The Spirit Lake Tribe (in
Santee
Santee may refer to:
People
* Santee Dakota, a subgroup of the Dakota people, of the U.S. Great Plains
* Santee (South Carolina), a Native American people of South Carolina
Places
* Lake Santee, Indiana, a reservoir and census-designated place
* ...
Dakota
Dakota may refer to:
* Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux
** Dakota language, their language
Dakota may also refer to:
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* Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community
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* Dakota, Minnesota, a ...
: ''Mniwakaƞ Oyate'', also spelt as ''Mni Wakan Oyate'', formerly known as Devils Lake
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 ...
Tribe) is a federally recognized tribe based on the Spirit Lake Dakota
Reservation located in east-central
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
on the southern shores of
Devils Lake. It is made up of people of the Pabaksa (''Iháŋkthuŋwaŋna''), Sisseton (''Sisíthuŋwaŋ'') and Wahpeton (''Waȟpéthuŋwaŋ'') bands of the
Dakota tribe.
Established in 1867 in a treaty between Sisseton-Wahpeton Bands and the United States government, the reservation, at , consists of of land area, primarily in
Benson Benson may refer to:
Animals
*Benson (fish), largest common carp caught in Britain
Places Geography
Canada
*Rural Municipality of Benson No. 35, Saskatchewan; rural municipality
*Benson, Saskatchewan; hamlet
United Kingdom
* Benson, Oxfordshire ...
and
Eddy
Eddie or Eddy may refer to:
Science and technology
*Eddy (fluid dynamics), the swirling of a fluid and the reverse current created when the fluid flows past an obstacle
* Eddie (text editor), a text editor originally for BeOS and now ported to Lin ...
counties. Smaller areas extend into
Ramsey
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,
Wells
Wells most commonly refers to:
* Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England
* Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground
* Wells (name)
Wells may also refer to:
Places Canada
*Wells, British Columbia
England
* Wells ...
and
Nelson
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
counties.
According to the tribal enrollment office in 2014, the tribe had 7,256 enrolled members.
At the time of the
U.S. 2010 census, 3,587 members out of a total of 4,238 people (including non-tribal members) were residing on the reservation. The unemployment rate was 47.3% in 2000. The largest community on the reservation is
Fort Totten.
Naming
Their name was originally the Devils Lake Sioux Tribe and its reservation was originally called the Fort Totten Indian Reservation. In the 1970s, the tribe was briefly renamed the Sisseton-Wahpeton of North Dakota, which caused confusion with the Sisseton-Wahpeton of South Dakota,
whose reservation also extends into North Dakota.
In 1993, the current name of the tribe and reservation was officially adopted.
The name "Devils Lake" is a
calque
In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language wh ...
of the Dakota words ''mni'' (water) ''wak’áŋ'' (literally "pure source", also translated as "spirit" or "sacred").
The Dakota consider it holy because they believe it is the home of the underwater serpent
Unktehi
In Lakota mythology, Unk Cekula (uŋȟčéǧila or uŋkčéǧila) is a serpentoid creature which was responsible for many unexplained disappearances and deaths. Her male counterpart is known as ''Unk Tehi''.
Description
She was described at first ...
.
The Dakota name is reflected in the name of the Spirit Lake Tribe and the nearby town of
Minnewaukan.
European-American settlers misconstrued this name to mean "Bad Spirit Lake", or "Devils Lake".
The "bad" referred to the high
salinity
Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensionless and equal ...
of the lake, making it unfit to drink, and "spirit" meant the
mirage
A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', meanin ...
s often seen across the water.
The Christian concept of the
devil
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...
is not present in Dakota philosophy.
Environment
![FEMA - 41462 - Flooding in Devil's Lake Basin, North Dakota](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/FEMA_-_41462_-_Flooding_in_Devil%27s_Lake_Basin%2C_North_Dakota.jpg)
The reservation of the tribe is located on the southern shore of Devil's Lake, which has been historically the territory of the Dakota people. The Sisseton, Wahpeton, and Cut-Head bands of Dakotas were relocated to the Spirit Lake Reservation as a result of the 1867 treaty with the United States that established a reservation for Dakotas who had not been forcibly relocated to Crow Creek Reservation in what is now called South Dakota.
Because Devil's Lake is a closed-basin watershed, the reservation has suffered increasingly frequent episodes of flooding since the 1990s.
It has lost homes, land and economic opportunities due to the severity of this problem.
Tribal chairperson, Myra Pearson, appealed in the 21st century to President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
and his White House for assistance. Since then tribal representatives have engaged with a multi-agency task force led by
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
officials to develop a recovery plan.
It was published in 2010 and includes economic and cultural development goals in addition to strategies to combat the flooding.
Government
Historical
![SpiritLakeRes1892](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/SpiritLakeRes1892.png)
Prior to the
reservation era, Dakota tribal societies were without social classes and government was democratic and highly decentralized.
An individual's status was based on their ability to serve and perform and leaders existed to serve the will of the people.
Fraternal societies
A fraternity or fraternal organization is an organized society of men associated together in an environment of companionship and brotherhood; dedicated to the intellectual, physical, and social development of its members.
Service clubs, lineage ...
played a role in maintaining a government structure known as the council and prior to the reservation era, no single person was in charge of decision-making.
Following the
Dakota War of 1862
The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several ban ...
, many long lines of hereditary leadership ceased to exist as several bands of Sisseton and Wahpeton were forced to flee Minnesota into various locations throughout the Dakotas.
Other leaders were killed, deposed or replaced by those chosen by the United States government to act as spokesperson. The U.S. government and the Sisseton and Wahpeton bands of Dakota signed a treaty in 1867 that established the Fort Totten Reservation.
The name was later changed to the Devils Lake Sioux Reservation.
In 1996, the Spirit Lake Tribe changed the name to a more correct translation of Mni Wakan.
Historical leadership
![Chief Waanatan II](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Chief_Waanatan_II.jpg)
*
Standing Buffalo 1833–1864.
Standing Buffalo was born about 1833 near the headwaters of the
Minnesota River
The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa.
It ris ...
. His father was Wichahpihiteton (Star Face), the leader of a Sisseton band. During the Dakota War of 1862, Standing Buffalo opposed the fighting. He died in a battle with the
Gros Ventre
The Gros Ventre ( , ; meaning "big belly"), also known as the Aaniiih, A'aninin, Haaninin, Atsina, and White Clay, are a historically Algonquian-speaking Native American tribe located in north central Montana. Today the Gros Ventre people are ...
and
Assiniboine
The Assiniboine or Assiniboin people ( when singular, Assiniboines / Assiniboins when plural; Ojibwe: ''Asiniibwaan'', "stone Sioux"; also in plural Assiniboine or Assiniboin), also known as the Hohe and known by the endonym Nakota (or Nakoda ...
on June 5, 1871.
*
Gabriel Renville
Gabriel Renville (April 1825 – August 26, 1892), also known as Ti'wakan (Sacred Lodge), was Chief of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Sioux Tribe from 1866 until his death in 1892. He opposed conflict with the United States during the Dakota War ...
(Ti'wakan) 1880–1890.
When the Dakota War of 1862 began, Renville helped to organize a soldier's lodge that opposed the fighting. Renville was not a hereditary leader but was appointed leader by the American government after serving as a scout for three years. He helped organize the new Sisseton reservation after signing the treaty of 1867. He served as chief of the Sisseton and Wahpeton on the Spirit Lake reservation throughout the 1880s and 1890s.
*
Sipto
Proxy Mobile IPv6 (or PMIPv6, or PMIP) is a network-based mobility management protocol standardized by IETF and is specified in RFC 5213. It is a protocol for building a common and access technology independent of mobile core networks, accommodati ...
(Bead) 1834–1921.
Sipto was a hereditary chief of the Abdowapusikiya (Back Drying) Band of the Sisseton. His father, Hoksinawasteka (Goodboy, 1805–1890) was the son of Standing Buffalo and related to
Wanata
Wa-na-ta (Dakota: Wánataŋ which translates as ''One who charges'', or ''Charger'') or Waneta was a chief of the Yanktonai, a tribe of the Dakota. Chief Wa-na-ta, also known as Wanata and Wanataan I, was born around 1795. The Yanktonai were lo ...
an. When Standing Buffalo died, Hoksinawaste was next in line to be chief, but stepped aside for Sipto. He was baptized Adam Sipto and was the last chief on the reservation. He is buried in St. Michael Cemetery.
*
Cantemaza (Ironheart) 1822–1896.
Hereditary leader of the Wahpeton, his father was
Mahpiya Wicasta (Cloudman). He was elected Elder of the Wood Lake Presbyterian Church in 1883 using the name Adam Ignatius Ironheart. He was able to locate his war-scattered extended family and moved back to the old reservation at Granite Falls, Minnesota to reunite with them in 1885.
*
Wanataan II 1828–1897.
Waanatan II was born in 1828 to a Sisseton mother who was related to Standing Buffalo. He is buried in St. Michael Cemetery.
*
Tiowaste (Good House) 1825–1919.
Tiowaste was not a hereditary leader but was appointed leader by the American government on May 23, 1868. His mother was related to Standing Buffalo and his father was French.
Contemporary
![NORTH DAKOTA 2010 -SPIRIT LAKE INDIAN TRIBE LICENSE PLATE - Flickr - woody1778a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/NORTH_DAKOTA_2010_-SPIRIT_LAKE_INDIAN_TRIBE_LICENSE_PLATE_-_Flickr_-_woody1778a.jpg)
The tribe has a written constitution and an elected government, with a chairman and tribal council. In 1944, the tribe submitted its constitution for ratification and was approved by the
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...
and the tribal headquarters is at Fort Totten.
The current chairperson is Doug Yankton, whose term began in 2020.
Contemporary leadership
*Charlie Black Bird (1894-1968). Served from 1946 to 1957.
*Jerome Abraham (1905-1978).
*Ernest Smith (1912-1961). Served from 1955 to 1957.
*Louis Goodhouse, served from 1957 to 1972. Grandson of Tiowaste.
*Claude "Red Hail" Longie, served from 1971 to 1972.
*Evelyn Young, born 1931. Served from 1972 to 1973.
*Carl Mckay, born 1948. Served from 1974 to 1981, 1985–1990. Descendant of Tiowaste.
*Paul Little, (1930-1996). Served from 1981 to 1982.
*Dan Duboise, born 1921. Served from 1980 to 1982.
*Ila Rae Mckay (Hintunkasan Wastewin, Pretty Weasel Woman), born 1959. Served from 1990 to 1991. Descendant of Tiowaste.
*Peter Belgarde, born 1994. Served 1991–1995.
*Skip Longie, served 2000–2004.
*Roger Yankton Sr., served 2012–2013.
*Russ McDonald, served 2014.
*Myra Pearson, served 1996–1999, 2005–2011, 2015–2019.
*Peggy Cavanaugh, served 2019–2020.
*Douglas Yankton, served 2020–present.
Child welfare
Beginning in 2012, tribal and federal authorities focused on reducing
child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...
, which was identified as endemic on the reservation. For years both tribal and federal law enforcement officials had failed to prosecute such crimes. The reservation residents include a high number of registered sex offenders, some of whom have responsibility for children. Officials suggest that poverty and alcohol abuse have contributed to the problems.
''Kind Hearted Woman'' (2013) is a PBS
''Frontline'' documentary about Robin Poor Bear, a woman on the Spirit Lake Reservation, and the severe problems of sexual abuse and violence there.
On October 1, 2012, the
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...
(BIA) took over the tribe's social services program to strengthen protection of children.
It investigated 100 reported cases of such abuse in the first month. In February 2013, the two North Dakota senators and a representative met with tribal officials and members at a town hall meeting at Spirit Lake to discuss reforms underway, including fingerprinting of all adults living with foster children (a requirement that had not been satisfied before).
Because of listening sessions on the reservation, the Administration for Children and Families (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) developed seven priority recommendations to be addressed by child welfare stakeholders at the Spirit Lake Reservation. Included was a recommendation for the Spirit Lake Tribal Social Services Agency and BIA to jointly develop policies and procedures that encompass all aspects of child welfare services including that foster homes must comply with federal and state safety checks, including background checks on all adults residing in the home. As a result of the exposure of crimes against children on the reservation, the Native American Children's Safety Act enacted in 2016 amends the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act to further ensure children's safety by requiring Indian Tribes to conduct background checks before placing children in foster care.
In February 2019 it was announced that the tribe had successfully completed steps to regain full control of the tribal child welfare program. Chairwoman Myra Pearson said, "The transition has been a work in progress but tribal leaders, employees and the community are determined to protect the children." She also said it was vitally important for the tribe regain control because children were placed outside of the community while the program was controlled by the BIA; in order for the children to maintain cultural ties, they need to be immersed in their culture. The tribe is encouraging community members to study social work at Cankdeska Cikana Community College and they are also working with outside organizations such as the Annie E. Casey Foundation to establish relationships with specialists in the field.
Communities
Fort Totten is the reservation's economic and government center. The tribal administration, tribal college and Spirit Lake Consulting offices are located in the community. The tribe's Vocational Rehabilitation program works to assist tribal members in finding employment.
*Crow Hill District, Crow Hill, North Dakota
*Fort Totten District, Fort Totten, North Dakota
Fort Totten is a census-designated place (CDP) in Benson County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 1,243 at the 2010 census. Fort Totten is located within the Spirit Lake Reservation and is the site of tribal headquarters. The reser ...
*Mission District, St. Michael, North Dakota
*Woodlake District, Tokio, North Dakota
The historic village of Cantemaza's Wahpeton bands was located north of Warwick, ND, near the edge of East Devils Lake. The villages of Tiowaste and Waanatan's Sisituwan bands were located at present-day St. Michael. Historically the village of Matocatka (Left Bear)'s Wahpeton bands was at Woodlake and Wahacankaduta (Scarlet Shield)'s Pabaksa (Ihanktonwan) bands was located at Crow Hill.
Economy
The Sioux Manufacturing Corporation, a manufacturer of composite armed armors, is located on the reservation. It is 100% owned by the tribe and is one of the oldest tribal-owned businesses in the country. It opened in 1973 and by 1989, the tribe had purchased the last remaining shares of the company owned by the Brunswick Corporation, thereby gaining full ownership. Currently, 75% of the workforce is Native American and their products are created for the United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...
out of their 250,000 square foot manufacturing facility.
Additional visitor attractions at the reservation are the White Horse Hill National Game Preserve
White Horse Hill National Game Preserve (Dakota language, Dakota: , formerly known as Sullys Hill National Game Preserve) is a National Wildlife Refuge and nature center located on the shore of Devils Lake (North Dakota), Devils Lake in Benson Co ...
and the Fort Totten State Historic Site, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. The Spirit Lake Tribe operates Cankdeska Cikana Community College
Cankdeska Cikana Community College is a public tribal land-grant community college in Fort Totten, North Dakota, on the Spirit Lake Reservation. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The college is named after Paul "Little ...
, a tribal college
In the United States, tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are a category of higher education, minority-serving institutions defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965. Each qualifies for funding under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Un ...
established in the 1970s. The two-year college provides classes in subject areas needed by the reservation and to prepare students for other jobs, as well as strengthening their Dakota culture and language.
Spirit Lake Casino and Resort
Since the late 20th century, the tribe has operated various gaming facilities on its reservation to generate revenues for the welfare of its people. The first casino opened in St. Michael, North Dakota with the passage of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (, ''et seq.'') is a 1988 United States federal law that establishes the jurisdictional framework that governs Indian gaming. There was no federal gaming structure before this act. The stated purposes of the act ...
in 1988 when the tribe signed an agreement with the Governor of North Dakota. The first facility initially employed 35 individuals, most of whom were tribal members. Later, in 1994, the tribe renovated a gymnasium and added a second casino in Tokio, ND. This development created employment for 191 people. The tribe had closed both of those two smaller casinos in 1996 and on June 1, 1996, after a $7 million investment opened the new 49,000 square foot casino at its present location. The radio station KABU 90.7 serves the Spirit Lake tribe.
The present Spirit Lake Casino and Resort is owned and operated by the tribe and is located in St. Michaels, North Dakota. The casino has brought new sources of income and helped to stabilize the tribal economy employing over 300 people with 75% being Native American. It is a multi-story facility comprising 82,000 square feet of Gaming & Entertainment Floor and 112,300 square feet of Resort and Hotel on a remote island connected by a 2-lane highway off of Mission Bay, North Dakota. After numerous renovations since its opening, it now has almost 150 hotel rooms, a 1,000-seat auditorium, a banquet hall, RV park, gift shop and a four-story aquatic center. In 2011 more job opportunities were added when the Spirit Lake Marina and Spirit Lake Grocery store were added to the grounds of the casino. The marina hosts a fishing tournament every summer.
References
Notes
Sources
Spirit Lake Nation
Fact Finder
Spirit Lake Reservation, North Dakota
United States Census Bureau
External links
Spirit Lake Nation
official website
Spirit Lake Casino
official website
{{authority control
Dakota
Federally recognized tribes in the United States
American Indian reservations in North Dakota
Native American tribes in North Dakota