EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION
The massacre of the white settlers in the region
of Lake Okoboji and Spirit Lake in 1857 by a
band of Indians under the leadership of Inkpadnta
has come to be known as "The Spirit Lake
Massacre", although the tragedy was for the
most part enacted on the borders of Lake Okoboji.
There seems, however, to be no substantial
reason for renaming the episode in the interest of
geographical accuracy; and so in this volume the
familiar designation of "The Spirit Lake Massacre"
has been retained.
Benj. F. Shambaugh
Office of the Superintendent and Editor
The State Historical Society of Iowa
Iowa City Iowa
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AUTHOR'S PREFACE
It is probable that no event in the history of northwestern
Iowa has aroused more popular interest
than that of the Spirit Lake Massacre of March,
1857. Not alone in northwestern Iowa but also in
the adjacent sections of Minnesota and South Dakota
is the story of its events and associated incidents
well known.
The Spirit Lake Massacre came as the culminating episode in a long series of incidents intimately connected with the settlement of northern and western Iowa. For years previous to 1857 the Indians of the Siouan tribes had obstinately resisted white settlement and had succeeded in a marked degree in retarding the movement. It may be said with a reasonable degree of certainty that if the events of March, 1857, had not occurred the settlement of this region would have been postponed for some years: the Massacre not only aroused the authorities of the State of Iowa to the necessity of exerting the force of military pressure upon the Indians to discourage or end their forays, but it also enlisted the efforts of the Federal authorities in the same direction. This
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
joint interest and protection could have only one result—
the retirement of the Sioux to the region of
the Missouri and the rapid influx of white settlers.
The Massacre definitely settled the Indian question
for Iowa: henceforth the red man ceased to play
an important part in the history of this Commonwealth.
While the following pages are, as far as practicable,
based upon primary materials, the writer acknowledges
his obligation to many other sources in
the notes and references which follow the text. Since
no adequate history of the Spirit Lake Massacre can
be written wholly from primary materials, considerable
reliance upon secondary sources has been found
necessary in this work. Furthermore, the writer is
well aware that he has taken a number of new positions
concerning causes and incidents of the Massacre;
but in this he feels well sustained by the preponderance
of authority.
Without the unflagging interest and the tireless enthusiasm and encouragement of Dr. Benj. F. Shambaugh the more than four years of research involved in this work would never have been undertaken or carried through to its close. To many others the author also feels himself obligated for invaluable assistance. Among these may be noted Curator E. R. Harlan, Librarian Alice Marple,
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
Assistant Editor Ida M. Huntington, and Superintendent
of Archives C. C. Stiles, all of the Historical
Department of Iowa. Dr. Dan E. Clark, Associate
Editor in The State Historical Society of Iowa, assisted
in editing and verifying the manuscript; and
to him the author is indebted for the index.
Thomas Teakle
The North High School
Des Moines Iowa