National Park Service officials are preparing for the upcoming commemoration of the 1868 Treaty at Fort Laramie signing one hundred and fifty years ago this weekend.
Representatives from fifteen tribes are expected to attend, including members from South Dakota’s nine reservations.
Both tribal and federal officials are scheduled to meet at the treaty signing spot where 150 years ago they came together for peace.
The treaty established what’s commonly called the Great Sioux Nation, which included the east bank of the Missouri River and the Black Hills—much of modern day western South Dakota.
Over time—through conflict and congressional act—the United States government chipped away at treaty land, ultimately forming several smaller isolated reservations across the area.
Impacts from that treaty are still felt to this day.
Eric Valencia is the Chief of Interpretation at Fort Laramie National Historic Site. He says they’re expecting a large turnout.
“There are a lot of folks that are hearing of this for the first time,” Valencia says. “We are preparing for a large influx of people and hopefully the number of people will meet our expectations. Currently, we’re planning for around 5,000 public and participants.”
Valencia says the Fort Laramie site has been a gathering place for indigenous people for centuries, as well as a crossroads for western expansion.
He says that’s due to the meeting of two large rivers in the west.
Valencia says the commemoration has been the culmination of two years of planning.
“And in that planning we have always looked at it as an opportunity for the site here to expand the story of Fort Laramie to include all the vibrant cultures that have interacted at the confluence of the North Platte and Laramie Rivers,” Valencia says.
The sesquicentennial commemoration of the 1868 treaty signing begins on Saturday, April 28 and runs through May 1.
