In 1825, with the
First Treaty of Prairie du Chien, the United States drew the
Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Line to separate the
Ojibwe from the
Dakota, believing the two were still at war with each other. The Ojibwe and the Dakota had ended their war for nearly a generation by that time and had only infrequent skirmishes. In 1830 the Indian Removal Act was signed by Andrew Jackson. This act of Congress gave the president power to force Indian tribes to move to land west of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi Chippewa, along with the Red Lake, Pillager and the Lake Superior bands, entered into the
Treaty of St. Peters in 1837 with the US. They ceded to the
United States what is now part of northern
Wisconsin and east-central
Minnesota. In 1850, the US government changed the annuity distribution point from
La Pointe, Wisconsin to
Sandy Lake, in an effort to move the tribes further west. Four thousand Ojibwe of various bands showed up in early October at the designated site, but no government agents or supplies were there. After waiting for two months in deteriorating weather, 170 Ojibwe died. The government finally brought the supplies and annuities but, because of harsh weather at that time of year, another 230 Ojibwe died on their returns to their lands. This became known as the
Sandy Lake tragedy. In 1855, because of the
tragedy at Sandy Lake, the Mississippi Chippewa, along with the
Pillager Band of Chippewa Indians, agreed upon the Treaty of Washington for the land cession of most of northern
Minnesota. In exchange, the United States promised three reservations for the Pillagers and six reservations for the Mississippi Chippewa. In addition, as in other treaties, the tribes retained the right for traditional harvest of off-reservation resources, such as fish and game. (This right faded from general knowledge as living conditions changed, until it was revived in the late 20th century as tribes worked to exercise traditional practices and rights; one example was the
Wisconsin Walleye War of the late 1980s.) The six reservations were the following: •
Gull Lake Indian Reservation •
Mille Lac Indians Reservation •
Pokegama Lake Indian Reservation •
Sandy Lake Indian Reservation •
Rabbit Lake Indian Reservation • Rice Lake Indian Reservation Due to confusing records kept by the U.S.
Bureau of Land Management, the Rice Lake Indian Reservation was never established. Confusion arose because several different lakes around Sandy Lake had names which, translated into English, all seemed to mean "Rice Lake." This led to confusion related to which map was consulted, and the issue of where the reservation was to be located was never resolved. It appeared the Rice Lake Indian Reservation was located in the following areas: • fully within the boundaries of the Sandy Lake Indian Reservation on its north end, or • adjacent to the Sandy Lake Indian Reservation on its south end; and • at the southeastern corner on the eastern edge of Sandy Lake Indian Reservation, or • on the southeastern corner on the southern edge of Sandy Lake Indian Reservation. The Rice Lake Band claimed these representations were all incorrect, and the proper location of the agreed Rice Lake Indian Reservation was much farther south.
1862 Chippewa offer Lincoln to fight the Sioux would bring war and mounted patrols to Minnesota and the
Department of the Northwest until June 1866. In the north, several unfortified
stagecoach stations along the
Red River Trails were attacked despite being on Chippewa land. When
Judge Cooper arrived at Hole-in-the-Day's
village, during the first week of the war, he learned the Sioux had attacked the Chippewa at
Otter tail lakes. He also informed Governor
Alexander Ramsey that the Gull Lake warriors were dancing around Sioux scalps when he arrived. The Chippewa were experiencing that same fraud as the Sioux and the timing of their annuity payments were coincidently close so the media linked their dis-satisfactions in an anti-
Native American narrative. At the same time the media published story after story of the Chippewa support of the Government vs. the Sioux. Company D of the
5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment, was garrisoned at
Fort Abercrombie, on the
Red River of the North 150 miles due
west of Gull Lake. They would be augmented by G Co.
9th Minnesota which had a large component of
bi-racial White Earth Chippewa. One of whom was killed and buried with military honors at
St Cloud, Minnesota. When G Company arrived at Fort Abercrombie the Fort was under attack. They went into
action to break the siege. G Company joined the garrison and immediately endured the Sioux siege that followed. On 2 September 1862 two
Wisconsin Fond Du Lac Chiefs sent President
Abraham Lincoln a letter offering to fight the Sioux so Minnesotans could go fight the
south. The
St Paul Pioneer and Democrat published that letter front page on 11 September 1862. Over the next week it was reprinted or referenced by multiple
newspapers across the country:
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Times New York Times,
New York Herald Washington D.C
Evening Star,
The Portland Daily Press,Portland Maine
Wheeling Daily Intelligencer W. VA, Cleveland Morning, Vermont Chronicle, The Weekly North Iowa Times, Mankato Semi Weekly and republished in St Paul on the 19th. On 3 September a Mille Lacs band Chief went to St Cloud with the same offer that also made the papers. The post Commander at Fort Ripley was informed and he extended State hospitality to the Chief until a response was received. On 6 September the speculation of Chief Hole in the Day joining Little Crow prompted Shaw-Bosh-Kung, head chief of the
Mille Lacs band of Chippewa to send 700-750 warriors to Fort Ripley to volunteer to fight the Sioux and support the garrison along with the Sandy Lake band.
William P. Dole, the Indian agent was at Fort Ribley, asked that they return to their reservation. He told them they would be informed if they were needed. Notable Chippewa there were Chiefs Hole-in-the-Day, Buffalo, and Flat-mouth. On 22 September 40-50 Chippewa leaders arrived at the Minnesota State Capitol at the invitation of Gov. Ramsey thinking that their offer to fight the Sioux had been accepted. General Pope would not accept their service as a matter of "public policy". Nearly all of Minnesota's Chippewa wanted to help. Gov. Ramsey told the Chiefs that Lincoln was busy with the civil war, but if they were needed they would be informed. This Chippewa effort made the news in many cities. The next day the Mdewakanton surrendered at Camp Release. St Paul's two photo studios made images of many of those Chippewa leaders in 1862 that are in the Minnesota Historical Society archives.
Hanging Cloud, the Chippewa
Bear Clan "
princess" was part of a war party from Wisconsin that came to Minnesota during the war. The war party was involved in a two-day engagement. The press had labeled her a "princess" when she first made the news for being the daughter of a
Rice Lake, Wisconsin Chief affiliated to the
Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.
1863 Late February 22 Chiefs waited in Chicago for Hole-in-the-Day and the Indian Commissioner to go with them to see Lincoln. In April 1863 President Lincoln summoned the Mille Lacs and other Mississippi bands to Washington. He repeated what the Indian agent had told them at Fort Ripley, that the Mille Lacs Band could stay on their reservation for 1,000 years for their actions in support of the Government. Article 12 makes the Milles Band unique. • In 1875 Mille Lacs head Chief Shaw-Bosh-Kung described his 1863 meeting with Lincoln for the Chippewa Indian Agency record:
"The President took our hands and promised us faithfully and encouraged us and he said we could live on our reservation for 10 years and if faithful to whites and behave ourselves [and are friendly to whites you shall increase the number to 100 and you may increase it to 1,000 years if you are good Indians, and through your good behavior at the time of war (we were good and never raised our hands against the whites) The Secretary of the Interior and the President said that we should be considered good Indians and remain at Mille Lacs so long as we want." Not dissuaded, in July he offered his warriors to Major Hatch. Hatch's Battalion or the Indian Battalion of Minnesota Volunteers was initially proposed to consist of 1000 Chippewa. The Chippewa offers to fight the Sioux had the interest and support of Gov. Ramsey as well as both US Senators
Rice and
Wilkinson. In July, 1863 the Senators, united in their dislike for Pope, requested that Secretary of War Stanton authorize an independent
mounted Indian Battalion of Minnesota Volunteers consisting of the 1000 Chippewa "auxiliaries". Gen. Pope in particular objected to the Chippewa Auxiliaries. The battalion was to report directly to the War Department and had a "roving commission" to act on its own discretion. This freedom of tactical operation was a first. Both Gen. Pope and Gen. Sibley had objected to a Minnesota unit not reporting to them. Pope complained about the politics and the Senators. At the same time Ohio senator
Benjamin Wade sent a letter to Secretary Stanton suggesting that he make Senator Rice a Major General and use him to replace Gen. Pope
"as the Chippewa had complete confidence in Senator Rice". President Lincoln endorsed the letter and made E.A.C Hatch a Major in the USV. Pope was able to get the entire plan changed. At Pembina 37 Metis, of Chippewa heritage, joined Hatch. When Little Crow talked to the Governor at Fort Garry he inquired if the rumors were true about the formation of a Battalion to hunt him. The Battalion was mustered-in during August–September 1863, for a period of three years or the end of the Indian War. It was mustered out in June 1866 just months short of the three years. It was created solely for the execution of the Indian War and promoted as sweeping the Sioux from the north.
1864 saw the White-earth men of G Company 9th Minn gain recognition as the State's best
skirmishers. ==Successors apparent==