Sioux return to Killdeer Mountains

by flynn j. ell
prairie bear ink editor
KILLDEER MOUNTAINS--Sioux Indians have returned the past two years to the Killdeer Mountains after an absence of 134 years following the battle fought with Gen. Alfred Sully July 28, 1864. dvirnak
Craig Dvirnak, right, owner of the Diamond C Ranch, was presented the buffalo skull and Sacred Pipe used in the ceremony.

They came back in 1998 to release the souls of their battle dead which included 125 men, women and children.

In a ceremony conducted by Austin McKay, a spiritual leader from Canada, drum songs were offered, sage burned over a buffalo skull. A circle of about 50 persons, mostly Native American Sioux joined in the prayers.

During the ceremony, two golden eagles circled above in a clear, blue sky, signifying to the Indians that their voices were being heard by the Creator.

Although traces of bitterness remain of the day when Sully attacked the encampment of up to 1,800 tipis and fired cannons to drive the Indians away before destroying their homes and winter supplies, the first-year gathering was upbeat.

leroy

Sioux spiritual leader LeRoy Comes Last explained the battle to his children.
"This is a first step for world peace," said LeRoy Comes Last, spiritual leader and a member of the Fort Peck (Mont.) Sioux First Nation Treaty Council.

"This was our Wounded Knee," said Calvin First, who organized the gathering and plans to have the Indian dead honored with a new plaque at the battle site.

The Indians spoke kindly of their "white brothers and sisters" who joined with them in honoring the dead. They prayed for peace and unity among all races.

In their second year of the return, the Indians performed the Wiping the Tears Away ceremony to cleanse the site of bitter memories.

inkpaduta

Descendants of warriors from Inkpaduta's Reserve in Canada gathered around the battle monument.
There has been no word on whether the Indians from Canada, Montana and the Dakotas, will come again this year to the Diamond C Ranch seven miles northwest of Killdeer at the base of mountains. Chris Johnson of the North Dakota Historical Society has coordinated non-Indian participation with ranch owner Craig Dvirnak.