You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
<strong>DISCOVER</strong>! | JULY 22, 2017<br />
Nature | 13<br />
LINDSAY KRUSE | STAFF WRITER<br />
History lesson<br />
Hike the Wild to delve into Spirit Lake Massacre<br />
Two sites hold particular historical<br />
significance in Dickinson<br />
County.<br />
They both will be explored during<br />
the next Hike the Wild event on Tuesday,<br />
July 25.<br />
Pillsbury Point State Park and the<br />
Abbie Gardner Cabin are the points<br />
of interest during the event, which<br />
begins at 9:30 a.m.<br />
Participants will meet at the Dickinson<br />
County Nature Center, located at<br />
2279 170th St. in rural Okoboji, and<br />
caravan to the sites in Arnolds Park.<br />
Pillsbury Point was the location of<br />
the Spirit Lake Massacre in 1857 in<br />
which 40 settlers were killed and four<br />
women were taken hostage by the<br />
Dakota tribe.<br />
Graves for several victims, a monument,<br />
the Abbie Gardner Cabin and<br />
a small museum that interprets what<br />
went on during the Spirit Lake Massacre<br />
all are adjacent to the park.<br />
The park was named after the Rev.<br />
Samuel Pillsbury, who owned the<br />
property in the 1860s.<br />
“During this hike, people will<br />
be able to see the Abbie Gardner<br />
Cabin and learn about the cultural<br />
significance of the Spirit Lake Massacre,”<br />
said Bryanna Kuhlman, environmental<br />
education coordinator for<br />
the Dickinson County Conservation<br />
Board. “Hikers will also be able to<br />
enjoy a nice walk along the lake.”<br />
The Abbie Gardner Cabin is located<br />
on the site where the original Gardner<br />
Cabin stood during the Spirit Lake<br />
Massacre.<br />
Abbie Gardner was 13 years old in<br />
1857 when she was taken hostage by<br />
the Dakota Indian nation.<br />
Years after being released, she returned<br />
to Arnolds Park in 1891 and<br />
purchased the cabin, operating it as<br />
one of Iowa’s earliest tourist attractions.<br />
Kuhlman has visited the cabin, and<br />
she was impressed.<br />
“I really enjoy that we are able to<br />
have an original painting from Abbie<br />
Gardner that depicts what she saw<br />
during the event,” she said. “<br />
Our documents at the museum do<br />
a wonderful job of interpreting the<br />
site.”<br />
Grab your hiking boots and get<br />
ready for an historical lesson during<br />
the Dickinson County Nature<br />
Center’s next Hike the Wild event on<br />
Tuesday, July 25. F<br />
At a Glance:<br />
WHAT: Hike the Wild<br />
WHERE: Dickinson County Nature<br />
Center, 2279 170th St., Okoboji<br />
WHEN: 9:30 A.M. Tuesday, July 25<br />
COST: Free<br />
CONTACT: 712-336-6352<br />
ONLINE: www.dickinsoncountyconservationboard.com<br />
Pillsbury Point<br />
Pillsbury Point State Park in Arnolds<br />
Park is the smallest state<br />
park in Iowa, measuring in at<br />
only about six-and-a-half acres.<br />
The narrow, urban park extends<br />
along a point of land into West<br />
Lake Okoboji, and the overlook at<br />
the north end of the park was listed<br />
on the National Register of Historic<br />
Places in 1990.<br />
The historic designation includes<br />
walkways along the lake, stone<br />
steps, stone benches and property<br />
boundary markers.<br />
Hike the Wild<br />
The next Hike the Wild events<br />
are slated for:<br />
Aug. 22: Reeds Run Wildlife Area<br />
Sept. 26: Fort Defiance State<br />
Park<br />
Oct. 24: Loon Lake Cemetery<br />
Nov. 22: Native Thanksgiving<br />
Hike at Kenue Park<br />
Dec. 27: Winter Survival Hike at<br />
Kenue Park<br />
Okoboji | Iowa
Change language