This video is from SDPB's Dakota Life which is celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2022. Watch this episode and all past seasons here.
Sisseton is located near the center of the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation. Approximately 12 thousand members of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate live on the reservation, which covers most of Roberts County and stretches into six more counties, including two in North Dakota.
Tribal history is preserved in the stories and artifacts passed down from one generation to the next. A branch of the tribal government is working to preserve and archive those stories and artifacts. As SDPB’s Brian Gevik learned on a recent visit to the reservation, understanding the tribe’s past may be the key to understanding the tribe today.