Native American tribes in Nebraska in Macy, with the Winnebago Tribal Council in nearby Winnebago. The offices of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Santee Sioux Tribal Council offices are in Niobrara. The Bureau of Indian Affairs office serving Nebraska is located in Aberdeen, South Dakota, while the Winnebago Agency office serves the Omaha and Winnebago. Native American tribes in Nebraska Native American tribes in the U.S. state of Nebraska have been Plains Indians, descendants of succeeding cultures of indigenous peoples who have occupied the area for thousands of years. More than 15 historic tribes have been identified as having lived in, hunted in,
Native American recognition in the United States to be classified as Indian. At times a person's membership in a federally recognized tribe was not sufficient for classification as Indian in the eyes of the courts. The Major Crimes Act of 1885 placed seven major crimes under federal jurisdiction if committed by a Native American in Native American Territory. The Department of Justice required that a defendant be an enrolled member of a tribe to be covered by the Major Crimes Act. In his 1935 Memorandum to John Collier, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, the Assistant Solicitor, Felix S. Cohen, discussed the rights of a group of non-tribal Indians