It has to be a Mormon influence. The Mormon Cult has a historical belief that after Jesus was resurrected from the grave, Jesus (a jew) came to America to preach to the American Indian.
The Mormons believe American Indians are wayward Israelites.
It's straight from their Crack-pot Founder Joseph Smith and in his/their "Book of Mormon".
Probably the other way around. Mormonism wasn't founded until the early 1800s, long after the first settlers had arrived in America and "discovered" the Native Americans. The idea that the N.A.'s might be lost Israelites predates Joseph Smith, though he very well may have been influenced by it. It would have made Mormonism a little more convincing to some people if they already had a prior belief in Israelites living in North America.