American Indians

Treaty of Traverse des Sioux

The painting of the treaty signing that hangs in the Governor's Reception Room of the Minnesota State Capitol.

Treaty of Traverse des Sioux

Painting by Frank B. Mayer, a witness to the negotiations and signing of the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux, 1885.

The Treaty of Traverse des Sioux

The Treaty of Traverse des Sioux of 1851 is an agreement between the Sisseton and Wahpeton bands of Dakota and the U.S. government. It transferred ownership of much of southern and western Minnesota from the Dakota to the United States. The treaty is significant in Minnesota's history because, along with similar treaties signed that same year, it opened twenty-four million acres of land to immigration. For the Dakota, these treaties marked another step in the process that saw them increasingly marginalized in and dismissed from land that was their home.

Bonga, George (1802-1880)

Fur trader and translator, George Bonga was one of the first black men born in Minnesota. His mother was Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), as were both of his wives. Through these relationships, Bonga was part of the mixed racial and cultural groups that connected trading companies to American Indians in the Minnesota territory and guided white immigrants and traders through the region. Comfortable in many worlds, Bonga often worked as an advocate for the Anishinaabe in their dealings with trading companies and the Minnesota government.