Wa-na-ta (

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota ...

: Wánataŋ which translates as ''One who charges'', or ''Charger'') or Waneta was a chief of the

Yanktonai The Dakota (pronounced , or ) are a Native American tribe and First Nations band government in North America. They compose two of the three main subcultures of the Sioux people, and are typically divided into the Eastern Dakota and the Wester ...

, a tribe of the

. Chief Wa-na-ta, also known as Wanata and Wanataan I, was born around 1795. The Yanktonai were located near the St. Peter River, which is today known as the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It rises in southwestern ...

, in present day

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

. The

were said to have a population between five and six thousand individuals with 1,300 warriors. Wanata was a very influential chief, as evidenced by his ability to lead his tribes' 1,300 warriors into battle. Waneta was born about 1795 in what is now Brown County,

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

. At age 18, Wanata was accustomed to the ways of war and fought under his father Wakinyanduta (''Red Thunder'') (Sisseton leader who eventually split off from that band to form the Cuthead band of the

) siding with the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

against the Americans in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. He fought at the

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

of Fort Meigs in 1813. Wanata was recruited by British Colonel Robert Dickson, eventually his brother-in-law, whom convinced him to join him in battle at Fort Sandusky. During this battle, Wanata charged Fort Sandusky and was wounded, but earned himself the nickname "Charger". After the war, the British rewarded Waneta for his loyalty by presenting him with a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

commission In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

. He subsequently visited

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and remained sympathetic to the British until 1820, when an abortive expedition against

Fort Snelling Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint An ...

resulted in a change of heart. Thereafter, he gave wholehearted support to American interests and even helped influence trade on the Missouri River. A prominent chief of the Dakota people, Waneta signed a trade treaty with the Americans on 25 July 1825. On 17 August 1825 he signed the first Treaty of Prairie du Chien which fixed the boundaries of Sioux territory. He was murdered by his own tribesmen, who were upset with his leadership, in 1848. He died at the mouth of the Warreconne River, the present Beaver Creek in what is now Emmons County,

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

Namesake

Two

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

ships have been named USS ''Wahneta'' and one has been named USS ''Waneta'' in honor of Waneta. Waneta Hall, a residence hall at

South Dakota State University South Dakota State University (SDSU or SD State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest university and is the sec ...

, was named in honor of Chief Waneta in 1959. This renewed a pattern of

alliteration Alliteration is the repetition of syllable-initial consonant sounds between nearby words, or of syllable-initial vowels if the syllables in question do not start with a consonant. It is often used as a literary device. A common example is " Pe ...

to name buildings using words from the

Lakota language Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan languages, Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of the Sioux tribes. Lakota is mutually intelligible with the two dialects of the Dakota language, especially Dakot ...

. Three other residence halls on the campus had earlier been named Wenona (meaning first-born daughter) Hall, (1917), Wecota (meaning second-born daughter) Hall (1919) and Wecota Annex (1940). Wenona and Wecota Halls are now used as office buildings and have been placed on the

National Register of Historic Places listings in Brookings County, South Dakota National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. Wecota Annex has also become an office building; it was last used for housing students during the 2012-13 academic year. Waneta Hall continues to be used as a residence for students as of 2014.

Chief Wanataan II

Waneta's son was called Wanata II or Waanatan II (1828-1897). Their names are in almost every history book dealing with Minnesota and the two Dakota States. Waanatan II was born in 1828 on the Elm River (Pecan Wakpa) north of what is now

Aberdeen, South Dakota Aberdeen () is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 28,495. making it the third-most populous city in the state. Aberdeen is home of Northern State University. ...

. When his father was assassinated in 1848, the Pabaksa (Cut Head) band of

split into three groups, each led by a son. Waanatan II moved to

Lake Traverse Lake Traverse is an lake along the border between the U.S. states of Minnesota and South Dakota, and is the southernmost body of water in the Hudson Bay watershed of North America. Lake Traverse is drained at its north end by the northward-flow ...

(Bde Hdakinyan = Cross-Wise Lake) associating himself with his mother's people, the Sisitunwan Dakota. Waanatan II forbade Little Crow from crossing his lands to escape Federal troops during the Minnesota Uprising of the

Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several eastern bands of Dakota people, Da ...

. Suffering many hardships during the war which followed, he finally surrendered his band some five years later and resided on the

Spirit Lake Reservation The Spirit Lake Tribe (in Santee Dakota, Santee Dakota language, Dakota: ''Mniwakaƞ Oyate'', also spelt as ''Mni Wakan Oyate'', formerly known as Devils Lake Sioux Tribe) is a federally recognized tribe based on the Spirit Lake Dakota Indian res ...

(Miniwakan Oyanke) in north central

. In 1885, Chief Wanata (Waanatan II) became friends

Major Israel McCreight American Horse (; also known as American Horse the Younger; c. 1840 – December 16, 1908) was an Oglala Lakota chief, statesman, educator and historian. American Horse is notable in American history as a U.S. Army Indian Scout and a progressive ...

and visited his office regularly to smoke tobacco. At the time, the twenty-one-year-old McCreight seeking adventure took the

Northern Pacific Railway The Northern Pacific Railway was an important American transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the Western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest between 1864 and 1970. It was approved and chartered b ...

to its farthest point west,

Devils Lake, North Dakota Devils Lake is a city in and the county seat of Ramsey County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 7,192 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 7,314 in 2024. It is named after the nearby lake called Devils Lake. The first ho ...

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...

, and met with Indians trading buffalo bones at Fort Totten,

, to be sold as fertilizer in the lucrative St. Louis market. McCreight was impressed with the chief's dignity and bearing. "One day he signed that he wished a private interview, when he drew from his blanket a package which he exhibited as something he held more precious than any other treasure. It was carefully wrapped in old newspaper, and after it had been divested of the strings and unrolled to be read, it proved to be the parchment or treaty with Government officials, his own name inscribed as head or Grand Chief. Having thus established his old-day tribal office, he carefully refolded the document, wrapped it in the faded news sheet and returned it to the inner folds of his blanket, then nimbly

squatted Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building (usually residential) that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there wer ...

on the office floor, filled his pipe and enjoyed his usual half-hour smoke." Wa-na-ta's smoking pipe was his most precious possession. "A titled English ranch-owner who knew of his importance in history offered any price that the old chief would name for the pipe and pouch, but the chief disdained to listen to any offer of money. But when I squatted beside him on the floor, where he was puffing meditatively on his long red-stone pipe, to tell him of leaving next week for a trip west, he arose instantly, untied his belt, laid both pouch and pipe across his left hand and extended it to me as a present and token to be preserved after he had passed to the long sleep." McCreight forever remembered the kindness and generosity of Wa-na-ta. Chief Wanataan II died in 1897 and is buried in the St. Michael Cemetery, St. Michael, ND.See Louis Garcia, "Waanatan's Tobacco Bag", Whispering Wind, Issue #270, Vol. 39, #2 (2010) at https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Waanatan%27s+pipe+and+tobacco+bag.-a0229897146

References

: {{Reflist

Sources

"Chief Wanata", URL accessed 07/23/06
*Johnson, Michael, and Jonathan Smith. ''Tribes of the Sioux Nation''. Oxford: Osprey, 2000. 1790s births 1848 deaths Yankton Dakota people Native American leaders Native Americans in the War of 1812 Murdered Native American people Native American history of Minnesota People murdered in Minnesota People murdered in 1848 Native American people from Minnesota People from pre-statehood Minnesota