Fort Bennett was originally called the Post at

Cheyenne River Agency The Cheyenne River Indian Reservation was created by the United States in 1889 by breaking up the Great Sioux Reservation, following the attrition of the Lakota in a series of wars in the 1870s. The reservation covers almost all of Dewey ...

and was established during the

Indian wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...

in the

Department of Dakota A subdivision of the Division of the Missouri, the Department of Dakota was established by the United States Army on August 11, 1866, to encompass all military activities and forts within Minnesota, Dakota Territory and Montana Territory. The Depar ...

by the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

to control the

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

History

Cheyenne River Agency was established in 1869, following conclusion of the Fort Laramie Treaty, as agency for the Two Kettle, Sans Arc and Miniconjou Sioux. On May 17, 1870, Companies B and C of the

17th U.S. Infantry The 17th Infantry Regiment is a United States Army infantry regiment. An earlier regiment designated the 17th Infantry Regiment was organized on 11 January 1812, but it was consolidated with four other regiments as the 3rd Infantry in the post ...

, under command of Captain

Edward P. Pearson Edward Pennington Pearson Jr. was an American brigadier general who served in the American Civil War and the Spanish–American War. He commanded the XI Corps and the 2nd Brigade of the V Corps respectively as well as having an extensive militar ...

, officially established the "Post at Cheyenne River Agency." It was built next to the agency 7 miles above Fort Sully to afford military protection.''Soldier and Brave: Indian and Military Affairs in the Trans-Mississippi West, Including a Guide to Historic Sites and Landmarks'', United States. National Park Service, Harper & Row, 1963. Some of the Cheyenne River Indians fought in the

Great Sioux War of 1876-77 The Great Sioux War of 1876, also known as the Black Hills War, was a series of battles and negotiations that occurred in 1876 and 1877 in an alliance of Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne against the United States. The cause of the war was the ...

and, after the surrender, were returned to the agency. On December 30, 1878, the name was changed by General Orders No. 9,

Division of the Missouri The Military Division of the Missouri was an administrative formation of the United States Army that functioned through the end of the American Civil War and the Indian Wars that continued after its conclusion. It was created by the War Departmen ...

, to Fort Bennett in honor of Capt. Andrew S. Bennett of the 5th Infantry who was killed September 4, 1878, near Clark's Fork, Montana Territory, in a battle with the

Bannock Indians The Bannock tribe were originally Northern Paiute but are more culturally affiliated with the Northern Shoshone. They are in the Great Basin classification of Indigenous People. Their traditional lands include northern Nevada, southeastern Oreg ...

.''South Dakota historical collections'', Volume 27, South Dakota State Historical Society, South Dakota State Dept. of History, 1954. Fort Bennett was also a focal point of trouble during the Ghost Dance uprising of 1890. In 1891, the Great Sioux Reservation having been reduced and divided, after the ratification, of the treaty of 1889, the fort was abandoned and the Cheyenne River Agency was moved fifty-six miles up the Missouri River, opposite Forest City, Potter County, South Dakota, where administered the affairs of these Indians. As a result of the construction of Oahe Dam, the agency was later moved to

Eagle Butte, South Dakota Eagle Butte is a city in Dewey and Ziebach counties in South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,258 at the 2020 census. Description Eagle Butte is the tribal headquarters of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe on the Cheyenne River Indian ...

Description

Fort Bennett was located on the Missouri river, 7 miles above Fort Sully, Dakota, 302 miles from Sioux City, Iowa, by wagon road, and about 500 miles by river. Yankton, Dakota, 237 miles distant by land and 315 by river. Nearest postoffice and telegraph at Fort Sully. The military buildings consist of quarters for two companies, with necessary outbuildings, officers' quarters, hospital, guard house, block houses, two; storehouses, three, capacity inadequate; bake house, stable, workshops, laundress' quarters, etc. All the buildings are constructed of cottonwood logs, with the exception of a frame storehouse. Quartermaster's and subsistence stores furnished from the depots at Sioux City, Iowa; Yankton, Dakota; Chicago, Ill., and Jeffersonville, Ind., by rail to Sioux City, thence by Missouri river. Hay contracted for in the vicinity. Wood supplied by contract. Water supplied from the Missouri river by means of wagons. Twelve months' subsistence kept on hand. The Indians at this agency were the Minneconjou, Sans Arc and Two Kettle tribes of Sioux. About 1,500 were at the agency and its vicinity, and not more than this number are considered permanent residents. The number present has varied from 1,500 to 7,000, the latter number being at the agency during part of 1869 and 1870. The majority of the Indians belonging here are constantly coming and going and associate with roving hostile bands. The disposition of the Indians at the agency who receive rations all the year round, or nearly so, is good, with the exception of the young men, who are not reliable.''South Dakota historical collections'', Volume 8, South Dakota State Historical Society, South Dakota Dept. of History, 1916. Old Blacksmith Shop Pierre vicinity SD

Notes

References

* Anderson, Harry H., ''A history of the Cheyenne River Indian agency and its military post, Fort Bennett, 1868-1891'', University of South Dakota, 1954

External links

Quarters of Company "E" 11th Infantry Fort Bennett, D.T

Fort bennett

{{coord, 44, 40, 18, N, 100, 38, 26, W, display=title

Bennett Bennett may refer to: People *Bennett (name), including a list of people with the surname and given name Places Canada * Bennett, Alberta *Bennett, British Columbia * Bennett Lake, in the British Columbia and Yukon Territory **Bennett Range **Benn ...

Buildings and structures in Stanley County, South Dakota Pre-statehood history of South Dakota Forts along the Missouri River 1870 establishments in Dakota Territory

History

Description

See also

Notes

References

External links