Navajo Nation votes to accept copy of 1868 treaty

The Navajo Nation has accepted an original copy of an 1868 treaty that had been stored in a Massachusetts home. The treaty allowed Navajos to return to their homeland in the Four Corners region after years of imprisonment in eastern New Mexico. It is one of three known copies of the treaty. One is at the National Archives. Another was given to Navajo Chief Barboncito, but its whereabouts are unknown. The great-grandniece of one of the negotiators, Clare "Kitty" P. Weaver, recently donated the third copy to the tribe. A legislative committee voted Tuesday to accept it. Weaver was visiting the Navajo Nation on Wednesday where a small crowd gathered to see the treaty. It will be on display at the Navajo Nation Museum for a week starting Saturday. AP