Visitor Center - Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site

Our August 2017 trip to the Upper Midwest and the Dakotas continued with a stop at Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site in Stanton, North Dakota.

To reach the historic site from I-94, exit the freeway at New Salem (exit 127) and head north on North Dakota route 31. New Salem is hard to miss as 38-foot tall Salem Sue, a fiberglass Holstein cow, stands on a hill just south of the interstate highway. Travel north on ND-31 for 30 miles to a stop sign at the intersection with ND-200. Turn east (right) onto the combined ND-200 and ND-31. Drive 1.9 miles and turn north (left) to continue on ND-31. Proceed another 1.9 miles, passing under a BNSF train trestle and through the town of Stanton as the road becomes Mercer County Road 37 before arriving at the Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site on the right.

The visitor center includes the usual information desk, bookstore, exhibit area, theater, and restrooms. A 15-minute orientation film entitled Maxidiwiac recalls the life of Buffalo Bird Woman, one of the last generation to live the traditional Hidatsa life in Like-a-Fishhook Village. It provides a unique historic look back from the eyes of someone who lived on the Fort Berthold Reservation in the early twentieth century.

The confluence area of the Knife River and the Missouri River was home to several villages in 1804 when Lewis and Clark arrived with the Corps of Discovery. The remains of three Hidatsa villages along the west side of the Missouri River are located within the boundaries of the park. Several Mandan villages were also located nearby. Smallpox epidemics devastated the Hidatsa, Mandan, and Arikara, forcing them to abandon many villages even before the arrival of the Corps of Discovery. All three tribes supplemented agriculture with buffalo hunting. The prosperous area of permanent earth lodges became a trading hub for various tribes throughout the region and beyond.

The middle village in the park is also the location where Toussaint Charbonneau and Sacagawea met and joined the Corps of Discovery.

Salem Sue in New Salem

Entrance driveway and parking area

Visitor Center

Central skylight

Bookstore

Information desk

Hands-on exhibits

Cultural artifacts

Winter

Spring

Summer

Summer continued

Fall

Knife River flint

Small bags for valuables were tied to belts

Bull boat

Historic origins and current reservations

Decorated hide

Trading hub of the Northern Great Plains

Various animal pelts

Entry to Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site is free.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/knri.