Minnesota Uprising
The Minnesota Uprising, also known as the Dakota War of 1862, was a significant conflict between the Eastern Sioux tribes and white settlers in Minnesota, rooted in tensions over unmet treaty obligations and dire food shortages. Following years of ceding land through treaties in 1851 and 1858, the Eastern Sioux, who had previously been self-sufficient, found themselves increasingly dependent on government annuities for survival. In the summer of 1862, when these annuities were withheld, frustration mounted among the Sioux, particularly led by the chief Little Crow, who sought assistance but was rebuffed by white officials.
The situation escalated dramatically when a group of young Sioux warriors killed five white settlers on August 17, 1862, prompting an organized uprising led by Little Crow against the settlers. This resulted in attacks on settlements, including a notable assault on the Redwood Agency, which led to significant casualties among both the Sioux and white settlers. The conflict ultimately concluded with a decisive defeat for the Sioux at the Battle of Wood Lake in September 1862 and subsequent mass trials that led to the hanging of 38 Sioux men. The uprising had devastating consequences, resulting in the deaths of hundreds and the forced relocation of the Eastern Sioux to reservations in what is now South Dakota.
Minnesota Uprising
Date: August-December, 1862
Place: Minnesota Valley, Minnesota
Tribe affected: Eastern (Santee) Sioux
Significance: The Minnesota Uprising was a result of the reservation policies forced upon the Eastern Sioux by the U.S. government
Deprived of their annual distribution of annuities during the summer of 1862, the Eastern (Santee) Sioux—Mdewakanton, Wahpekute, Wahpeton, and Sisseton—grew angry and indignant. Warehouses were full of food and other supplies, but Thomas Galbraith, the Indian agent, refused to give it to the Indians until the cash annuities arrived. The agent feared he would not receive his customary monetary kickback.
Once an independent, self-sufficient group, the Eastern Sioux had become dependent on annuities for their survival. When Minnesota became a territory, a census indicated that Eastern Sioux outnumbered the six thousand white settlers by more than two to one. When Minnesota became a state in 1858 and the number of white settlers increased, Indians ceded much of their land. The treaties of 1851 and 1858 saw the Sioux cede 28 million acres to the whites in exchange for annuities and reservation life.
Faced with the starvation of his people, Little Crow—a particularly articulate leader—tried to persuade Galbraith to distribute the food to his hungry people. His arguments fell on deaf ears. The attitude of the white trader Andrew Myrick typifies the lack of concern toward the Indians’ condition: If the Indians are hungry, let them eat grass or dung.
The Indians’ anger over Galbraith’s decision, years of mistreatment by white officials, and the threat of starvation came to a head when four young warriors murdered five white settlers on August 17, 1862. As a result of these actions, militant Mdewakanton and Wahpekute chiefs persuaded Little Crow to lead an assault on the whites. On August 18, 1862, they attacked the Redwood Agency, killing twenty men and taking twelve women captive. Among the dead was Andrew Myrick, his body mutilated and his mouth stuffed with grass as an answer to his callous remark. After this attack, the Indians swept throughout the countryside plundering, looting, killing, and raping. The white settlement at New Ulm, for one, suffered staggering losses but repelled the attackers.
The Indians were decisively defeated by the troops of General Henry Hastings Sibley at the Battle of Wood Lake on September 23. This battle virtually ended Sioux resistance. On December 26 of 1862, 38 out of 303 Sioux were tried and convicted of rape and murder. They were sentenced to death by mass hanging. Little Crow, who fled west, was killed during the summer of 1863 by a Minnesota farmer.
As a result of the uprising, between four hundred and eight hundred whites were killed. In addition, the Eastern Sioux were forced to relocate to reservations in present-day South Dakota.