On This Date In Twin Cities History - September 23, 1802

On this date in 1802, the Dakota, led by Way Aga Enagee and Little Crow, the grandfather of the great warrior by the same name, sign a treaty selling two tracts of land totaling 100,000 acres. Signing the agreement for the United States government was Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike. In return for the land, the Dakota received $2,000 and sixty gallons of whiskey. The agreement marks the first land cession by the Dakota and the first acquisition of land by the United States in what would become the state of Minnesota. Fifteen years after the agreement was signed, Fort Snelling is built on one site, while the other is named Pike Island.

Tablet honoring Zebulon Pike at Fort Snelling circa 1936 (MHS)