Following the U.S-Dakota War of 1862, the United States government hanged 38 Dakota men on December 26 in Mankato
Following the U.S-Dakota War of 1862, the United States government hanged 38 Dakota men on December 26 in Mankato . It was the largest mass execution in United States history. A US military commission, tainted by racism and in violation of due process, hastily convicted two of the Dakota men of rape and all of them of murder in trials that lasted as little as five minutes. President Lincoln approved their executions. Here are the names and faces of some of the men known as the Dakota 38. “This house is not ours. We do not feel at home here. In a short time, we shall leave, and go home. When we leave this house we shall go to the mansions of the Great Spirit.” —One of the Dakota 38, while imprisoned at Mankato. From, “Confessions of the Condemned.” Mankato Independent, December 26, 1862.