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Post by Curtis Kitto "MIKE" on Jan 15, 2007 17:14:01 GMT -5
I am a lineal descendant of 2 strong MDEWAKANTON Great-Great Grandmothers who held their families together, and survived the death camp at Crow Creek, South Dakota.
My Mdewakanton Great-Great Grandmothers and one Great Grandmother were incarcerated in the Fort Snelling Concentation Camp and they were "forcibly removed" to the death camp at Crow Creek, South Dakota.
All three Grandmothers survived the brutal experience and were relocated to the area near the mouth of the Bazile Creek, in Nebraska. Later, one Great-Great Grandmother was allotted land in Santee, Nebraska where she and her daughter (my Great-Grandmother) lived and the remaining Great-Great Grandmother lived with her husband on his allotment near Center, Nebraska.
Nowhere in this story did my ancestors claim to be "Santee." My Great-Great Grandfather Mazaadidi claimed in his obituary, "I am Mdewakanton." (He escaped a death sentence and spent 3 years in Camp McCellan Federal Prison for being Mdewakanton.)
Only the Federal Government changed our Tribal name, I do not believe that even one of the people who were removed from Minnesota ever changed the name of their Tribal affiliation.
My Tribe was stuck with the name SANTEE Sioux, but not by choice.
MIKE
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Post by jazzdog on Jan 15, 2007 17:45:53 GMT -5
Thank you Wanbligi and Mike for your insight and words.
I too believe that our human existence and lives are much like a woven blanket of fabric, with our individual blood lines as the very thread that holds the fabric of our lives together, through the cold and desperate winds of a hostile and brutal past, to the warmth and comforting caress of our grandmothers' loving hugs........we are who we are despite the name tag placed on the sacred blanket of who we are. keep up the good work.
Jazzdog
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Post by Jimmy on Jan 15, 2007 23:13:41 GMT -5
It's strange that Buttes makes a distinction between Santee and Mdewkanton. Historically speaking, the word Santee was used to refer to all of the bands of the Eastern Sioux, comprising the Mdewakanton, Sisseton, Wahpekute, and Wahpeton bands. We are all the same people. Moving a few hundred miles does not change your heritage.
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Post by tamara on Jan 16, 2007 0:57:35 GMT -5
One must realize that those Dakota at Ft. Snelling after the decision was made by U.S. were forced to remove to Fort Thompson by boat in 1863. They were put on the boat by the military and some died along the way towards Ft. Thompson. If they were Mdewakanton when they left Minnesota at gun point they were Mdewakanton when they arrived at Ft. Thompson. As time progressed these Mdewakanton lived and died in their new and different surroundings at Ft. Thompson. Maybe not all Mdewakanton were removed to the encampment at Ft. Snelling and like you say may have eluded captivity by hiding from bounty hunters, U.S. military, Indian scouts, etc. I can only imagine and not fully as to how the Mdewakanton were treated or mistreated after the so called 1862 uprising. There were reasons for the 1862 rebellion and a major one was the U.S. delaying annuity payments and food distribution as promised through Treaty. In my opinion and that is what it is, my opinion, The MDEWAKANTON were forcefully removed from Minnesota in 1863 and they remained Mdewakanton when they arrived at their new U.S. ordered location. Thanks. This is wanbligi on Jan 15, 2007. In the 1902 Court of Claims sisseton vs united states, the attorney for the sioux makes the same point about the circumstances leading up to the events of 62, I will see if I can find the part I read. I know I transcribed it somewhere. Tamara
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Post by tokakte on Jan 16, 2007 11:01:27 GMT -5
One story worth sharing tells of the first Vine Deloria who was originally from Crow Creek in the late (1880's on) nineteenth century. The first "Vine" left Crow Creek to attend the Episcopal training school and to become one of the first, if not THE first, ordained Native American Episcopal priests. He was Yanktonaise, "N" people. When he had finished seminary his first posting was to St. Elizabeth's Mission at Wakpala, on the Standing Rock reservation in N. Dak. He got the shock of his life when he got to Wakpala and found that the federal government had moved his family and most of the Yanktonaise community from Crow Creek to Standing Rock. Inadervtently, he was posted to the same community he left to attend school. My source is Sam Deloria, his grandson.
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Post by BIG JON on Jan 16, 2007 13:34:37 GMT -5
VINE DELORIA JR. WAS MY PASTOR WHEN I WAS A KID IN FT THOMPSON...MY MA, DELLA LYTLE WAS THE BEST OF FRIENDS WITH HIM...HE FREQUENTLY CAME TO OUR HOUSE AFTER CHURCH AND WE HAD PICNICS, PRAYER GROUPS, AND GET TOGETHERS...I THINK HE MIGHT HAVE EVEN BAPTISED ME...
BIG JON
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