Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint Anthony , but it was renamed Fort Snelling once its construction was completed in 1825.
92-640: The Winnebago War , also known as the Winnebago Uprising , was a brief conflict that took place in 1827 in the Upper Mississippi River region of the United States, primarily in what is now the state of Wisconsin . Not quite a war, the hostilities were limited to a few attacks on American civilians by a portion of the Winnebago (or Ho-Chunk ) Native American tribe. The Ho-Chunks were reacting to
184-629: A slave market in St. Louis. He is the only known "Minnesota runaway slave " that ran away from the fort and was taken in by the Dakota. He was involved in the Dakota War and was the first defendant on the docket of the military tribunal for hanging. The fort surgeon, Dr. John Emerson, purchased Dred Scott at a slave market in Saint Louis , Missouri, where slavery was legal. Emerson was posted to Fort Snelling during
276-615: A celebration was held. On June 30, 1827, the Prairie La Crosse Ho-Chunks struck again. About 150 Ho-Chunks, with a few Dakota allies, attacked two American keelboats on the Mississippi, near the mouth of the Bad Axe River . Two Americans were killed and four were wounded in the skirmish; about seven Ho-Chunks died in the attack or later from their wounds. According to historian Patrick Jung, "The attack, while relatively small,
368-529: A further $ 4,000 to try to settle the matter with the other Dakota band. The issue was raised in subsequent treaty negotiations in the 1850s. In 1863, the US Congress passed an act which "abrogated and annulled" all treaties with the Dakota people. The moral legitimacy of the land title is still disputed. Pike Island , at the mouth of the Minnesota River , was later named after Zebulon Pike. Following
460-408: A hired man or friend of the family. Wekau tried to shoot Gagnier's wife, but she wrestled his gun away before escaping with her young son. Wekau had to settle for stabbing and scalping Gagnier's infant daughter, who survived the attack. Another account says that only Red Bird committed the murders. Red Bird and his companions returned with the three scalps to their village at Prairie La Crosse , where
552-575: A land cession. In July and August 1829 , in treaties signed at Prairie du Chien, the Three Fires Confederacy and the Ho-Chunks formally ceded the lead mining region to the United States for annual payments of $ 16,000 and $ 18,000 respectively. Hoping to prevent further uprisings, the United States decided to strengthen its military presence in the region after the Winnebago War. Fort Crawford
644-682: A place where Native Americans would sign treaties with the United States : the 1805 Treaty of St. Peters signed by the Mdewakanton Dakota , the 1837 White Pine Treaty signed by several Ojibwe bands, and the 1851 Treaty of Mendota signed by representatives of the Mdewakanton and Wahpekute Dakota. In 1805, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike signed a treaty he was unauthorized to create, known as Pike's Purchase ( 1805 Treaty of St. Peters ). There were seven Dakota members present, with only two signing
736-507: A recruiting station during the Civil War, Spanish–American War , and both World Wars before being decommissioned a second time in 1946. It then fell into a state of disrepair until the lower post was restored to its original appearance in 1965. At that time, all that remained of the original lower post were the round and hexagonal towers. Many of the important buildings of the upper post remain today with some still in disrepair. The historic fort
828-459: A wave of lead miners trespassing on their lands, and to false rumors that the United States had sent two Ho-Chunk prisoners to a rival tribe for execution. Most Native Americans in the region decided against joining the uprising, and so the conflict ended after U.S. officials responded with a show of military force. Ho-Chunk chiefs surrendered eight men who had participated in the violence, including Red Bird , whom American officials believed to be
920-626: Is in the unorganized territory of Fort Snelling within Hennepin County , bordering Ramsey and Dakota counties. There are now multiple government agencies that own portions of the former fort with the Minnesota Historical Society administering the Historic Fort Snelling site. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources administers Fort Snelling State Park at the bottom of the bluff. Fort Snelling once encompassed
1012-571: The 5th Infantry Regiment , reinforced the fort amid rumors that the Ho-Chunks were going to attempt to free the prisoners. Eventually, two Ho-Chunks, Wau-koo-kau (or Waukookah) and Man-ne-tah-peh-keh (or Mahnaatapakah), were turned over to the Americans and indicted for the murders. The rumored Ho-Chunk attack on Fort Crawford never came, and so in October 1826, Colonel Snelling moved the garrison to Fort Snelling , where he hoped to reduce hostilities between
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#17328521587891104-504: The Minnesota River to end the siege at Fort Ridgely . Ramsey gave him a commission as colonel and turned over four companies of the newly organized 6th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment to Sibley at Fort Snelling. The fort became the rendezvous point for the state and federal military forces during the Dakota War of 1862 . During the war, the 6th, 7th, and 10th Minnesota Regiments did garrison duty at Fort Snelling. To deal with
1196-545: The Minnesota State Fair was held at the fort. With the war over Steele submitted a claim of $ 162,000 for the forts use during the war. He hoped to gain the money's he still owed from the 1857 purchase. In 1873 an agreement was reached giving the Army the fort. In exchange, his debt was cleared and Steele was given title to 6,395 acres of the original Fort Snelling Reservation. On 19 August 1862, after hearing of attacks at
1288-633: The Minnesota Territory . In 1836 the Missouri Supreme Court ruled in her favor making her a free person. The second woman, Courtney, also sued for freedom in St. Louis. When the Missouri Supreme Court ruled in Rachel's favor, Courtney's enslaver conceded her case as well, and freed Courtney and her son William. Courtney had another son named Godfrey that remained in Minnesota when she was sent to
1380-676: The War of 1812 , the United States Department of War built a chain of forts and installed Indian agents from Lake Michigan to the Missouri River in South Dakota. These forts were intended to extend the United States presence into the northwest territories following the Treaty of Ghent and the demarcation of the 49th parallel . The treaty restricted British-Canadian traders from operating in
1472-448: The "Country Club of the U. S. Army". In 1921 the 3rd Infantry was in Ohio and ordered to report to Fort Snelling with no designated transport. They marched the 940 miles only to have the 2nd and 3rd Battalions inactivated upon arriving at Fort Snelling. The following June the 1st Battalion was inactivated only for a short time. The regiment would remain at Fort Snelling until 1941. Also in 1921
1564-477: The "hostile" faction during the war. An encampment was created below the fort on Pike Island . The Dakota had brought their own tipis and household goods with them, and set up more than 200 tipis. The military leaders had a palisade erected around the encampment to protect the Dakota from angry settlers, some of whom had attacked the women and children as they passed through Henderson en route to Fort Snelling. Shortly after they arrived, soldiers raped one of
1656-455: The 1830s and brought Scott north with him. There Scott meet and married Harriet and had two children as slaves at Fort Snelling from 1836 to 1840. Dr. Emerson's wife Irene, returned to St. Louis taking the Scotts and their children in 1840. In 1843 Scott sued for his family's freedom for illegally being indentured in free territory. Although he lost that first trial, he appealed and in 1850 his family
1748-499: The 1st Infantry Regiment was re-designated the 135th Infantry . It is the direct descendant of the 1st Minnesota formed at the fort in 1862. Once the United States entered the war the fort became a recruit processing station. For WWI the 41st Infantry was constituted at the fort in May 1917 and inactivated in September 1921. The army established an officer training school which closed when
1840-613: The Civil War. A longstanding precedent in freedom suits of "once free, always free" was overturned in this case. (The cases were combined under Dred Scott's name.) It was appealed to the United States Supreme Court. In Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), Chief Justice Taney ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional and that enslaved Africans had no standing under the constitution, so could not sue for freedom. The decision increased sectional tensions between
1932-507: The Civil war Minneapolis began to expand into the fort's surroundings. In March 1869 the 20th Regiment was transferred from Louisiana to the Department of Dakota. Headquarters, band and E Company were posted to Fort Snelling. The United States Army assigned the 7th Infantry to garrison the fort in 1878 and six companies arrived in September. That year Congress approved $ 100,000 to be spent on
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#17328521587892024-713: The Coldwater Spring unit of the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (29 acres), the Upper Post Veterans Home, Minneapolis St Paul International Airport and the Minneapolis-St Paul Joint Air Reserve Station (2,930 acres). When Fort Snelling was built in 1820, fur traders and officers at the post, including Colonel Snelling, employed slave labor for cooking, cleaning, and other domestic chores. Although slavery
2116-647: The Dakota who made it to Crow Creek were forced to move again three years later to the Santee Sioux Reservation in Nebraska . For the women it was an extended period of hardship and degradation. The descendants of the displaced Dakota reside there today. A memorial is outside the Fort Snelling State Park visitor center commemorating all the Native Americans who died during this period. Because of
2208-504: The Dakota women. The Dakota wintered there in 1862–63. An estimated 102 to 300 Dakota died due to the harsh conditions, lack of food, measles and cholera . In May 1863, the Dakota who survived were loaded on two steamboats and taken down the Mississippi and up the Missouri River to Crow Creek by the Great Sioux Reservation . Three hundred more died on the way and three to four a day for weeks after they arrived. Some of
2300-554: The Dakotas ( Sioux ) and the Ojibwes (Chippewas). The two Ho-Chunk prisoners were also moved to Fort Snelling. In May 1827, after Dakotas attacked an Ojibwe party near Fort Snelling, Colonel Snelling arrested four of the Dakotas and turned them over to the Ojibwes, who killed them. This angered some Dakotas, who encouraged the Ho-Chunks to help them strike at the Americans, falsely telling them that
2392-526: The Department of Dakota and the old fort's walls were torn down for reuse in the new construction. The following October the remaining four companies of the 7th Infantry arrived and took over garrison duties. The six companies that had been the garrison departed to fight the Utes at White River , Colorado. They returned to Fort Snelling in 1880. In November 1882 the 7th was relieved by the 25th Infantry (colored) . The 25th's HQ, band and four companies would garrison
2484-525: The Governor of Iowa named Henry Sibley his replacement. The Agency was used to hold court, and those incarcerated were sent to Fort Snelling's round tower. The town of St. Paul also sent its criminals to the tower until it built its first jail in 1851. Both Fort Snelling and Fort Ripley provided this civil service for internment of criminals until the territory developed the civil infrastructure needed. There were 21 enslaved people with Taliaferro, one of whom
2576-531: The Ho-Chunk prisoners had also been turned over to the Ojibwes for execution. The false story of the execution of the Ho-Chunk prisoners, along with the incessant American trespassing, convinced some Ho-Chunks to take up arms against the United States. The timing seemed right, since the evacuation of Fort Crawford appeared to be a sign of American weakness. Another grievance was the news that some Ho-Chunk women had been sexually assaulted by American riverboat crews along
2668-540: The Lower Sioux Agency the day before, Governor Alexander Ramsey immediately went from St. Paul to Fort Snelling to assess military preparedness. Ramsey immediately ordered troops training at or near the fort to be detained from being sent east to fight in the American Civil War . On the same day, he asked his long-time friend and political rival, former Governor Henry Hastings Sibley , to lead an expedition up
2760-554: The Minnesota River the St. Peter's and the Indian Agency would be a part of Fort Snelling from 1820 to 1853. Lieutenant Colonel Henry Leavenworth commanded the expedition of 5th Infantry that built the initial outpost in 1819. That cantonment was called "New Hope" and was on the river flats along the Minnesota River. Col. Leavenworth lost 40 men to scurvy that winter and moved his encampment to Camp Coldwater because he felt
2852-528: The Mississippi River, although this story, like the one about the executions, may have been a false rumor. The Ho-Chunks broke off diplomatic relations with the United States by not showing up for a scheduled treaty conference, and prepared for war. In late June 1827, a Ho-Chunk leader named Red Bird , along with Wekau (or Wa-ni-ga, The Sun) and Chickhonsic (or Chic-hong-sic, Little Buffalo), went to Prairie du Chien to seek revenge for what they believed were
Winnebago War - Misplaced Pages Continue
2944-521: The Natives should be compelled to move westward, a policy known as Indian removal . The Winnebago War preceded the larger Black Hawk War of 1832, which involved many of the same people and concerned similar issues. Following the War of 1812 , the United States pursued a policy of trying to prevent wars among Native Americans in the Upper Mississippi River region. This was not strictly for humanitarian reasons: intertribal warfare made it more difficult for
3036-708: The North and South. When the American Civil War broke out the Government commandeered the fort for the War Department as an induction station. At the time Steele was in arrears, having made only one payment. When Governor Ramsey offered President Lincoln 1000 troops to fight the South the volunteers he got were organized at Fort Snelling into a regiment, the 1st Minnesota . More than 24,000 recruits were trained there. Minnesota units mustered in at Fort Snelling: In 1860 and 1863
3128-564: The Potawatomi settlements and urged people to stay out of the war; they would do the same five years later during the Black Hawk War . Many Ho-Chunks also distanced themselves from the actions of Red Bird and the Prairie La Crosse Ho-Chunks. Without allies, the effort to ignite a widespread war was doomed. By mid-July, writes historian Martin Zanger, "for all practical purposes the 'Red Bird Uprising'
3220-587: The US Army created the 88th Divisional area in Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota. Fort Snelling became a Citizens Military Training Camp (CMTC) for the 351st Infantry Regiment of the 88th Division. The Officers of the unit worked with the CCC program at Fort Snelling. When Pearl Harbor happened the regiment's officers were immediately activated for active duty units so that when the 351st was called up it had very few officers to meet
3312-560: The US. The forts were intended to enforce that, as well as to keep Indian lands free of white settlement until permitted by treaty. The forts were seen as the embodiment of federal authority, representing law and order, and provided protection to pioneers and traders. The Fort Snelling garrison also attempted to keep the peace among the Dakota and other tribes . Also built on army land was the St. Peter's Indian Agency at Mendota. The Anglo-Europeans called
3404-499: The United States ← → Events from the year 1827 in the United States . Fort Snelling Before the American Civil War , the U.S. Army supported slavery at the fort by allowing its soldiers to bring their personal enslaved people. These included African Americans Dred Scott and Harriet Robinson Scott , who lived at the fort in the 1830s. In the 1840s, the Scotts sued for their freedom, arguing that having lived in "free territory" made them free, leading to
3496-473: The United States to acquire Indian land and move the tribes to the West, a policy known as Indian removal , which had become the primary goal by the late 1820s. On August 19, 1825, U.S. officials finalized a multi-tribal treaty at Prairie du Chien , which defined the boundaries of the region's tribes. By that time, however, Americans had begun to trespass on Ho-Chunk (or Winnebago) lands in large numbers, drawn by
3588-411: The United States, agreeing to sell the land occupied by the miners in a more formal treaty to be held later. Eight Ho-Chunks were detained by the U.S. government at Fort Crawford for trial after the war. American officials most wanted to convict Red Bird, believing that he had been the leader of the uprising. This belief, according to historian Martin Zanger, was based on an American failure to understand
3680-520: The Winnebago War discredited the idea that Indians and Americans could live peaceably together. In his State of the Union Address of December 2, 1828, outgoing President Adams announced that the "civilization" policy had been a failure, and that Indian removal —moving the tribes to the West—was the policy of the future. That policy would be taken up by Adams's successor, Andrew Jackson . 1827 in
3772-509: The attacks. To discourage the spread of the uprising, Cass promptly invited Native Americans in the region to come to the treaty grounds to receive gifts and food; more than 2,000 people eventually arrived. McKenney warned the Ho-Chunk chiefs in attendance that the only way to avoid an American military invasion of their homeland was to surrender those responsible for the attacks. Other American officials met with other native leaders, including Keokuk and Wabokieshiek , and urged them to stay out of
Winnebago War - Misplaced Pages Continue
3864-461: The border. They encountered and killed Minnesota Dakota at St. Joseph in the Northwest Territory. At Fort Gerry two Dakota leaders were drugged, kidnapped and taken to Major Hatch for a bounty. The killings at St. Joseph caused almost 400 Dakota to turn themselves in to Hatch as well. When conditions allowed, his Cavalry took the prisoners back to Fort Snelling. The two chiefs were hanged at
3956-427: The confluence of the Mississippi and St. Peters, up the Mississippi to Include the falls of St. Anthony, extending nine miles on each side of the river. Legal scholars, historians, and the Dakota have long raised questions about the validity of the 1805 treaty. Although Pike was an army officer, he was not authorized to sign a treaty on behalf of the United States, nor were there any formal witnesses. Pike represented
4048-488: The construction of the fort, an Indian Agency was constructed on the military Reservation opposite the fort at Mendota. It was administered by Major Lawrence Taliaferro . In 1834 Taliaferro and the fort commandant, Major Bliss, assisted missionaries Gideon and Samuel W. Pond in developing the Dakota alphabet and compiling a Dakota dictionary. Taliaferro also served as the Territorial Justice of Peace until 1838 when
4140-657: The decentralized nature of Ho-Chunk society. "Because Red Bird was well known to the white frontiersmen," writes Zanger, "they focused their resentment on him, mistakenly attributing to him a leadership role he did not deserve." Red Bird was never tried; he contracted dysentery and died in prison on February 16, 1828, before his trial got underway. The trials were delayed due to the difficulties in bringing together witnesses, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and interpreters. The proceedings finally began in August 1828, with Judge James Duane Doty presiding. Wau-koo-kau and Man-ne-tah-peh-keh,
4232-459: The east, McKenney and Major William Whistler organized another force. Whistler had about 100 regulars from Fort Howard , along with 50 mostly métis militiamen from Green Bay, 60 New York Indians, and 120 Menominees . On August 29, Atkinson's force began moving up the Wisconsin River towards Portage, Wisconsin , where the hostile Ho-Chunks had concentrated, while Whistler's force converged on
4324-436: The executions of the Ho-Chunk prisoners. Unable to locate their intended victim, they instead targeted the cabin of Registre Gagnier, the son of an esteemed African-American nurse and midwife named Aunt Mary Ann. Gagnier welcomed the three Ho-Chunks into his home for a meal. What happened inside varies according to sources. According to one account, Red Bird shot and killed Gagnier, while Chickhonsic shot and killed Solomon Lipcap,
4416-468: The first post office in Minnesota started at Fort Snelling with most mail forwarded from Prairie du Chien . Colonel Zachary Taylor assumed command in 1828. He observed that the " buffalo are entirely gone and bear and deer are scarcely seen." He also wrote that the "Indians subsist principally on fish, water fowl and wild rice ". While Taylor was posted to Fort Snelling, eight adult enslaved people with him died, as did several minors. Along with
4508-797: The fort until 1888 when they were relieved by the 3rd Infantry . During the 1880s, companies of the 7th Cavalry would be at the fort. The 3rd Regiment would remain until 1898. Some of the garrison were sent to Cuba and fought in the Spanish–American War of 1898. During one of the last battles of the Indian Wars, six soldiers of the 3rd Infantry were killed at the Battle of Leech Lake October 5, 1898. Those killed were Major Wilkinson, Sgt. William Butler, and Privates Edward Lowe, John Olmstead (Onstead), John Schwolenstocker (aka Daniel F. Schwalenstocker), and Albert Ziebel. Those men were buried at north end of
4600-473: The fort until the 1st relieved them again in 1840. In 1848 the 6th Infantry became the garrison. The garrison would change again in November 1855. The 10th commanded by Col. C.F. Smith assumed duty. Smith would go on to become a major general. Colonel Snelling was recalled to Washington, leaving Fort Snelling in September 1827. He died the next summer from complications of dysentery and a "brain fever". In 1827
4692-573: The fort. They were Little Six ( Sakpedan ) and Medicine Bottle (Wakanozanzan). Chief Little Leaf managed to evade capture. The next year four companies of the 30th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment arrived at Fort Snelling with three of them moving forward to Camp Ridgely en route to Alfred Sully 's Dakota campaign. Steele had made plans and plotted his purchase to build the City of Fort Snelling. Steele, however, failed to make payments as agreed causing
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#17328521587894784-508: The government to revoke the sale and repossess the fort lands. Placing the Department of the Northwest at Fort Snelling led to the fort's further development in 1866 when the department transitioned to the Department of Dakota . The next year the headquarters of the department moved to St. Paul. The HQ returned to the fort in 1879 and would remain until 1886 when it went back to St. Paul. After
4876-509: The inevitable American possession of the mining region, worked "to dissuade the Indians from their mining plans". In March 1826, a French-Canadian man named Methode, his Native American wife, and their children were gathering maple syrup in present-day Iowa , about twelve miles north of Prairie du Chien, when they were murdered, apparently by a Ho-Chunk raiding party that had been passing through. The murderers evidently had no specific grievance with
4968-461: The landmark United States Supreme Court case Dred Scott v. Sandford . Slavery ended at the fort just before Minnesota statehood in 1858. The fort served as the primary center for U.S. government forces during the Dakota War of 1862 . It also was the site of the concentration camp where eastern Dakota and Ho-chunk non-combatants awaited riverboat transport in their forced removal from Minnesota when hostilities ceased. The fort served as
5060-475: The occupants of the new cavalry barracks on the upper post. In June 1916 President Wilson had General Pershing in Mexico on the trail of Poncho Villa . To provide border security Minnesota's entire National Guard was activated at Fort Snelling, comprising three Infantry Regiments and one Artillery. A camp was created on the upper post named Camp Bobleter for organizing the activation. Upon returning to Minnesota
5152-509: The other units being sent to Utah for what became known as the Utah War . With the departure of the 10th Infantry , Fort Snelling was designated surplus government property. In 1858, when Minnesota became a state, the army sold it to Franklin Steele for $ 90,000. Steele operated the two ferries serving the fort across both rivers at the same time he was the sutler to the fort. He also was a friend of
5244-566: The park's land. It has been cited as a "National Treasure" by the National Trust for Historic Preservation . The historic fort is in the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area , a National Park Service unit. Bdóte ('meeting of waters' or 'where two rivers meet') is considered a place of spiritual importance to the Dakota. A Dakota-English Dictionary (1852) edited by missionary Stephen Return Riggs originally recorded
5336-471: The post. Ten others were wounded in the battle. Among them were five Minnesotans: Privates George Wicker, Charles Turner, Edward Brown, Jes Jensen, and Gottfried Ziegler. Pvt. Oscar Burkard would receive the last Medal of Honor awarded during the Indian wars for his action on 5 October 1898 at Leech Lake with the 3rd Infantry. He was also from Minnesota. In 1895 General E. C. Mason, post commandant, called for
5428-426: The preservation of what remained of the old fort, having realized something had been lost with the dismantling of the walls. Nothing came of the preservation proposal, but from 1901 through 1905 Congress would spend $ 2,000,000 on the Fort Snelling upper post. In 1901 the 14th Infantry became the garrison followed by the 28th in 1904. From 1905 to 1911 squadrons of the 3rd , 2nd , and 4th Cavalry Regiments were
5520-569: The prevailing attitudes towards all "Indians" the Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) that were living outside Mankato were also sent to Fort Snelling. There, they too were put on riverboats for Crow Creek. They lost 500 along the way and once there, they and the Dakota would lose another 1,300 to starvation . In October 1863 Major E.A.C. Hatch and his Battalion were ordered from Fort Snelling to retrieve Dakota leaders who had crossed into Canada. Winter set in before they reached Pembina in Dakota Territory. Hatch made an encampment at Pembina, sending 20 men across
5612-402: The promise of easy lead mining along the Fever (later Galena) River . Native Americans had mined this region for thousands of years, and exporting lead had become an important part of the Ho-Chunk economy. Ho-Chunks tried to drive away the trespassers, but they often suffered abuse at the hands of aggressive miners. Some U.S. officials, concerned that Ho-Chunk mining would delay what they saw as
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#17328521587895704-401: The recording of four weather readings every day a duty of the surgeon at every Army post. Fort Snelling has one of the longest near-continuous weather records in the country. In 1820 Colonel Josiah Snelling took command of the outpost and the fort's construction. Upon completion in 1824, he christened his work "Fort St. Anthony" for the waterfalls just upriver. That did not last long, as it
5796-419: The region in unprecedented numbers, and U.S. officials proved to be unable or unwilling to stem the tide. By January 1828, there were as many as 10,000 illegal settlers on Ho-Chunk land, including militia general Henry Dodge, who established a mining camp after the war and boasted that the U.S. Army could not make him leave. Having no other options, on August 25, 1828, the Ho-Chunks signed a provisional treaty with
5888-524: The ringleader. Red Bird died in prison in 1828 while awaiting trial; two other men convicted of murder were pardoned by President John Quincy Adams and released. As a result of the war, the Ho-Chunk tribe was compelled to cede the lead mining region to the United States. The Americans also increased their military presence on the frontier, building Fort Winnebago and reoccupying two other abandoned forts. The conflict convinced some officials that Americans and Indians could not live peaceably together, and that
5980-415: The riverside location contributed to the outbreak. The new camp was near a spring closer to the fortification he was constructing. That spring would be the source of drinking water to the fort throughout the 19th century. The spring held a spiritual significance to the Sioux . The post surgeon began recording meteorological observations at the fort in January 1820. The U.S. Army Surgeon General had made
6072-422: The same location from the north. On September 1, 1827, McKenney and Whistler's force arrived at the Portage. On September 3, two Ho-Chunk leaders, Waukon Decorah and Carymaunee , surrendered Red Bird and Wekau to the Americans. Carymaunee asked the Americans not to put irons on Red Bird and Wekau; this request was granted. He then offered to give the Americans twenty horses in exchange for the prisoners, but this
6164-445: The sitting President, James Buchanan . At that time the fort sat on 8,000 acres (32 km ). A small portion of that land was later annexed into south Minneapolis. The balance of that original land is now broken into: Historic Fort Snelling Interpretive Center (300 acres), Fort Snelling State Park (2,931 acres), Fort Snelling National Cemetery (436 acres), Fort Snelling VA Hospital (160 acres), Minnesota Veterans Home (53 acres),
6256-422: The six men were not all involved in the murders; they were surrendered to appease American anger and deflect punishment away from the tribe as a whole. The Americans, however, wanted to punish those personally responsible for the killings. Colonel Morgan was unable to determine who was guilty, and so he detained all six and demanded that the Ho-Chunk chiefs identify the killers. Colonel Josiah Snelling , commander of
6348-406: The state constitution was ratified in 1858. Two women that had lived enslaved at Fort Snelling sued for their freedom and were set free in 1836. One, named Rachel, was enslaved Lieutenant Thomas Stockton at Fort Snelling from 1830 to 1831, then at Fort Crawford at Prairie du Chien until 1834. When Rachel and her son were sold in St. Louis, she sued, claiming that she had been illegally enslaved in
6440-418: The treaty as having been agreed with the entire Sioux nation, but in reality it was only signed by representatives of two Mdewakanton villages. From a legal point of view, there was insufficient description of the land the signers intended to convey . Furthermore, there was no consideration, or payment terms, stated in the treaty. Pike wrote in his journal he thought the land was worth US$ 200,000, but within
6532-473: The treaty itself he left the payment amount blank, deferring to Congress to determine the final amount to be paid. On April 16, 1808, when the U.S. Senate finally ratified the treaty, it approved payment to the Dakota in the amount of only $ 2,000. Payment for the ceded lands only arrived in 1819, when the United States Department of War sent Major Thomas Forsyth to distribute approximately $ 2,000 worth of goods. In 1838, Indian agent Lawrence Taliaferro paid
6624-489: The treaty: Cetan Wakuwa Mani (Petit Corbeau) and Way Aga Enogee (Waynyaga Inaźin). It ceded 155,320 acres of land in the area (400 km ). The document offered an unspecified amount of money, later valued at $ 2,000, for the land. The treaty states: Article One — That the Sioux nation grants unto the United States for the purpose of establishment of military posts, nine miles square at the mouth of river St. Croix, also from below
6716-506: The tutelage of the fort's physician, Dr. Purcell. However, Purcell died before he completed the coursework and March moved west. Major Plympton became post commander in August 1837. He made determining the actual boundaries of the fort's land a priority, doing two surveys. After the second he sent troops to evict "Pig's Eye" Parrant from Fountain Cave downriver. Parrant's tavern there was the first commercial venture in what became St. Paul. Parrant
6808-548: The two warriors imprisoned for the 1826 murders of the Methode family, were released due to a lack of witnesses, as were three Ho-Chunks held for the attack on the keelboats. Only two men, Wekau and Chickhonsic, were prosecuted. According to historian Patrick Jung, it became clear during the trial that Red Bird had committed the murders at the Gagnier cabin, and that there was not enough evidence to convict Wekau and Chickhonsic. Despite this,
6900-565: The uprising, the United States Department of War created the Department of the Northwest , headquartered at St. Paul and commanded by Major General John Pope . Gen. Pope arrived in St. Paul on 15 September, and sent requests to the governors of Iowa and Wisconsin for additional troops. The 25th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment arrived at Fort Snelling on 22 September, the day before the decisive Battle of Wood Lake , and were sent immediately to Mankato and Paynesville . The 27th Iowa Infantry Regiment arrived at Fort Snelling in October, well after
6992-447: The victims, who were targets of opportunity. Two Ho-Chunk suspects were arrested by Prairie du Chien militiamen and taken to Fort Crawford . After they escaped, U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Willoughby Morgan seized two Ho-Chunk hostages and demanded that the Ho-Chunk tribe turn over the murderers. On July 4, 1826, the Ho-Chunks delivered six men to Morgan at Fort Crawford. In accordance with Ho-Chunk custom, writes historian Martin Zanger,
7084-465: The war ended. At that time the only building seeing use was the base hospital. It was expanded to 1200 beds and designated General Hospital 29. During the 1918 influenza pandemic it saw extensive use. That hospital would be the forerunner of the VA Hospital at Fort Snelling now. Between wars, the 14th Field Artillery and the 7th Tank Battalion were assigned to Fort Snelling while the base was considered
7176-788: The war was over. Four companies stayed at Fort Snelling, while the other six marched north to Mille Lacs and returned to Fort Snelling on 4 November; three days later they were sent to Cairo, Illinois . In November 1862, 1,658 Dakota, all innocent non-combatants, were moved from the Lower Sioux Agency to Fort Snelling, escorted by 300 soldiers under Lieutenant Colonel William Rainey Marshall . They were mostly Dakota women and children, but also included 22 Franco-Dakota and Anglo-Dakota men who had not been tried, as well as Christian and farmer Dakota such as Taopi, Chief Wabasha , Joseph Kawanke, Paul Mazakutemani, Lorenzo Lawrence, John Other Day and Snana who had opposed Chief Little Crow III and
7268-605: The war. Meanwhile, American officials scrambled to mobilize troops. Cass hurried to Prairie du Chien, where he organized the local militia. Colonel Snelling arrived at Prairie du Chien on July 10, bringing about 200 regulars from Fort Snelling to reoccupy Fort Crawford. He was joined there on July 29 by Brigadier General Henry Atkinson , who brought 500 men upriver by steamboat from Jefferson Barracks . Several days later, Henry Dodge arrived at Fort Crawford with 130 mounted militiamen, mostly miners. Governor Ninian Edwards of Illinois sent 600 mounted militiamen north to Wisconsin. To
7360-414: The white and métis jury found them guilty. Judge Doty sentenced them to hang, as he was required to do by law. Their lawyer filed a motion for a new trial, arguing that the jury had ignored the evidence, and so Doty suspended the death sentences. On November 3, 1828, President John Quincy Adams , having been told that the executions would likely spark another uprising, pardoned the prisoners in exchange for
7452-539: The word as mdóte, noting that it was also "a name commonly applied to the country about Fort Snelling, or mouth of the Saint Peters," now known as the Minnesota River. According to Riggs, "The Mdewakantonwan think that the mouth of the Minnesota River is precisely over the center of the Earth and that they occupy the gate that opens into the western world.". The confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers also became
7544-535: Was Harriet Robinson . She married Dred Scott with Taliaferro officiating at Mendota. John Marsh , arrived at the fort during the early 1820s. He started the first school in the Territory for the officers' children. Marsh developed a relationship with the Dakota, and compiled a dictionary of the dialect used by the Mendota tribe. He had studied medicine at Harvard without earning a degree. He continued his studies under
7636-569: Was a notorious bootlegger doing business with both the Dakota and the soldiers, causing issues for the fort commander. The eviction coincided with the arrival of the Catholic missionary Lucian Galtier . That year also brought the arrival of Pierre Bottineau , the Kit Carson of the Northwest. He would serve the fort as a guide and interpreter. He could speak French and English, Dakota, Ojibwe, Cree, Mandan and Hochunk. Lieutenant Colonel Seth Eastman
7728-538: Was a violation of both the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and the Missouri Compromise of 1820 , an estimated 15–30 Africans were enslaved at the fort. US Army officers submitted pay vouchers to cover the expenses of retaining enslaved persons. From 1855 to 1857, nine individuals were enslaved at Fort Snelling. The last slave-holding unit was the 10th Infantry. Slavery was made unconstitutional in Minnesota when
7820-413: Was changed by General Winfield Scott to Fort Snelling in recognition of the fort's architect commander. From construction in 1820 to closure in 1858, four army units would garrison the fort, the 1st, 5th , 6th , 10th Regiments . plus a company from the 1st Dragoons . In 1827 the 5th Infantry would be replaced by the 1st Infantry for ten years with the 5th returning in 1837. The 5th would garrison
7912-416: Was commander of the fort twice in the 1840s. Eastman was an artist. He has been recognized for his extensive work recording the Dakota. His skill was such that he was commissioned by Congress to illustrate the six-volume study of Indian Tribes of the United States by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft . The set was published 1851–1857 with hundreds of his works. From 1833 to 1836 Dr. Nathan Sturges Jarvis (surgeon)
8004-420: Was declined. The Ho-Chunks turned in four more men involved in the uprising in the following weeks. In diplomatic talks with the Ho-Chunks at the close of the war, General Atkinson promised that the U.S. government would look into their grievances in the lead mining region. Thomas McKenney requested military aid to evict American miners who were trespassing on Ho-Chunk land, but after the war, settlers poured into
8096-516: Was given their freedom. In 1852, Emerson appealed and the Scotts were again enslaved. Dred Scott appealed that decision and in 1857 the US Supreme Court decided that the Scotts would stay enslaved. Dred Scott v. Sandford was a landmark case that held that neither enslaved nor free Africans were meant to hold the privileges or constitutional rights of United States citizens. This case garnered national attention and pushed political tensions towards
8188-523: Was over". The attacks created panic among the American population of the area. Settlers, fearing the outbreak of a wider Indian war, fled to towns such as Galena and Chicago, or sought sanctuary in the abandoned Fort Crawford. Lewis Cass , the governor of Michigan Territory , and Thomas McKenney , the Superintendent of Indian Affairs, were hosting a treaty conference near Green Bay when they learned of
8280-563: Was reoccupied, as was Fort Dearborn in Chicago, which had been abandoned in 1823. A new outpost, Fort Winnebago , was built in October 1828 at the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers. The conflict also helped to promote a change in U.S. policy regarding Native Americans. Previously, many Americans had argued that Indians should be "civilized" and assimilated into white American society. But for some,
8372-588: Was significant because it was the first act of war committed against the United States by Indians in the region since the War of 1812." In their nascent war against the Americans, the Prairie La Crosse Ho-Chunks sought to recruit allies among the Dakotas, Potawatomis , and other Ho-Chunk bands. Most leaders of these tribes, while sympathetic to Ho-Chunk grievances, urged neutrality. Some Potawatomis participated by killing some American livestock, but Potawatomi leaders Billy Caldwell , Alexander Robinson, and Shaubena rode among
8464-484: Was stationed at Fort Snelling. During that time he acquired a notable collection of northern plains Native American artifacts now housed at the Brooklyn Museum . As the towns of Minneapolis and St. Paul grew and with Minnesota statehood before Congress, the need for a forward frontier military post had ceased. In 1857, with the fort's deactivation looming, the garrison was sent to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas , to join
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