Fort Yates in Sioux County, North Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Tatanka Iyotake
"Sitting Bull"
| | 1831-1890 | |
Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, 2014
1. Tatanka Iyotake Marker
Tatanka Iyotake, a Hunkpapa Lakota was born near Many Caches on the Grand River in South Dakota. At the age of 14 he counted his first "coup" and was given the name Tatanka Iyotake "Sitting Bull". He grew up to be a prominent warrior and leader of the Teton Lakota.
In the summer of 1876 he had a vision of a great victory over white soldiers. That vision was fulfilled when Tatanka Iyotake, along with Crazy Horse, Gall and hundreds of Lakota and Cheyenne warriors defeated General George Armstrong Custer's 7th Calvary at the Battle of Greasy Grass (Battle of Little Bighorn).
Tatanka Iyotake was killed by Tribal police at his home near Grand River on December 15, 1890. Tribal police were acting on orders to bring him into the agency in order to quell the Ghost Dance (a ceremonial dance they believed would bring back the old ways of life).
He was laid to rest here and may have been disinterred in 1953 at the request of four of his grandchildren.
"What treaty have the Lakota made with the white man that we have broken? Not one. What treaty have the white man ever made with us that they ever kept? Not one. When I was a boy the Lakota owned the world; the sun rose and set on their land; they sentten thousand men to battle. Where are the warriors today? Who slew them? Where are our lands? Who owns them? What law have I broken? Is it wrong for me to love my own? Is it wicked for me because my skin is red? Because I am a Lakota; because I was born where my father lived; because I would die for my people and my country?"
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-Tatanka Iyotake
Erected by Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Wars, US Indian. A significant historical year for this entry is 1953.
Location. 46° 5.36′ N, 100° 38.044′ W. Marker is in Fort Yates, North Dakota, in Sioux County. It is on Dike Road north of 92nd Street, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 306 Dike Rd, Fort Yates ND 58538, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on North Dakota’s Missouri Plateau. It is also in the American Lewis & Clark Corridor, on the prairies, and on the Northern Plains. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once Ruperts Land and also the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 6 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Guardhouse (approx. Ό mile away); Fort Yates Military Life (approx. Ό mile away); Fort Yates (approx. 0.4 miles away); Standing Rock Monument (approx. 0.4 miles away); Lakota, Dakota & Dakota People (approx. 0.4 miles away); Langeliers Bay Recreation Area (approx. 10.1 miles away).
Another marker is no longer
Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, 2014
2. Tatanka Iyotake Monument and Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on December 20, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 19, 2025, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. This page has been viewed 66 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 19, 2025, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
