The Department of the Northwest was an U.S. Army Department created September 6, 1862 to put down the Sioux uprising in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. Major General John Pope was made commander of the Department. At the end of the Civil War the Department was redesignated 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 Depa ...

. Immediately upon arriving in St. Paul General Pope sent letters to the Governors of Iowa and Wisconsin for additional troops to assist the

5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment The 5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment was a Minnesota USV infantry regiment that served in the Union Army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. Service On October 23, 1861, Assistant Secretary of War Thomas A. Scott sent corresponde ...

. From Iowa he got the 27th Iowa Infantry Regiment and from Wisconsin he received the

25th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 25th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. During their service, they first participated in the Dakota War of 1862, then spent most of the rest of the war i ...

. Both quickly crossed the border to assist with the uprising. The 25th Wisconsin was in Minnesota three months and the 27th Iowa was there a month before both headed south. After they departed, the Minnesota District would be garrisoned by Minnesota units: 5th,

6th 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second ...

, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th Infantry Regiments,

1st First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

and 2nd Minnesota Cavalry Regiments plus Minnesota Independent Cavalry Battalion (Hatch's Battalion) as well as the 3rd Minnesota Light Artillery Battery. In 1864 companies of the 30th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment would see service in the Minnesota and Dakota Districts too. From November 17, 1862 the Department was divided into four districts for a short time. The First District was composed of Iowa and Dakota Territory, the Second was the vicinity of

Fort Snelling Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint Anth ...

, the Third was the vicinity of Fort Ripley and the Fourth was in the vicinity of

Fort Abercrombie Fort Abercrombie, in North Dakota, was an American fort established by authority of an act of Congress, March 3, 1857. The act allocated twenty-five square miles of land on the Red River of the North in Dakota Territory to be used for a militar ...

. These last three districts were merged into the

District of Minnesota The United States District Court for the District of Minnesota (in case citations, D. Minn.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Minnesota. Its two primary courthouses are in Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Cases are al ...

on November 23, 1862. First District remained until June 1, 1863 when

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of N ...

was merged into the District of Dakota and Iowa into the District of Iowa. Wisconsin was also a District.

Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries ...

, was added to the Department on May 26, 1864. The Department of Northwest, Department of Kansas, and Department of Missouri were combined to form the

Division of Missouri The Department of the Missouri was a command echelon of the United States Army in the 19th century and a sub division of the Military Division of the Missouri that functioned through the Indian Wars. History Background Following the successful ...

on January 30, 1865. On February 17, 1865, Montana and Dakota Territories west of 110 degrees west longitude were also attached with Major General Pope elevated to be commander of the Division. The Department of the Northwest through the remainder of the Civil War consisted of the Districts of Wisconsin (Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Davies), Minnesota (Brig-Gen. Henry H. Sibley) and Iowa (Brig-Gen

Alfred Sully Alfred Sully (May 22, 1820 – April 27, 1879), was a military officer during the American Civil War and during the Indian Wars on the frontier. He was also a noted painter. Biography Sully was the son of the portrait painter, Thomas Sull ...

). The Department of the Northwest was merged with the Department of the Missouri on June 27, 1865. In 1866 most of the Department of the Northwest was organized as the

. The Department's forces comprised the

Sibley and Sully Expeditions of 1863 Sibley may refer to: * Sibley (surname) * Sibley (automobile) Places and landmarks In Canada: * Sibley Peninsula, Ontario (on Lake Superior) In the United States: * Sibley, Illinois * Sibley, Iowa * Sibley, Kansas * Sibley, Louisiana * Si ...

as well as Sully's

Northwest Indian Expeditions The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

of 1864 and 1865. All of these actions were against the Sioux in Dakota Territory.David Stephen Heidler, Jeanne T. Heidler, David J. Coles, ''Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History'', W. W. Norton & Company, New York, 2000, p.590

Commanders

Department of the Northwest

* Maj. Gen. John Pope Sept. 16, 1862 – Nov. 28, 1862 * Brig. Gen. Washington L. Elliott Nov. 28, 1862 – Feb. 18, 1863 * Maj. Gen. John Pope Feb. 13, 1863 – Feb. 18, 1865 * Maj. Gen.

Samuel R. Curtis Samuel Ryan Curtis (February 3, 1805 – December 26, 1866) was an American military officer and one of the first Republicans elected to Congress. He was most famous for his role as a Union Army general in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the ...

Feb. 13, 1865 – June 27, 1865 <

1st District, Department of the Northwest (incl. Iowa and Territory of Dakota)

* Brig-Gen John Cook Nov. 17, 1862 – June 1, 1863

District of Iowa (incl. Territory of Dakota)

* Brig-Gen

June 1, 1863 – April, 1865

2nd District, Department of the Northwest (vicinity of Fort Snelling, Mn)

* Col.

Henry Hastings Sibley Henry Hastings Sibley (February 20, 1811 – February 18, 1891) was a North American fur trade, fur trader with the American Fur Company, the first United States House of Representatives, U.S. Congressional representative for Minnesota Territor ...

Nov. 17, 1862 – Nov. 23, 1862

3rd District, Department of the Northwest (vicinity of Fort Ripley, Mn)

* Lt. Col. Minor T. Thomas Nov. 17, 1862 – Nov. 23, 1862

4th District, Department of the Northwest (vicinity of Fort Abercrombie, Mn)

* Francis Peteler Nov. 17, 1862 – Nov. 23, 1862

District of Minnesota, (consolidated from 2nd, 3rd and 4th Districts)

* Brig-Gen.

Nov. 23, 1862 – August 1866

District of Wisconsin

* Brig. Gen. Thomas C. H. Smith ? - Dec. 1863 * Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Davies ? - ?

Posts in the Department of the Northwest

Wisconsin

* Camp Barstow (1861–1862), Janesville. * Camp Bragg (1861–1862), Oshkosh. * Fort Howard (1861–1863), Green Bay. * Camp Hamilton (1861–1862), Fond du Lac. Renamed Camp Wood (1862). * Camp Harvey (1861–1862),

Kenosha Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenosh ...

. * Camp Holton (1861–1865),

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

. Renamed Camp Reno in 1864. *

Camp Randall Camp Randall was a United States Army base in Madison, Wisconsin, the largest staging point for Wisconsin troops entering the American Civil War. At this camp fresh volunteers received quick training before heading off to join the Union Army. A ...

(1861–1865),

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

. * Camp Scott (1861), Milwaukee. * Camp Sigel (1861), Milwaukee. * Camp Washburn (1861–1865), Milwaukee. * Camp Utley (1861–1862),

Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...

. * Camp Trowbridge (1862), Milwaukee.

Minnesota

Camp Release The Surrender at Camp Release was the final act in the Dakota War of 1862. After the Battle of Wood Lake, Colonel Henry Hastings Sibley had considered pursuing the retreating Sioux, but he realized he did not have the resources for a vigorous pu ...

(1863–1864), near

Montevideo Montevideo () is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . Montevideo is situated on the southern co ...

* Camp Yellow Medicine (1863), near Granite Falls * Fort Pipestone (1863), Pipestone *

Fort Ridgely Fort Ridgely was a frontier United States Army outpost from 1851 to 1867, built 1853–1854 in Minnesota Territory. The Sioux called it Esa Tonka. It was located overlooking the Minnesota river southwest of Fairfax, Minnesota. Half of the ...

(1853–1867), near Fairfax * Fort Ripley (1848–1877), within

Camp Ripley Camp Ripley is a military and civilian training facility operated by the Minnesota National Guard near the city of Little Falls in the central part of the state. The location of the camp was selected in 1929 by Ellard A. Walsh, Adjutant Genera ...

* Fort Sanborn (1862–1863), Georgetown *

(1861–1946),

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

Iowa

* Camp Burnside (1862),

Des Moines Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines ...

* Camp McClellan (1861–1865),

Davenport Davenport may refer to: Places Australia *Davenport, Northern Territory, a locality *Hundred of Davenport, cadastral unit in South Australia **Davenport, South Australia, suburb of Port Augusta ** District Council of Davenport, former local govern ...

. Located on the riverfront at McClellan Park. * Camp Kearny (1863–1865), Davenport It was a prison stockade for Sioux Indians captured after the Sioux Uprising in Minnesota. Located adjacent to Camp McClellan. * Fort Defiance (1862–1864), Estherville * Fort Williams (1862–1865),

Fort Dodge Fort Dodge is a city in, and the county seat of, Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 24,871 in the 2020 census, a decrease from 25,136 in 2000. Fort Dodge is a major commercial center for North Ce ...

Nebraska Territory

* Fort Kearny (1848–1871), near

Kearney, Nebraska Kearney is the county seat of Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 30,787 in the 2010 census. It is home to the University of Nebraska at Kearney. The westward push of the railroad as the Civil War ended gave new birt ...

Dakota Territory

(1857–1878),

Abercrombie, North Dakota Abercrombie is a city in Richland County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 244 at the 2020 census. Abercrombie was founded in 1884. History Abercrombie was founded in 1884. It was named after Fort Abercrombie, a local military in ...

Fort Berthold Fort Berthold was the name of two successive forts on the upper Missouri River in present-day central-northwest North Dakota. Both were initially established as fur trading posts. The second was adapted as a post for the U.S. Army. After the Army l ...

(1862–1874), two sites now under

Lake Sakakawea Lake Sakakawea is a large reservoir in the north central United States, impounded in 1953 by Garrison Dam, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dam located in the Missouri River basin in central North Dakota. Named for the Shoshone-Hidatsa woman Sa ...

, within

Fort Berthold Indian Reservation The Fort Berthold Indian Reservation is a U.S. Indian reservation in western North Dakota that is home for the federally recognized Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, also known as the Three Affiliated Tribes. The reservation includes lands o ...

, North Dakota * Fort Buford (1865–1895),

Buford, North Dakota Buford is an unincorporated community in Williams County, North Dakota, United States. It is the nearest community to the Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site. It is named for the nearby historic Fort Buford at the confluence of the Mi ...

* Fort Benton (1847–1881),

Fort Benton, Montana Fort Benton is a city in and the county seat of Chouteau County, Montana, United States. Established in 1846, Fort Benton is the oldest continuously occupied settlement in Montana. The city's waterfront area, the most important aspect of its 19 ...

* Post on Devils Lake (1863–1864),

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 ...

** Fort Hays (1864) * Fort Pierre (1859–1863),

Fort Pierre, South Dakota Fort Pierre is a city in Stanley County, South Dakota, United States. It is part of the Pierre, South Dakota micropolitan area and the county seat of Stanley County. The population was 2,115 at the 2020 census. The settlement of Fort Pierre d ...

* Fort Randall (1856–1892), (US Army Corps of Engineers – Fort Randall Project) near Pickstown, South Dakota * Fort Rice (1864–1879), at the Fort Rice State Historic Site approximately 30 miles south of

Mandan, North Dakota Mandan is a city on the eastern border of Morton County and the eighth-largest city in North Dakota. Founded in 1879 on the west side of the upper Missouri River, it was designated in 1881 as the county seat of Morton County. The population w ...

* Fort Sisseton (1864–1889), near

Lake City, South Dakota Lake City is a town in Marshall County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 45 at the 2020 census. Fort Sisseton Historic State Park, whose fort is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located nearby. Lake City w ...

* Camp Sully (1863–1864), Heart River Corral State Historic Site near

Richardton, North Dakota Richardton is a city in Stark County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 692 at the 2020 census. Richardton was founded in 1883. It is part of the Dickinson Micropolitan Statistical Area. Richardton is home to Assumption Abbey, ...

* Fort Sully (1863–1866),

Farm Island State Recreation Area A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

near

Pierre, South Dakota Pierre ( ; lkt, Čhúŋkaške, lit=fort) is the capital city of South Dakota, United States, and the seat of Hughes County. The population was 14,091 at the 2020 census, making it the second-least populous US state capital after Montpelier, ...

* Fort Union (1864–65),

Events, skirmishes, and battles

1862

* August 4, Dakota break into food warehouses at the Lower Sioux Agency. * August 17, a band of Dakota killed 5 white civilian settlers in Acton Township, Minnesota. * August 18,

Battle of Lower Sioux Agency The Attack at the Lower Sioux Agency was the first organized attack led by Dakota leader Little Crow in Minnesota on August 18, 1862 and is considered the initial engagement of the Dakota War of 1862. It resulted in 13 settler deaths, with sev ...

and

Battle of Redwood Ferry The Battle of Redwood Ferry took place on August 18, 1862, on the first day of the Dakota War of 1862. Prelude At 10 am on August 18, 1862, word of the attack at the Lower Sioux Agency reached Fort Ridgely. Captain John S. Marsh heard new ...

. * August 19, 1st Battle of New Ulm * August 20 – August 22, Battle of Fort Ridgely * August 23, 2nd Battle of New Ulm * August 30 – September 23, Siege of Fort Abercrombie * September 2,

Battle of Birch Coulee The Battle of Birch Coulee occurred September 2–3, 1862 and resulted in the heaviest casualties suffered by U.S. forces during the Dakota War of 1862. The battle occurred after a group of Dakota warriors followed a U.S. burial expedition, incl ...

* September 6, Department of the Northwest formed, comprising Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and the territories of Dakota and Nebraska with headquarters in

. * September 16, Major General John Pope arrives at

and takes command of the Department. * September 23,

Battle of Wood Lake The Battle of Wood Lake occurred on September 23, 1862, and was the final battle in the Dakota War of 1862. The two-hour battle, which actually took place at nearby Lone Tree Lake, was a decisive victory for the U.S. forces led by Colonel Henry Ha ...

, Little Crow forced to flee to Canada. * September 26, Surrender at Camp Release * September 28 - November 3, Col. Sibley, with questionable authority and jurisdiction, forms a military tribunal to try 393 Dakota prisoners for "murder and other outrages." 323 accused were convicted and 303 sentenced to death. * December 26, 38 Dakota prisoners hanged in

Mankato, Minnesota Mankato ( ) is a city in Blue Earth, Nicollet, and Le Sueur counties in the state of Minnesota. The population was 44,488 according to the 2020 census, making it the 21st-largest city in Minnesota, and the 5th-largest outside of the Minne ...

. President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

personally reversed the sentences for all but these, at least one of whom was a victim of mistaken identity.

1863

* June 16 – September 13, Sibley's Expedition against Indians in Dakota Territory. * July 3, Little Crow was killed near

Hutchinson, Minnesota Hutchinson is the largest city in McLeod County, Minnesota, United States. It lies along the South Fork of the Crow River. The population was 14,599 at the 2020 census. History The Hutchinson Family Singers (John, Asa, and Judson Hutchinson) ...

. * July 24,

Battle of Big Mound The Battle of Big Mound was a United States Army victory in July 1863 over the Santee Sioux Indians allied with some Yankton, Yanktonai and Teton Sioux in Dakota Territory. Background The defeat of Little Crow in the Dakota War of 1 ...

* July 25, Sully's troops arrived at Fort Pierre missing the rendezvous with Sibley at Long Lake. Sully was forced to wait two more weeks for his steamboats, delayed by extreme low water in the Missouri River caused by a drought. * July 26,

Battle of Dead Buffalo Lake The Battle of Dead Buffalo Lake was a skirmish in July 1863 in Dakota Territory between United States army forces and Santee, Yankton, Yanktonai and Teton Sioux. The Sioux attempted to capture the pack train of the army and retired from t ...

* July 28, Battle of Stony Lake * July 31, With no sign of Sully at Long Lake and his horses worn down from the campaign, Sibley decides to abandon the operation and march back to Minnesota. * Mid-August, Sully, loaded the available supplies and 23 days of rations onto borrowed wagons and marched overland toward Devils Lake (North Dakota), Devils Lake. * Late August, Sully's command reached rendezvous site at Long Lake. Sully knowing he had missed Sibley, turned southeast to attack Dakota that had returned to the east side of the Missouri River to hunt buffalo following the departure of Sibley. * September 3–5, Battle of Whitestone Hill. Sioux driven west of the Missouri River.

1864

* June 5 – October 15, Sully's Northwestern Expedition of 1864 against hostile Indians west of the Missouri River. ** June 6–30, 2nd (Wisconsin) Brigade marches 332 miles from Fort Ridgley to join Sully Expedition at Swan Lake. ** July 9–18, Sully Expedition crosses Missouri River at Fort Rice. ** July 28, Battle of Killdeer Mountain ** August 7–9, Battle of the Badlands ** September 2–20, an Idaho bound wagon train led by Captain James L. Fisk holds off attacking Sioux at an improvised Fort Dilts, near Rhame, North Dakota. ** September 20, Fort Dilts relieved by a detachment from Sully's Expedition.

1865

* January 30, Department of the Northwest attached to the Military Division of the Missouri. * March 28, District of the Plains formed, to consisting of the Districts of Utah, Colorado, and Nebraska, with Brig. Gen. Patrick E. Connor, assigned to its command. * Spring, General Sully was ordered to provide one of 4 columns for Gen. Patrick E. Connor's Powder River Expedition. * Late Spring, Santee Sioux raid into Minnesota led by Jack Campbell (Sioux Indian), Jack Campbell killed 5 members of the Jewett family near Mankato, the last civilians killed in the Indian Wars in Minnesota. Campbell, drunk, was soon caught and hung. Santee Scouts working for the Army killed the remainder of the band soon after. Sully's force was diverted to attack hostiles, thought to be the source of the raid, near Devils Lake (North Dakota), Devils Lake. * June 27, Department of the Northwest was merged with the Department of the Missouri. * July 5 – September 13, Sully's Northwestern Expedition of 1865. ** July 13–22, Sully arrives at Fort Rice, negotiates treaties with some the bands he fought with the previous year. ** July 23 – Aug 1, Sully marches from Fort Rice to north of Devils Lake looking for hostile Sioux, believed to have raided Minnesota. ** August 2–8, Finding no hostiles, Sully turns west to Mouse River and then

. ** August 25, Sully returns to Fort Rice, which drives off a Sioux force that had been attacking the Fort. ** September 13, Sully returns to Fort Sully ending the campaign. * November 11, After being kidnapped in Canada and subjected to a summary military trial, Dakotas Shakpe and Medicine Bottle are hanged at

References

{{reflist Iowa in the American Civil War Minnesota in the American Civil War Montana in the American Civil War Pre-statehood history of Montana Nebraska in the American Civil War Pre-statehood history of Nebraska North Dakota in the American Civil War Pre-statehood history of North Dakota South Dakota in the American Civil War Pre-statehood history of South Dakota Wisconsin in the American Civil War Departments and districts of the United States Army, Northwest Military history of Wisconsin Military history of Minnesota Military history of Iowa Military in Nebraska Military in South Dakota Military history of North Dakota Military history of Montana Union Army departments, Northwest, Department of the 1862 establishments in the United States