Immigration | Page 53

Treaty of Traverse des Sioux, 1851

The Treaty of Traverse des Sioux (1851) between the Sisseton and Wahpeton bands of Dakota and the US government transferred ownership of much of southeastern Minnesota Territory to the United States. Along with the Treaty of Mendota, signed that same year, it opened twenty-four million acres of land to settler-colonists. For the Dakota, these treaties marked another step in a process that increasingly marginalized them and dismissed them from the land that had been—and remains—their home.

Chinese Bazaar at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis

Chinese Bazaar at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis, c.1935. Chinese Minnesotans like Woo Yee Sing and his wife Liang May Seen were prominently involved with Westminster's Chinese outreach programs.

Yee Sing Woo standing in front of Yee Sing Laundry, 1319 Nicollet, Minneapolis

Yee Sing Woo, husband of Liang May Seen, standing in front of Yee Sing Laundry, 1319 Nicollet, Minneapolis, c.1895.

Wedding portrait of Woo Yee Sing and Liang May Seen

Wedding portrait of Woo Yee Sing and Liang May Seen. Photograph by George M. Dempsie, c.1893.

Liang May Seen and Woo Yee Sing while on their honeymoon at the Columbia Exposition in Chicago, Illinois.

Liang May Seen and Woo Yee Sing while on their honeymoon at the Columbia Exposition in Chicago, Illinois. 1893.

Liang May Seen with her son, Howard

Liang May Seen with her son, Howard. Photograph by George M. Dempsie, c.1910.

Liang May Seen (c.1871–1946)

Liang May Seen was the first woman of Chinese descent to live in Minnesota. After escaping from a brothel in San Francisco, Liang learned English, married, and moved to Minneapolis, where she was a leader in the Chinese immigrant community until her death in 1946.

John Keller’s Room, 1905

Photograph of John Keller’s room by St. Paul Dispatch photographer, published on April 13, 1905. This is where William Williams shot and killed Keller and his mother on April 12. Image reproduced from microfilm at the Minnesota Historical Society with permission from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

William Williams

Photograph of William Williams. Photo taken by a St. Paul Dispatch photographer in the county jail on April 13, 1905. Image reproduced from microfilm at the Minnesota Historical Society with permission from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Bird's-eye view of Vasa

Bird's-eye view of Vasa (Goodhue County), the first Swedish colony in Minnesota. Postcard c.1900.

Gale Family Library