Brian Pease was in his element as he stood at the front of the Grand Army of the Republic Hall in Litchfield and led a Civil War roundtable discussion in August.
It wasn’t just because his presentation about the Acton Massacre and how it precipitated the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862 was one of countless pieces of Minnesota history Pease has researched.
For Pease, being in the G.A.R. Hall was akin to being home. This was one of his favorite hangouts when he was a kid growing up in Litchfield.
Pease and his family attended “the church next door,” he recalled, “and every month they would have a fellowship dinner. So, I would quickly eat my food, and then while everyone was talking, I would run over here.”
He was enamored with the Civil War history found within the hall’s four walls and the historical artifacts preserved inside the attached Meeker County Historical Museum.
Today, Pease works as the historic site manager of the Minnesota Capitol for the Minnesota Historical Society and gives tours of the St. Paul building.
Pease’s presentation in Litchfield focused less on the Civil War and more on the Acton Massacre.
The U.S.-Dakota War occurred 156 years ago, and “very few can argue against that being Minnesota’s most horrific and tragic event. That six-week war involved 23 counties. It cost 600 lives, thousands of Dakota people were exiled, banned from the state, and 38 men were hanged at Mankato, Minnesota,” Pease said. “That war also had a dramatic impact on Meeker County. By my account, 19 people died here as a result of the events surrounding the war, from August to September 1862 to 1863.”
In the many accounts Pease has read about the Acton Massacre, details of people’s recollections differ. He tried to take the most reliable sources, such as the coroner’s inquest provided by the survivors of the massacre, and content from various versions of historians into his account of what happened.
It was Aug. 17, 1862, a Sunday around 11 a.m.
“We’re not sure what Robinson Jones was doing when he saw four Dakota men approach his house,” Pease said, “which also served as a store and trading post. ... They all seemed to be in a good mood and did not portray anything other than a group of hunters passing through.”
After some discussion and browsing of the goods in the store, the four hunters walked out of the house and headed east toward Howard Baker’s farm. Jones grabbed his gun and followed the men to Baker’s house, where Jones’ wife, son-in-law and grandchildren were visiting. When Jones arrived, the Dakota men had already been there for about 15 minutes. They had shaken hands with Baker and Viranus Webster, been given water and were smoking pipes with tobacco provided by Baker.
“It’s very domestic, very commonplace, nothing is on edge,” Pease said.
At this point, two more Dakota men came down the trail and joined the four others in the front yard at the Baker house. After more discussion, Baker agreed to trade one of his guns for a gun from one of the Dakota men.
“With the new gun in hand, the Dakota hunters wanted to test it out and challenged Jones and Baker to shoot at a marked place on a tree,” Pease said.
Both parties seemed to be satisfied with the traded guns and began to go their separate ways.
“The Dakota stood in a group talking and reloaded their guns as if they were going to go back out hunting,” Pease said.
Jones, suspicious, walked to a corner outside the house and watched the Dakota men. Baker placed his newly acquired gun inside the house and leaned against the front door, watching the happenings around him.
“In front of him, he saw Viranus Webster, who had not been involved in the shooting match, get a handful of belongings from his wife in the wagon and walk toward the house,” Pease said. “Baker looked at the six Dakota men with guns loaded, spread out in front of the cabin. The one closest to him cradled a double-barreled shotgun in his arm. Before he and the other unaware settlers knew what had happened, a loud gun blast sounded in front of the house. He saw Webster fall in a heap several yards in front of him.”
Baker was next. The Dakota man with the shotgun pulled the trigger on the first barrel, injuring Baker. A second shot from the other barrel killed him.
Baker’s mother, Ann Jones, moved to the door to see what was happening. She became the next target. As she turned to flee, two more shots rang out, killing her.
Seeing what was happening, Robinson Jones moved for cover, trying to reload his gun on the run. One of the Dakota men chased after him, shooting and killing him about 15 yards away from the cabin.
The fifth and final victim of the massacre was Clara Wilson, who was killed while inside the cabin.
“All of this was over in a matter of seconds,” Pease said.
The five victims were buried in a mass grave at Ness Lutheran Church. A marker, which also serves as their headstone, was placed at the site by the state of Minnesota in 1878.
“This tragic story is just the beginning chapter in the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862,” Pease said. “The details are still so compelling to talk about and care about a century and a half after the event.”
