163 years ago today, the largest mass execution in the U.S. took place. Ordered by Abraham Lincoln.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

30. A journey of ceremony and prayer honors Dakota women who witnessed 1862 executions

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/12/26/dakota-omani-journey-honors-women-who-witnessed-the-1862-dakota-38-hangings

Last year, two rides marked the revival of the famous reconciliation ride, honoring the 38 Dakota men hanged in Mankato on Dec. 26, 1862. Two additional men were hanged at Fort Snelling in 1865. The rides begin in both South Dakota and Nebraska, and end in Mankato.

However, another journey honoring the Dakota women of 1862 finished its fourth year in Mankato this year.

“We have always heard of our women that wept at the gallows,” said Gaby Strong, who organized the Dakota Omani, meaning “Dakota Travel” in English. Strong says Dakota Omani was purposefully named to welcome Indigenous communities to participate in the journey, whether they ride horseback, travel on foot or drive their vehicles.

Dakota Omani begins in Morton near Birch Coulee Battlefield in southwest Minnesota and ends at Land of Memories Park in Mankato. It spans over a total of four days, where “every step is a prayer” for the women who witnessed the hanging in 1862 and were later marched to Fort Snelling.