63/ "Stewart Community."]{{dead link|date=July 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} ''Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California''. (retrieved 8 Dec 2009)</ref>
|-
| [[Wells, Nevada]]
| [[Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians of Nevada]], Wells Band
|-
| [[Winnemucca, Nevada]]
| [[Winnemucca Indian Colony of Nevada]]
|-
| [[Woodfords, California]]
| [[Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California]], Woodfords Community Council
|-
| [[Yerington, Nevada]]
| [[Yerington Paiute Tribe of the Yerington Colony and Campbell Ranch]]
|}

==See also==
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
*[[Indian reservation]]
*[[Urban Indian reserve]], Canada
*[[Ranchería]]
*[[Rancherie]], Canada
*[[Oklahoma Tribal Statistical Area]]
*[[Tampa Indian Reservation]]
*[[Urban Indian]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Aboriginal title in the United States}}
{{Ethnic enclaves}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Indian Colony}}
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin]]
[[Category:Native American populated places]]
[[Category:American Indian reservations]]
[[Category:Ethnic enclaves in the United States]]
[[Category:Decolonization]]