Fort Yates is a city in Sioux County,

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...

, United States. It is the

tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to confli ...

headquarters of the

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe The Standing Rock Reservation ( lkt, Íŋyaŋ Woslál Háŋ) lies across the border between North and South Dakota in the United States, and is inhabited by ethnic " Hunkpapa and Sihasapa bands of Lakota Oyate and the Ihunktuwona and Paba ...

and

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

of Sioux County. Since 1970 the population has declined markedly from more than 1,100 residents, as people have left for other locations for work. The population was 176 at the 2020 census.

History

A primarily Native American settlement developed here after a US Army post at this site was established in 1863 as the Standing Rock

Cantonment A cantonment (, , or ) is a military quarters. In Bangladesh, India and other parts of South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the colonial-era). In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essent ...

, intended for the US Army garrison to oversee the

Hunkpapa The Hunkpapa ( Lakota: ) are a Native American group, one of the seven council fires of the Lakota tribe. The name ' is a Lakota word, meaning "Head of the Circle" (at one time, the tribe's name was represented in European-American records a ...

and Blackfeet bands, and the Inhunktonwan and Cuthead of the Upper Yanktonai, of the Lakota Oyate. In 1878 the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, c ...

renamed the fort to honor Captain

George Yates George Wilhelmus Mancius Yates (February 26, 1843 – June 25, 1876) was an officer in the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment. He was killed in the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Biography Yates was born in Albany, New York. He met Custer in Monroe, Michi ...

, who was killed by the Lakota Oyate at the

Battle of Little Big Horn The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nor ...

in 1876. The town that developed was also known as Fort Yates. The Army post and fort were decommissioned in 1903. Fort Yates also served as the headquarters of the US Standing Rock Indian Agency, which in the late 19th century was headed by US Indian Service Agent James McLaughlin. Worried about the Hunkpapa Lakota chief

Sitting Bull Sitting Bull ( lkt, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake ; December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. He was killed by Indian agency police on the Standing Roc ...

possibly taking part in the

Ghost Dance The Ghost Dance ( Caddo: Nanissáanah, also called the Ghost Dance of 1890) was a ceremony incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. According to the teachings of the Northern Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka (renamed Jack Wil ...

movement, he ordered the arrest of the chief on December 14, 1890. During the bungled event the chief was shot and killed at dawn in his log cabin by agency non-Hunkpapa Dakota police.

was buried at Fort Yates. In 1953, his family authorized his remains to be exhumed and transferred to a gravesite overlooking the Missouri River near his birthplace at Mobridge, South Dakota. A monument dedicated to Sitting Bull was installed at his burial site at Fort Yates. Another monument, with his bust on a pedestal, overlooks the Missouri River at the Mobridge burial site. This city has become the tribal headquarters of the federally recognized

, whose reservation encompasses it. They founded

Sitting Bull College Sitting Bull College is a public tribal land-grant college in Fort Yates, North Dakota. It was founded in 1973 by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in south-central North Dakota. The SBC campuses are located ...

in Fort Yates, a

tribal college In the United States, tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are a category of higher education, minority-serving institutions defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965. Each qualifies for funding under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Un ...

now named for their noted 19th-century leader. Known also as "Long Soldier", it is the most populous electoral district of the reservation. Northern Plains Overland Trails 1866-1877 map on display at the Fort Totten Historic Site

Northern Plains Overland Trails 1866-1877 map on display at the Fort Totten Historic Site

Geography and climate

Fort Yates is located at (46.084899, -100.630144). Fort Yates is located on the western bank of

Lake Oahe Lake Oahe () is a large reservoir behind Oahe Dam on the Missouri River; it begins in central South Dakota and continues north into North Dakota in the United States. The lake has an area of and a maximum depth of . By volume, it is the fourth ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

, the city has a total area of , all land. Fort Yates has a semiarid climate ( Köppen ''BSk''), with hot summers, cold and very dry winters (though sometimes moderated by chinook winds) and substantial diurnal temperature ranges. On February 2, 1992 the city recorded , the highest ever recorded for any winter month in North Dakota. Depending on the climatic maps and the data used the city can be considered the northernmost urban area of the

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

(''Dfa'') in an isolated occurrence at 46 °N. At the same time that Fort Yates is around different climatic types and subtypes in a situation rare and unusual. ''Dfb'' to the northeast and west, ''Dwb'' to the northwest and east, ''BSk'' to the southwest and south, and ''Dwa'' to the west.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 184 people, 66 households, and 43 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was . There were 73 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 5.4%

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 92.4% Native American, 0.5% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population. There were 66 households, of which 45.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 22.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 30.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 12.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.8% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.26. The median age in the city was 33.6 years. 31% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.6% were from 25 to 44; 22.8% were from 45 to 64; and 9.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 53.3% male and 46.7% female. Post office in Fort Yates North Dakota 6-12-2009

Post office in Fort Yates North Dakota 6-12-2009

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 228 people, 73 households, and 47 families residing in the town. The

was 3,688.4 people per square mile (1,467.2/km²). There were 78 housing units at an average density of 1,261.8 per square mile (501.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 93.42% Native American, 5.26%

, and 1.32% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 3.95% of the population. There were 73 households, out of which 35.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.8% were

living together, 26.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.12 and the average family size was 3.85. In the town the population was spread out, with 35.5% under the age of 18, 15.4% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 14.9% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $25,500, and the median income for a family was $31,875. Males had a median income of $26,125 versus $25,000 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $9,512. About 6.4% of families and 14.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 8.2% of those under the age of eighteen and 17.6% of those 65 or over.

Fort Yates water treatment plant

The water treatment plant at Fort Yates, an integral part of The Standing Rock Rural Water System, is the primary source of drinking water for over three thousand people which includes the residents of Porcupine, Cannonball and Fort Yates as well the Prairie Knights Casino and Lodge. The intake is on the Missouri River.

Education

It is in the

Fort Yates School District Fort Yates Public School District #4 is a school district headquartered in Fort Yates, North Dakota. In addition to Fort Yates, the district serves Porcupine and a small section of Cannon Ball. The district has an agreement with the Standing Ro ...

, which is integrated with the Standing Rock Community School.

References

{{Authority control Cities in North Dakota Cities in Sioux County, North Dakota County seats in North Dakota Populated places established in 1863 North Dakota populated places on the Missouri River 1863 establishments in Dakota Territory Forts along the Missouri River