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The best
preserved military post of the Dakota frontier era.
Fort Totten served American Indian policy from 1867 to 1959. Constructed as a military post, it became an Indian boarding school, Indian health care facility, and a reservation school.
Initially, the fort policed the surrounding reservation. The soldiers enforced the peace, guarded overland transportation routes, and aided Dakota (Sioux) who lived near Devils Lake after 1867. Fort Totten was decommissioned in 1890.
On January 5th, 1891 the former post became the property of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The post served as an Indian boarding school until 1959. Academic and vocational training prepared Indian youth for life off the reservation. Enrollment sometimes topped 400. After independent tribal government was established, a community school operated in the buildings from 1940 to 1959.
Fort Totten became a North Dakota State Historic Site in 1960 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
Visitors center and buildings open from May 16th through September 15th, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (CST). Adjacent parking, seventeen original buildings, interpretive center, Pioneer Daughters' Museum, modern facilities, limited ADA accessibility. There is an admission fee.
Adults-------------$4.00
Children----------$1.50
School Groups--$1.00 per student
Bus Tours------$2.00 per person for groups of 20 or more.
Open: May 16 - September 15, 8:00 A.M.--5:00 P.M. (September 16 - May 15, weekdays by appointment).
For more information please send inquiries to: Fort Totten State Historic Site, P.O. Box 224, Fort Totten ND 58335, telephone (701) 766-4441, or email: shstotten@state.nd.us
For information on lodging and events please visit:Totten Trail Inn and the State Historical Society's Program Schedule
For more information on the region call the Devils Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau at: 1-800-233-8048.
Copyright ©2002-2007 State Historical Society of North Dakota. You are free to use information from these pages for any non-commercial purpose. Any use of this information should credit the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Photographs shown on the State Historical Society of North Dakota's web site are taken from the collections of the State Historical Society of North Dakota and may not be included in any publication, printed or online, without the written permission of the Society.