The Fort Hall Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation of the Shoshone and Bannock people in the U.S. state of Idaho. It is located in southeastern Idaho on the Snake River Plain north of Pocatello, and comprises 814.874 sq mi of land area in four counties: Bingham, Power, Bannock, and Caribou counties. Founded in 1863, it is named for Fort Hall, a trading post that was an important stop along the Oregon Trail and California Trail in the middle 19th century. There is a monument where the fort once stood on the reservation. The community of Fort Hall, along Interstate 15, is the largest population center on the reservation. The total population of the reservation was 5,762 at the 2000 census. There are more than 5,300 enrolled Shoshone-Bannock tribal members; more than half reside on the Fort Hall Reservation. The tribes are governed by a seven-member elected council and maintain their own governmental services including law enforcement, courts, social and health services and education.
The reservation was established by the Fort Bridger Treaty of 1868 between the United States and the Shoshone and Bannock tribes in the wake of the Bear River Massacre, in which the United States Army under Colonel Patrick Edward Connor slaughtered over 400 Native Americans in present-day southeastern Idaho. The massacre was the culmination of a long struggle between the Shoshone and U.S settlers, which included numerous attacks by both sides. The Shoshone, led by Chief Pocatello, were motivated to attack emigrant parties in part because of the despoliation of natural resources in the region by the increasing tide of settlers. The Mormons, led by Brigham Young, had subsequently pursued a policy of reconciliation with the Shoshone, but the arrival of the U.S. Army into the Utah Territory in 1858 led to a full-scale conflict between the U.S. and the Shoshone. Connor led his troops from Fort Douglas in January 1863 in order to "chastise" the Shoshone. Pocatello was able to receive advance warning of Connor's advance and led his people out of harm's way. He subsequently sued for peace and agreed to relocate his people to the newly-established reservation along the Snake River. The U.S. government agreed to supply the Shoshone annually with 5,000 dollars in goods.
The reservation, located on the open plains, was not especially amenable to agriculture, and the U.S. government did not always fulfill its obligation of payment of goods. In the years following their relocation, the Shoshone suffered from disease and hunger. Hoping to relieve his people's suffering, Pocatello led a small group of them to a missionary farm in the Utah Territory to receive mass baptism and conversion to Mormonism. Although the Shoshone received baptism, the local population of settlers, who were primarily Mormon, agitated for their removal. In response, the U.S. Army forced the Shoshone back onto the reservation.
Today, the tribes employ nearly 1,000 Native and non-Native people in various trades: 575 in tribal government, 85 by the enterprises and more than 300 by gaming, with a combined payroll of more than $32 million. The tribal government is increasingly focused on building the tribes' economy and ensuring the protection and enhancement of the reservation landbase for generations to come.
The main agriculture on the reservation today is the cultivation of wheat and potatoes, with the value of crops produced on the reservation exceeding $75 million annually. The reservation is the site of the The Fort Hall Casino, and two smaller satellite casinos, all operated by the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
