NEW LONDON
— Nestled among high prairie grasses and wildflowers in a wetland bordering Norway Lake, near the First Lutheran Church of Norway Lake, is a metal sign telling the story of the Isle of Refuge. A small island in the lake, it provided shelter to some Kandiyohi County settlers as the U.S.-Dakota War waged around them.
According to the historical marker placed near the island’s location by the
Kandiyohi County Historical Society
, the band of settlers lived on the island for several days before being rescued and escorted to eastern settlements. The island, which still exists today northeast of the church, beyond an arm of the lake, now belongs to Kandiyohi County.
The island marker is just one of dozens of different historic markers, sites, monuments and battlefields that help tell at least some of the story of the
U.S.-Dakota War of 1862
.
In the 1960s, the Kandiyohi County Historical Society started placing wood — and then metal signs — at more than 40 different historical sites throughout the county. More than half of them deal directly, or indirectly, with the war. All of the sites are covered in the book “Historic Sites of Kandiyohi County,” which gives locations and information about the sites. The book, put together by the historical society, can be purchased at the museum in Willmar or on the website at
www.kandiyohicountyhistory.com.
The monument to the victims of what has been named the West Lake Massacre. Thirteen settlers were killed by Dakota warriors on Aug. 20, 1862, in the U.S.-Dakota War.
Shelby Lindrud / West Central Tribune
Located two miles south of Sunburg is the site of the Lundborg Cabin, where, according to the Kandiyohi County Historical Society book, on Aug. 20, 1862, several Swedish settlers were taking part in a religious service when word came of an attack by Dakota warriors on a nearby homestead. Thirteen settlers — men, women and young children — were killed in what has been named the West Lake Massacre. Survivors of the attack included some of the people who took shelter on the Isle of Refuge.
A monument to the victims of the attack was erected in the Lebanon Cemetery in the city of New London. The remains of the victims are buried under the monument, which was erected by the state of Minnesota in August 1891.
The Guri Endreson cabin, where Guri saw her husband and son killed by Dakota and then had her daughters abducted by the warriors on Aug. 21, 1862, has been preserved by the Kandiyohi County Historical Society. The cabin is located a few miles north of Willmar, at 3669 67th Ave. N.W.
Erica Dischino / West Central Tribune
One of the best-known historical sites in Kandiyohi County is the
Guri Endreson Cabin
, preserved by the Kandiyohi County Historical Society and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built before the war, it is one of the only examples of prewar building in the county.
It was at this cabin that Guri Endreson watched as Dakota warriors attacked and killed her husband and son before abducting her two daughters on Aug. 21, 1862. Guri and an infant daughter were able to escape and hide in the nearby woods until the warriors left. Another son, Ole, who was injured, eventually made it back to the cabin.
The remaining Endresons ended up leaving the cabin and would eventually arrive at Forest City, where Guri would be reunited with her two daughters who had escaped the Dakota.
Located near the Kandiyohi-Stearns county line is the location of a Dakota attack on a threshing crew in September 1862.
Shelby Lindrud / West Central Tribune
On the northeast side of Kandiyohi County, just off Highway 23 on Roseville Road Northeast near the Kandiyohi-Stearns county line, is a sign commemorating a Sept. 15, 1862, attack by Dakota warriors on a threshing crew.
According to the sign, the men were awakened by the light of a fire and one of the men, John Boylan, was wounded in the leg. The men were able to escape when the Dakota were diverted by the horses and cattle nearby. The animals, wagons and threshing equipment were reportedly never seen again. Today, the site is still watched over by cattle.
A few miles west of Prinsburg is the location where around 30 Dakota warriors camped on Aug. 18, 1862, following the attack on the Lower Sioux Agency site in Morton.
Shelby Lindrud / West Central Tribune
There are a couple of signs that focus on the Dakota.
Near Green Lake in Spicer, a sign marks where Chief Little Crow once camped before the war. Little Crow would play a significant role in the war, leading the Dakota in many of the battles.
There is also a historical marker a few miles west of Prinsburg, marking a Dakota camp where warriors spent the night on Aug. 18, 1862, following the attack on the Lower Sioux Agency site near Morton.
The historical signs put up by the Kandiyohi County Historical Society are only some of the many U.S.-Dakota War sites people can visit and learn about. The war impacted settlers in many different counties, including Renville, Lac qui Parle, Yellow Medicine, Brown and Meeker.
The location of the Battle of Birch Coulee, which took place Sept. 2 and Sept. 3, 1862, has been preserved as a state historical site by the Minnesota Historical Society. The site is managed by the Renville County Historical Society. Visitors are able to walk around the battlefield and see the landscape from the viewpoints of both the United States Army and the Dakota.
Shelby Lindrud / West Central Tribune
In Renville County, the location of the Battle of Birch Coulee and
the Lower Sioux Agency
have been preserved as historic sites. The agency site, located at the Lower Sioux Indian Community, helps explain the causes of the war and the difficulties faced by the Dakota tribes.
The attack on the agency by a band of Dakota warriors on Aug. 18, 1862, was the start of the war.
The
Battle of Birch Coulee
took place on Sept. 2 and Sept. 3, 1862, and saw some of the hardest fighting of the war. At the battlefield site, visitors can walk where the fighting took place. A presentation on the history of the battle is scheduled for 6 p.m. Sept. 5 at the battlefield, led by local historian Jerry Weldy.
A stone obelisk, located near the Wood Lake battlefield southeast of Granite Falls in Yellow Medicine County, commemorates the Battle of Wood Lake, the last battle of the war.
West Central Tribune file photo
The site of where the war ended can also be visited. The
Battle of Wood Lake
took place on Sept. 23, 1862, in Yellow Medicine County, southeast of Granite Falls at a location actually called Lone Tree Lake. It was the last major fighting between the U.S. Army and the Dakota, and ended in a Dakota defeat.
These various sites of the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862 help to make sure the history of the war isn’t forgotten. They can also be conversation starters, for people of all backgrounds to learn about the conflict.
Even 162 years later, the war, its causes and its aftermath are still sensitive — and sometimes controversial — topics.
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Publish date : 2024-08-10 01:44:00
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