Fort Fred Steele State Historic Site [WY]

Description

Fort Fred Steele was established on June 20, 1868 and occupied until August 7, 1886 by soldiers who were sent by the U.S. Government to guard against attack from Indians. The construction of the Transcontinental Union Pacific Railroad across southern Wyoming 1867–1869, in turn, brought the cattlemen, sheepherders, loggers, tie hacks, miners, and merchants who changed the wasteland into Wyoming Territory. Colonel Richard I. Dodge, who selected this site on the west bank of the North Platte River, named the fort for Major General Frederick Steele, 20th U.S. Infantry, a Civil War hero.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.

Big Mound Battlefield State Historic Site [ND]

Description

A headstone here marks the place where Dr. Josiah S. Weiser was shot on July 24, 1863. This death precipitated the Battle of Big Mound, a skirmish between General Henry H. Sibley's Minnesota Volunteers and a group of Sioux who were believed to have been involved in the Dakota Conflict of 1862.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.

McPhail's Butte Overlook [ND]

Description

This site marks a position from which Colonel Samuel McPhail directed the movements of the First Minnesota Rangers in the Battle of Big Mound on July 24, 1863, during Sibley's expedition. There is a marker on the site.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.

Grinter Place State Historic Site

Description

A trip to Grinter Place offers a look inside the oldest home in Wyandotte County, as well as a step back to the days of frontier life along the Kansas and Missouri border. Overlooking the historic Delaware Crossing on the Kansas River, Grinter Place was the home to Annie and Moses Grinter. Annie, a Lenape (Delaware) Indian, helped to farm, raise poultry and livestock, and planted an apple orchard. Moses operated a ferry and a trading post, where he traded with the Lenape Indians.

May currently be closed for renovation/restoration.

Campbell’s Island State Memorial

Description

At Campbell's Island, located in the Mississippi River near present-day Rock Island, a day-long battle was fought in the War of 1812. On July 19, 1814, a pro-British band of Sauk Indians led by Black Hawk attacked a force of United States regulars and rangers under Lieutenant John Campbell. The Americans were defeated, with the loss of 16 American lives. Campbell's Island State Memorial consists of a North Carolina granite monument dedicated in 1908, in a mini-park overlooking the river.

Website offers no specifics about interpretative services offered at the site.

Rosebud Battlefield State Park [MT]

Description

This 3,000-acre Eastern Montana rolling prairie park preserves the site of the June 17, 1876, battle between the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians and General Crook’s soldiers supported by the Crow and Shoshone Indians. Remote, quiet, and undeveloped, the park includes prehistoric sites and the homestead ranch of the Kobold family.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site beyond signage.

Fort Mandan and Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center [ND]

Description

The Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived at the Mandan-Hidatsa Indian villages on the Upper Missouri River on October 25, 1804. They found the Mandan people very hospitable and decided to remain at this wintering site until the spring thaw when they would resume their up-river journey. On November 3, William Clark made a simple entry in his journal, "We commence building our cabins." These cabins formed part of an enclosure that was christened Fort Mandan in honor of their hosts. As it turned out, Fort Mandan was occupied longer than any of the three winter posts used by the expedition. Reconstructed Fort Mandan rests in the riparian forests of the Missouri River. The refurnished rooms of this full-size replica depict the equipage of the Lewis and Clark Expeditio. On-site interpreters provide programs and year-round tours of Lewis and Clark's 1804–1805 wintering post. The Interpretive Center provides an overview of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, with special emphasis on the time spent at Fort Mandan. The displays include Native American artifacts, a buffalo robe visitors will be able to try on, as well as a "cradle-board" much like the one Sakakawea may have used to carry her baby. An authentic wood canoe carved from the trunk of a large cottonwood tree demonstrates the winter preparations the Expedition made while at Fort Mandan.

The site offers exhibits, tours, and occasional recreational and educational events.

Fort Rice State Historic Site [ND]

Description

This site preserves remaining vestiges of a military post established in 1864 by General Alfred Sully to supply his campaign into western Dakota and to protect traffic on the Missouri River, a function the fort continued until replaced by Fort Yates in 1877. There is a marker on the site.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.