The Dakota War of 1862 was a campaign to remove the Dakota/Lakota people from Minnesota forcing them west. Leading to years of fighting with the expansion westward.

On December 26, 1862, 38 Dakota men were hung in Mankato, MN an event which remains the largest single execution in American history.

US-Dakota War of 1862

"The Dakota War of 1862 was a brief conflict between the Dakota people of Minnesota and settlers. Lasting only five weeks, the conflict had a profound impact on not only the Dakota, but Native Americans across the state. The conflict can be viewed as one of the genocidal efforts to forcibly remove the Dakota from Minnesota, which also included the internment of hundreds of women, children, and elderly on Pike Island below Fort Snelling.

Viewed in a larger historical context, the Dakota War was part of a series of conflicts that have been called the American Indian Wars. These caused, together with starvation and disease, a massive decimation of the Indian population across the United States. Following these repeated attempts to destroy Native American populations, the United States government embarked on a policy of assimilation towards indigenous people into Euro-American society. These policies would remain in effect until well into the second half of the twentieth century. "

Read More here: https://cla.umn.edu/chgs/holocaust-genocide-education/resource-guides/us-dakota-war-1862



Dakota riders return home to Minnesota via horseback, honoring legacy of Dakota 38

"More than 150 people lined both sides of Riverfront Drive in Mankato on Friday morning. They waited to welcome the Dakota riders and runners back onto their homeland. Back onto the very same homeland they were exiled from more than a hundred years ago.

As horses galloped, whinnied and snorted upon arrival, the crowds cheered for their homecoming.
Runners from the Dakota 38 Memorial Run, a 71-mile relay from Fort Snelling in St. Paul to Mankato, also ran through to Reconciliation Park. Then, the riders from Makahto Reconciliation and Healing Ride and the Dakota Exile Ride, each having started in Nebraska and South Dakota, entered via a shutdown Riverfront Drive.

Andrea Eastman, of Lake Traverse Reservation, S.D., is a descendant of Wakinya Na (Little Thunder) — one of the 38 Dakota men hanged in Mankato. Eastman traveled with the riders to honor her ancestors. She said seeing a new generation of Dakota youth riding horses sparks hope.

“It’s a feeling of accomplishment to come back home here, to remember our grandfathers and to ride and to remember them and to be the prayer that they prayed,” Eastman said. “We’re still here. We’re alive today, and for many generations to come.”

The famous horseback rides honor the 38 Dakota men hanged in Mankato on Dec. 26, 1862 —the largest single-day mass execution in U.S. history. President Abraham Lincoln signed the death warrants. The riders traveled more than 300 miles from Santee, Neb. and Lower Brule, S.D. in frigid weather to make it to Reconciliation Park in Mankato, the site of the hangings.

A law that expelled the Dakota people — banning them from returning to their homeland — is still on the books today.

The rides felt a little heavy for some as the national discourse on immigration enforcement cast a pall, especially with news reports of Native people also being detained. Eastman said she took extra steps to be careful, including carrying her state and tribal identification when traveling for the rides.

Eastman said despite feeling scared, she’s still hopeful for a better future. "

Read and See More here about this years ride.

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/12/26/dakota-38-2-riders-return-back-to-mankato-on-horseback