In 1887, Congress passed the General Allotment Act also known as the Dawes Act. It is a complicated story., however, for Indians not on tribal reservations they were entitled land allotments up to 160 acres.
In the early 1900s, when the Great Western Power Company began its aggressive campaign to purchase the lands of Big Meadows, Plumas County into a reservoir site to be known as Lake Almanor. Some of the purchases were not friendly and Great Western Power sued to obtain ownership. The company sued six Maidu Indians—Jennie Meadows, Ellen Jenkins, John Jenkins, Hester Jenkins, Robert Shafer and Jim Lincoln—to seek condemnation of their government allotted lands. On November 22, 1902, a court trial was held and the Maidu were awarded a judgment, giving them the assessed value along with an additional $1,600 in compensation. At the conclusion of the trial, Great Western paid cash to the Maidu, who according to one report the Maidu “went home rejoicing.” There was a good reason, too. In 1908, it was disclosed that those six Maidu had never owned the lands Great Western sought condemnation!