Dancing with the Dakotas

Would you do any type of ritual or dance to help you win a battle? Well the Dakota Indians would. They would perform war dances. These dances were performed to make sure the warriors would win the battle. They would help bond the warriors and to help them focus on fighting in the upcoming battle with their enemies. They were performed by the warriors fighting who wore ceremonial clothes and special symbols by singing and dancing. Whether it was a small battle or large battle, they would perform the dances. It gave them a better chance of winning.

By Matt Godfrey

Dakota War of 1862

The Dakota Indians fought in many wars through their days in the 1800’s. One of the biggest wars was the Dakota War of 1862. In this war between the Dakota and the US army led by Colonel Henry Sibley. The Dakota fought but lost many warriors and the number is unknown. The Americans lost between 300-800 soldiers in the war. Although they have lost many numbers by the fighting, they also lost some from the hangings on December 26th, 1862 in which 38 Dakota Indians were hanged at the hands of the us government on Mankato, MN which is the largest mass execution in us history. Along with that war they fought in wars against the Ojibwe tribe and other smaller tribes throughout the present day Minnesota and Dakota areas. Although they had fought so much and left scares all over they are one of the most well remembered tribes in the area.

By Danny Glass

A Life Changing War

The Dakota Indians have participated in countless wars, but one of the most life changing battles was the war for the Black Hills of South Dakota. In the mid 1770’s, the Dakota Indians began to move to, and settle in, the Black Hills. Here they lived peacefully until the first non-Indian settlers began to appear in the 1840’s. Among these newcomers was General George Armstrong Custer, who tried to take the Black Hills from the Indians, in 1874, and convert them all to reservation life. When the Native Americans did not agree to this proposition, the United States declared war upon them. All the Native American tribes of the Black Hills banded together to fight, under Sioux chief Sitting Bull and Cheyenne war leader Crazy Horse. Throughout the six years that this war lasted, the U.S. troops and the Indians had many encounters, which, at different times, fell in the favor of each side. By January of 1877, all chiefs and tribes, except that of Sitting Bull’s, had surrendered to reservation life. Because the United States did not believe the war to be truly over until every tribe was living on a reservation, U.S. troops spent the next four years attempting to persuade Sitting Bull and his followers to oblige. Finally, on July 19, 1881, he agreed. The long and bloody war for the Black Hills eventually came to an end when Sitting Bull arrived at Fort Buford, South Dakota, in mid 1881.


By Kristin Jacobsen

The Ways and Styles of Scalp Dancing

In this report I have learned a lot about the Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota which are all Sioux and they all have there scalp dances, there all the same and here they are. The reason they scalp dance is because when they win a victorious win against the enemies in a battle they celebrate by having this special dance. People believe that Europeans introduced scalped dancing to the Sioux. When they would do the scalp dancing they would do it by a fire and have men singing songs from there tribe. Women would dress very well to impress the men and the other people there. Then they would take the skin and hair and cherish it. The skin and hair meant the soul, a scalped person was held to earth and they shall not enter the after life to take there revenge on victorious ancestors. When they were doing all this stuff they made more noise by taking deer and goats hoofs and tie them to sticks to make a rattling noise they would also have ten musicians playing the tambourine. Scalp dancing was used often; they had a defiant and scalped 65 warriors and they took 48 women and children as prisoners. So now you know what I have studied and learned about and I hope that you understand what there scalp dancing was like.


By Brian Tschida