ST. PAUL, Minn. -
One hundred and fifty years after The U.S.–Dakota War of 1862, an exhibit at the Minnesota History Center examines the many, often conflicting, interpretations of the events.
Public Programs Specials Danielle Dart says, "This changed Minn. forever, the impact of this war is still being felt by thousands of people, especially Dakota people."
Putting together a museum exhibit is a difficult task, putting a story as complex and compelling as the US Dakota War into one exhibit is even harder.
Dart says, "You only have so much space."
Senior Exhibit Developer Kate Roberts says, "It really shaped the history of Minn. and the region, the Dakota were exiled from Minnesota, towns like New Ulm and other towns in the Minn. River Valley were destroyed and people had to start over, so lives were changed, the culture of the state was changed."
The story is one fundamental to Minn. history, but there is no single unassailable truth about what happened, why it happened, and who was responsible.
So to help tell the complete story, the museum sought out perspectives from both experts and descendants of those from all sides who experienced the war.
Roberts says, "This history is very much alive, the trauma remains, so it think more so than any exhibit I have worked on it was really important to us to really hear the stories of people today."
The tragic history still holds pain, and that's why the exhibit lets visitors examine the evidence for themselves.
Dart says, "There is a treaty in 1851 it is all written down and you can go look at it and see that they were lying to people."
Along with hear the heart wrenching stories.
Darts says, "Letters, photographs, oral histories that give voice to the experience of the people of the time."
And learn about the broken promises that led to the disastrous chapter in Minn. history.
Roberts says, "We wanted to make sure that as much as possible visitors understand that is there is no single story line here, it's really the story of individual people and individual groups acting at a single point in time."
The historical society doesn't expect visitors to pick up every detail in one visit; instead they hope the story will resonate beyond the walls of the gallery.
Roberts says, "You can learn enough about the war that you can talk to other people, to learn some more on your own and to really carry the importance of this even further into your own life."
Giving visitors the opportunity to make up their own minds about what happened, and arrive at a better understanding of their past.
The exhibit opens this Saturday and will run through June of 2013 at the Minn. History Center in St. Paul.
