More than the Fort: Recognizing Expanded Significance of the Fort Snelling National Register and National Historic Landmark Districts
Author(s): David J Mather
Year: 2016
Summary
Fort Snelling, built in 1820 at the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers, was the first National Historic Landmark designated in Minnesota, and among the state’s first listings in the National Register. The site of the frontier fort was the focus of a grassroots historic preservation effort in the 1950s, leading to large-scale archaeological excavation and reconstruction. Historical designations and programming have focused on the fort’s military history, extending from the frontier period through World War II, although the historic district boundaries are much larger. Updated National Register documentation will also recognize at least 6,000 years of American Indian history, including the tragic juxtaposition of Dakota Bdote origin story and the nearby site of the internment camp that preceded the Dakota exile from Minnesota in 1862. The historical archaeology of enslaved African Americans is also recognized, with a Criterion B evaluation for association with Dred and Harriet Scott.
Cite this Record
More than the Fort: Recognizing Expanded Significance of the Fort Snelling National Register and National Historic Landmark Districts. David J Mather. Presented at Society for Historical Archaeology, Washington, D.C. 2016 ( tDAR id: 434685)
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Keywords
Geographic Keywords
North America
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United States of America
Temporal Keywords
ca. 4000 BCE - 1945 CE
Spatial Coverage
min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology
Record Identifiers
PaperId(s): 278