The Quinault Indian Nation Land Transfer Act protects 72 acres Tribe’s benefit, preserves old growth forest
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs voted to advance U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell’s (D-WA) Quinault Indian Nation Land Transfer Act. The bill introduced by Sen. Cantwell, who serves as a senior member of the committee, would restore Tribal stewardship over 72 acres, allowing the Quinault Nation to create a living museum and utilize the land for cultural purposes.
Sen. Cantwell introduced the Quinault Indian Nation Land Transfer Act in April 2025, along with Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Emily Randall (D, WA-06). The bill would transfer 72 acres to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to be held in trust for the benefit of the Tribe.
“Returning 72 acres of the Quinault Indian Nation’s original reservation will restore the Tribe’s ancestral lands and help preserve one of the area’s last remnants of old growth forest as a living museum for future generations,” Sen. Cantwell said after introducing the bill.
The land was originally part of the Quinault Reservation. With the passage of the Dawes Act in 1867, the Quinault Reservation was broken up into 80-acre allotments, many given to individual tribal members. As private interests quickly moved in to buy up the allotments, including Allotment 1157, reservation land was lost to the Tribe.
Quinault Indian Nation Land Transfer Act:
- This bill would transfer 72 acres from the U.S. Forest Service to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to be held in trust for the Quinault Indian Nation.
- The 72 acres, known as Allotment 1157, was originally part of the Quinault reservation that was established by the Treaty of Olympia of 1856.
- After the passage of the Dawes Act of 1887, the Quinault Indian Reservation was separated into individual allotments and in 1928, Allotment 1157 was given away through a Trust Deed signed by President Calvin Coolidge.
- The Allotment was eventually sold to a timber company and was purchased by the U.S. Forest Service in 1996 for conservation.
- Allotment 1157 is one of the last remnants of old growth forest, particularly old growth cedar, that were a significant part of the Quinault’s reservation.
- The Quinault Nation plans to utilize this land as a living museum for educational purposes, where students and college interns will learn how to preserve other historical places. Trees and downed wood on this land will be utilized for cultural purposes as has been done in the past.
The bill is supported by Jefferson and Grays Harbor counties, the Hoh Tribe, and the Quileute Tribe. Written letters of support are available HERE.
Quinault Indian National President Guy Capoeman released the following statement when the bill was first introduced: “The forced breakup of our reservation erased one of the foundations of our way of life, our view that the land and waters of our homeland were for communal use by all. The Quinault Indian Nation Land Transfer Act will help right a historic wrong. This legislation helps fulfill the promise the United States government made to the Quinault Nation that the lands set aside for the Quinault Indian Reservation will always belong to the Quinault Nation. We thank Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray and Congresswoman Emily Randall for introducing this important legislation and for her leadership in Congress.”
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