Fort Snelling, Minnesota
Encyclopedia
Fort Snelling, originally known as Fort Saint Anthony, was a military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...

 fortification
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...

 located at the confluence
Confluence (geography)
In geography, a confluence is the meeting of two or more bodies of water. It usually refers to the point where two streams flow together, merging into a single stream...

 of the Minnesota River
Minnesota River
The Minnesota River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of nearly , in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa....

 and Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 in Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota, named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. As of 2010 the population was 1,152,425. Its county seat is Minneapolis. It is by far the most populous county in Minnesota; more than one in five Minnesotans live...

. Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area protects a and corridor along the Mississippi River from the cities of Dayton and Ramsey, Minnesota to just downstream of Hastings, Minnesota. This includes the stretch of Mississippi River which flows through Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota...

, a National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...

 unit, includes historic Fort Snelling.

Fort Snelling also refers to an unorganized territory
Unorganized territory
An unorganized territory is a region of land without a "normally" constituted system of government. This does not mean that the territory has no government at all or that it is unclaimed territory...

 in Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota, named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. As of 2010 the population was 1,152,425. Its county seat is Minneapolis. It is by far the most populous county in Minnesota; more than one in five Minnesotans live...

, containing the former fortification. The Census in 2000 enumerated a total population of 442.

The Minnesota Historical Society
Minnesota Historical Society
The Minnesota Historical Society is a private, non-profit educational and cultural institution dedicated to preserving the history of the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was founded by the territorial legislature in 1849, almost a decade before statehood. The Society is named in the Minnesota...

 now runs the fort, located atop a bluff along the river. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is the agency of the U.S. state of Minnesota charged with conserving and managing the state's natural resources. The agency maintains areas such as state parks, state forests, recreational trails, and recreation areas as well as managing minerals,...

 runs Fort Snelling State Park
Fort Snelling State Park
Fort Snelling State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers. Its most notable feature is the historic Fort Snelling, which dates from 1820. The fort itself is operated by the Minnesota Historical Society and requires a separate entrance fee...

, protecting the land at the bottom of the bluff. Fort Snelling once encompassed both parcels.

Origins

Lieutenant Zebulon Pike
Zebulon Pike
Zebulon Montgomery Pike Jr. was an American officer and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado is named. As a United States Army captain in 1806-1807, he led the Pike Expedition to explore and document the southern portion of the Louisiana Purchase and to find the headwaters of the Red River,...

 in 1805 acquired Pike's Purchase, 100,000 acres (400 km²) of land in the area. Significant settlement began in the late 1810s. Following the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

, the federal War Department built a chain of forts and installed Indian agents between Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 and the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...

. These forts primarily protected the northwestern territories from Canadian and British encroachment. The Army founded Fort Saint Anthony in 1819.

Colonel Josiah Snelling
Josiah Snelling
Colonel Josiah Snelling was the first commander of Fort Snelling, a fort located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers in Minnesota. He was responsible for the initial design and construction of the fort, and he commanded it from 1820 through 1827. He had a reputation for...

 commanded the 5th Infantry Regiment (United States)
5th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 5th Infantry Regiment is the third-oldest infantry regiment of the United States Army, tracing its origins to 1808...

. Its soldiers constructed the original Fort Saint Anthony from 1820 to 1824. During construction, most soldiers lived at Camp Coldwater
Camp Coldwater
Camp Coldwater is an area of several springs that are important to Native Americans, as well as an early European settlement in the state of Minnesota, USA. Camp Coldwater is located adjacent to the Mississippi River in south Minneapolis, directly south of Minnehaha Park.The camp was explored by...

, which provided drinking water to the fort throughout the 19th century. The post surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...

 began recording meteorological observations at Fort Saint Anthony in January 1820, beginning one of the longest near-continuous weather records in the country. Upon its completion in 1825, the Army renamed the fort as Fort Snelling in honor of its commander and architect.

Frontier post

The soldiers at the northwestern frontier outposts denied persons other than citizens of United States of America commercial use of the rivers, kept American Indian lands free of white settlement until treaties permitted it, enforced law and order, and protected legitimate travelers and traders. At Fort Snelling, the garrison also attempted to keep the peace between the Ojibwe and Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...

 (Dakota) people.

Colonel Snelling suffered from chronic dysentery, and bouts of the illness made him susceptible to anger. Recalled to Washington, he left Fort Snelling in September 1827. Colonel Snelling died in summer 1828 from complications due to dysentery and a "brain fever."

John Emerson purchased the slave Dred Scott
Dred Scott
Dred Scott , was an African-American slave in the United States who unsuccessfully sued for his freedom and that of his wife and their two daughters in the Dred Scott v...

 in Saint Louis, Missouri, but he later worked at Fort Snelling and lived at the fort with Dred and Harriet Scott during much of the 1830s. Missouri Compromise
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an agreement passed in 1820 between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States Congress, involving primarily the regulation of slavery in the western territories. It prohibited slavery in the former Louisiana Territory north of the parallel 36°30'...

 then made slavery illegal in Minnesota Territory
Minnesota Territory
The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota.-History:...

. Life of Dred Scott in Minnesota led to the infamous United States Supreme court case Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott v. Sandford, , also known as the Dred Scott Decision, was a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that people of African descent brought into the United States and held as slaves were not protected by the Constitution and could never be U.S...

.

The establishment and population of towns of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

 diminished the need for a forward frontier military post in the region. The Army sold Fort Snelling to Franklin Steele
Franklin Steele
Franklin Steele was an early and significant settler of Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States. Born in Chester County, Pennsylvania of Scottish descent, Steele worked in the Lancaster post-office as a young man, where he once met James Buchanan.-Early success:With encouragement from his...

 in 1858 for $90,000. (Fortunately for Steele, the deal included 8000 acres (32 km²) later annexed into south Minneapolis.)

Civil War and afterwards

During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, however, Franklin Steele leased Fort Snelling back to the War Department for use as an induction station. In fact, it was used as a concentration camp during the Dakota War of 1862
Dakota War of 1862
The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, was an armed conflict between the United States and several bands of the eastern Sioux. It began on August 17, 1862, along the Minnesota River in southwest Minnesota...

, where hundreds of women, children, and elders were held captive on Pike Island
Pike Island
Pike Island is an island at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers in the southwestern part of St. Paul in the Twin Cities metropolitan area of Minnesota. It is a portion of the 100,000 acres of land purchased from the Mdewakanton Sioux Indians by Zebulon Pike in September 1805,...

 through the winter of 1862-63. After the war, Steele leased the land around Fort Snelling to settlers, and the town of Minneapolis began to expand. The town of Minneapolis incorporated a city in 1867. United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 regulars meanwhile returned to Fort Snelling. Fort Snelling dispatched forces to protect the interests of the white colonizers on the frontier from the Dakota people, west to the Rocky Mountains. Soldiers from Fort Snelling fought in the Indian Wars
Indian Wars
American Indian Wars is the name used in the United States to describe a series of conflicts between American settlers or the federal government and the native peoples of North America before and after the American Revolutionary War. The wars resulted from the arrival of European colonizers who...

 and the Spanish American War of 1898.
Through World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the War Department chose Fort Snelling as the location for the Military Intelligence Service Language School to teach the Japanese language
Japanese language education in the United States
Japanese language education in the United States began in the late 19th century, aimed mainly at Japanese American children and conducted by parents and community institutions. Over the course of the next century, it would slowly expand to include non-Japanese as well as native speakers...

 to Army personnel. The War Department constructed scores of buildings for housing and teaching, and the school processed three hundred thousand soldiers.

Second decommissioning

The War Department decommissioned Fort Snelling on 12 October 1946, and various federal agencies took parcels from the grounds of the old fort. The majority of the structures fell into disrepair. In 1960, it was listed as a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

.

Fort Snelling nevertheless continued to serve as headquarters of United States Army Reserve
United States Army Reserve
The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....

 205th Infantry Brigade comprised three light infantry battalions and attached field artillery, cavalry, air defense artillery, combat engineers, and supporting logistics units throughout the Upper Midwest. The Defense Department deactivated this role in 1994 as a part of force-structure eliminations. Over the decades, the Army interred many deceased Minnesotan soldiers and other members of the United States Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...

 at Fort Snelling National Cemetery
Fort Snelling National Cemetery
Fort Snelling National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the city of Minneapolis in Hennepin County, Minnesota. It encompasses , and as of April 24, 2007 had 172,001 interments.- History :...

. Some military facilities continue to operate around old Fort Snelling.

Minnesota Historical Society
Minnesota Historical Society
The Minnesota Historical Society is a private, non-profit educational and cultural institution dedicated to preserving the history of the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was founded by the territorial legislature in 1849, almost a decade before statehood. The Society is named in the Minnesota...

 meanwhile converted the area of the original walled fort into an educational establishment, rebuilt to resemble its original appearance, and staffed during the spring, summer and early fall with costumed personnel interpreting life at the early post. Although restoring and re-creating the original fort assures its survival as a historical artifact for the foreseeable future, many briefly used buildings of the fort gradually fell into serious disrepair and neglect. In May 2006, National Trust for Historic Preservation
National Trust for Historic Preservation
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is an American member-supported organization that was founded in 1949 by congressional charter to support preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods through a range of programs and activities, including the publication of Preservation...

 added Upper Post of Fort Snelling to its list of "America's Most Endangered Places." Some restoration on historic Fort Snelling, however, continues underway: crews removed the flagpole from the iconic round tower and will placed it in the ground, a change since its opening as a historic fort.

United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 named an amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...

 ship USS Fort Snelling (LSD-30)
USS Fort Snelling (LSD-30)
USS Fort Snelling was a of the United States Navy. She was named for Fort Snelling at the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers, for many years the northernmost military post in the land of the Sioux and Chippewa...

 to honor the fort.

Geography and transportation

The fort is located on Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory, an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 and division of Hennepin County lying just east of the city of Richfield
Richfield, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 34,439 people, 15,073 households, and 8,727 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,993.9 people per square mile . There were 15,357 housing units at an average density of 2,226.9 per square mile...

. It is also adjacent to the cities of Minneapolis
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...

, Bloomington
Bloomington, Minnesota
Bloomington is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota in Hennepin County. Located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, Bloomington lies at the heart of the southern...

, Saint Paul (across the Mississippi River), and Mendota Heights
Mendota Heights, Minnesota
At the 2000 census, there were 11,434 people, 4,178 households and 3,237 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,222.2 per square mile . There were 4,252 housing units at an average density of 454.5 per square mile...

 (across the Minnesota River). The fort is located at the eastern end of the territory, near the confluence of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 with the Minnesota River
Minnesota River
The Minnesota River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of nearly , in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa....

.

Fort Snelling unorganized territory contains numerous military and other federal facilities. These facilities include historic Fort Snelling, its cemetery, and the Minneapolis Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration
The Veterans Health Administration is the component of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs led by the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health that implements the medical assistance program of the VA through the administration and operation of numerous VA outpatient clinics,...

 Medical Center. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, however, includes most of the land area of the unorganized territory. According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, this unorganized territory has a total area of 17.2 km² (6.7 mi²). 16.5 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it is water.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, 442 people reside in the unorganized territory. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 is 26.8/km² (69.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the unorganized territory is 94.57% White, 3.62% Black or African American, 1.36% Native American, 0.00% Asian, 0.23% Pacific Islander, and 0.23% of other races. 0.45% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race.

The population is spread out with 4.5% from 25 to 44, 33.0% from 45 to 64, and 62.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 69 years.

Males had a median income of $43,558 versus $0 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 is $24,328. None of the population is below the poverty line.

Airport and economy

Compass Airlines
Compass Airlines (North America)
Compass Airlines is a regional airline headquartered at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in Fort Snelling, Hennepin County, Minnesota; prior to December 16, 2009, it was headquartered in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, east of the Chantilly CDP...

 has its corporate headquarters on the grounds of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and in the Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory. The airline moved its headquarters there on 16 December 2009.

Prior to its disestablishment, Republic Airlines (1979-1986)
Republic Airlines (1979-1986)
Republic Airlines was an airline formed on July 1, 1979 by the merger of North Central Airlines, Southern Airways, and Hughes Airwest. Its headquarters were located on the grounds of Minneapolis-St...

 had its headquarters on the grounds of the airport and in what is now Fort Snelling. At one time Mesaba Airlines
Mesaba Airlines
Mesaba Airlines is an American regional airline based in Eagan, Minnesota. The airline operates under Mesaba Aviation, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corporation...

 had its headquarters in the UT. At one time MAIR Holdings
MAIR Holdings
MAIR Holdings, Inc. was an airline holding company. Later in its life its headquarters were in Fifth Street Towers II in Downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. At an earlier time its headquarters were on the property of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and in Fort Snelling, an unincorporated...

 had its headquarters in the UT.

See also

  • Army on the Frontier
    Army on the Frontier
    The "Army on the Frontier" is a term applied to the activities of the United States Army stationed near the frontier settlements from the beginning of national existence until about 1890, the end of the settlers' frontier....

  • Dred Scott
    Dred Scott
    Dred Scott , was an African-American slave in the United States who unsuccessfully sued for his freedom and that of his wife and their two daughters in the Dred Scott v...

  • Fort Snelling State Park
    Fort Snelling State Park
    Fort Snelling State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers. Its most notable feature is the historic Fort Snelling, which dates from 1820. The fort itself is operated by the Minnesota Historical Society and requires a separate entrance fee...

  • Lawrence Taliaferro
    Lawrence Taliaferro
    Lawrence Taliaferro was a United States Army officer best known for his service as an Indian agent at Fort Snelling, Minnesota from 1820 through 1839 and also as an individual who played a part in the saga of the famous African American slave Dred Scott.Taliaferro was born at Whitehall...


Further reading


External links

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