Treaty of Ruby Valley

The only treaty signed by the Newe people (western Shoshone) in Nevada. A friendship treaty in which no lands were ceded, the treaty allowed the US to pass through their lands and promised twenty years of annuities, although the US Government only made the first payment. Duckwater Indian Reservation is made of lands the tribe bought itself, and they strongly maintain their land claims have not been extinguished. Also included under the treaty are the confederated bands and western Shoshone 'colonies' now called the Te-Moak Tribe. They tried to reclaim their lands during the Indian Claims Commission era from 1946 until its dissolution in 1978, however they never reached a settlement due to the 'complexity' of their case. Namely, they have never ceded their lands and thus where their lands are was never included in any treaty or other formal legal cessation document. Among other sovereignty struggles, western Shoshone also successfully blocked the construction of the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository. The United States Department of Energy was unable to prove ownership of land and removed their application when the tribes demanded that the U.S. adhere to the 1863 treaty and stop trespassing on their lands. The struggle against Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository continues.