The descendants of those who were killed in the Dakota War of 1862 are a minority group in Minnesota and the USA. As a minority group we should have the same sympathy from the Governor as any other minority group he expresses concern and empathy for. And the Minnesota Historical Society should reflect this same interest and exposure in exhibits and programming as they do for the Dakota, Hmong, Hispanic and descendants of Japanese Internment Camp descendants among others.
You can help by contacting Governor Walz at his website https://mn.gov/governor/contact/
and the Minnesota Historical Society at https://www.mnhs.org/contact
Both have Facebook pages.
Who are We? Family and Friends of Dakota Uprising Victims became involved with honoring our ancestors by first dedicating a memorial for the Birch Coulie victims at the Renville County Historical Society on August 18, 2012. There were 175 people who attended that gathering.
We are now a settler advocate group for our ancestors who settled not only in Renville County but across the State of Minnesota. Our grass roots group now has nearly 150 descendants from across Minnesota and beyond, and our followers include not only descendants, but also historians and friends who have interest in the U.S.-Dakota War.
Family and Friends does not treat the word “victims” lightly. In our case, it applies to any who were killed, injured, taken captive, had escaped, had lost property, those who fought and any who had their lives impacted during the U.S.-Dakota War and after. This website is intended to be a clearing-house for collecting and disseminating stories, photographs, and lists that are pertinent to the war and its aftermath and are submitted to us by the descendants of any victims.
Our volunteers provided research, funding and outreach for the three interpretive panels that are now dedicated on the grounds of the Renville County Historical Society.
Our companion Facebook page (found by googling Family and Friends of Dakota Uprising Victims) is visited by over 450 people per week, and over 230 people have stated they “liked” its content. We continue to post new items of interest about the U.S.-Dakota War on the FB page and our website and welcome your comments, photographs and stories.
Both of our books on Renville County have sold out but website visitors can now read them here. See the tabs above on the navigation pane. Plus we have also included the Tour Guide on the tab 2014 Commemoration Recap. This booklet was used for the historic motorcade tour on August 23, 2014. In it you will find brief histories of historic sites plus maps that show the location of the known homesteads of the settlers.
We would like to hear from you if you have suggestions or additions to our website. Our mantra remains: To give voice to those Dakota War victims by sharing their stories.
Email Addresses:
Jan Kein (click name to send email)
Webmaster Joyce Kloncz (click name to send email)
To return to this Home Page from any of the pages above, click on the site title on the top of the page.
