Hi everyone!
Next week I’m embarking on a short research trip to New Haven, CT to visit the archives at Yale University. I’m going to be researching various manuscript collections, but I’m excited to read through the papers of Alfred Sully. He led US troops against Dakota people after the U.S.-Dakota War in a “punitive expedition” in Dakota Territory. Despite this violence, Sully had married a Dakota woman, frequently drew Dakota in his sketchbook while on campaign, and later became the Superintendent of Indian Affairs in Montana. His story adds more depth and context to the Dakota diaspora after 1862.
For those interested in learning about my dissertation, I study the movement of Dakota people from Minnesota into Canada after the U.S.-Dakota War in 1862. This movement signifies an important moment in U.S., Dakota, and transnational history as the Dakota used and understood the border as a strategic tool. They used it for diplomacy, trade, kinship, warfare, survival, and belonging. After the Dakota War, however, they used the border as a protective barrier from the relentless pursuit of the U.S. Army seeking vengeance. The British Canadians recognized the Dakota as refugees and offered food, supplies, and protection. This dissertation focuses on that experience. This research trip, moreover, helps contextualize the broader movement of the Dakota after the Dakota War as thousands went west into Dakota Territory (North and South Dakota, today) or other places in the Midwest and Northern Great Plains.
If you’d like to support this research excursion consider “buying me a coffee.” Thanks for the support and I can’t wait to let everyone know how the trip pans out next week!
John 