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> Birch Coulee Battlefield State Historic Site
Site Name Birch Coulee Battlefield State Historic Site Street Address c/o Lower Sioux Agency Historic Site, 32469 Redwood County Highway 2 City / State / Zip Morton MN, 56270 Phone number 507-697-6321 Web Page www.mnhs.org   Admission Fee Free. Hours Daily from dawn to dusk, May-Oct. Visitor services Handicapped access, information; trails, picnic tables, small shelter. Regular Events None.     Directions From I-90 across southern Minnesota, go north on U.S. Highway 71 at Jackson. Proceed to Morton (90 miles) and continue up the Minnesota River bluffs. Watch for the brown signs directing you to make a left turn and taking you east of Highway 71 to reach the battlefield.
Site Description
One of the fiercest battles of the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, the fight at Birch Coulee erupted when Dakota forces ambushed an encampment of Minnesota stat troops and civilians on the morning of September 2, 1862. Dakota forces laid siege to the camp for thirty-six hours before relief arrived from Fort Ridgely. Although the camp was not overrun, twenty men and ninety horses were killed on the U.S. side, while Dakota losses are unknown.

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