Mille Lacs Kathio State Park near Onamia in Mille Lacs County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Homeland of the Dakota
Kathio - A Place of Choice
| | National Historic Landmark District | |
Photographed by McGhiever, May 29, 2025
1. Homeland of the Dakota Marker
"My People are the Mdewakanton Dakota Oyate. Medewakanton means the 'People of Spirit Lake.' Today the lake is known as Mille Lacs. This landscape is sacred to the Mdewakanton Oyate because one Otokaheya Woyakapi (creation story) says we were created here. It is especially pleasing for me to come here and walk these trails, because about 1718 the first Chief Wapahasa was born here, at the headwaters of the Spirit River. I am the seventh in this line of hereditary chiefs."
Leonard E. Wabasha (Hepan)
Lower Sioux (Dakota) Indian Community
Note Hepan is the traditional Dakota name of a second born male child.
Erected by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Religion & Religious Structures • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1718.
Location. 46° 8.831′ N, 93° 46.277′ W. Marker is near Onamia, Minnesota, in Mille Lacs County. It is in Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. It can be reached from the road to Ogechie Campground. The marker is on the Kathio Landmark Trail. Touch for map.
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Regionally, this marker is in Central Minnesota. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. 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, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: A Living Laboratory (within shouting distance of this marker); Ogechie Lake (within shouting distance of this marker); Logging the Pines (within shouting distance of this marker); Kathio Forest: Past & Future (within shouting distance of this marker); White Pine Forest (within shouting distance of this marker); Northern Hardwood Forest (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Why Did the Ojibwe People Choose to Live Here? (about 400 feet away); Oak Savanna (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Onamia.
Photographed by McGhiever, May 29, 2025
2. Homeland of the Dakota Marker on the Kathio Landmark Trail
Credits. This page was last revised on March 30, 2026. It was originally submitted on March 30, 2026, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 7 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 30, 2026, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
