The Quapaws - Indians of North America Author:W. David Baird, Frank W. Porter III (Editor) The Quapaws were once sovereigns of the region where the Arkansas River enters the Mississippi, an environment that provided them with the food and resources they needed to create a self-sufficient society. The Quapaws' strategic location led France and Spain to vie for the allegiance of this powerful tribe throughout the 18th century. In th... more »e early 1800s, the United States also sought the Quapaws as an ally. As settlers clamored for more and more land east of the Mississippi, the government forced the Quapaws to leave their ancestral homeland and relocated them in 1834 in the northeastern corner of Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). There the tribe survived extreme poverty following the Civil War but later prospered by leasing their lands, first to ranchers in the 1870s and then to mine operators in the 1920s. A tribal revitalization movement in the mid-20th century led the Quapaw people to take renewed interest in their ancient rituals and traditions, a rich legacy that continues to inspire the Quapaws today.« less