Asanpi Owicoti/Milk's Camp History

This information was taken from Lakota Archives and Historical Reserch Center Rosebud Sioux Tribe Sites Project, Prepared with a FY 93 Historic Preservation Fund Grant from the National Park Service, 1995; Birth of the Rosebud Country by Lawrence Antoine, 1975.

Churches: All Saint's Episcopal Church, Catholic Church, Congregational Church. All Saints was built in 1902.

Buildings: The dance hall was east of the day school. The old day school was later used as a Head Start Center and a Senior Citizens Center. Community celebrations were held at the dance hall at Christmas, New Years, and other holidays. Rodeos, horse racing, ball games, shinney, and wrestling also took place near the school house.

Families: Chief Milk, Rainwater, Andrews, Cane, Antoine, Blue eyes, Spotted Eagle, Owl Walks in the House, Ellston, Miller, Standing Buffalo, Horse Rings, Holquin, Lunderman, Cournoyer, War Bonnet, Herman, Whiting, Turgeon, Colombe, Sully, Biggins, Reynolds, Marshall, Raymond, Lamoreaux, Ramis, DeCory, Dorian.

Issue Station: The building was located east of the day school and was later moved across the creek by the United Church of Christ. In 1913 the long Big White River issue station warehouse was cut in two pieces with one section being sent to Ideal and the other sent to Milk's Camp.

Location: South of Herrick and St. Charles, SD in southeast Gregory County, Milk's Camp celebrated its 75th anniversary on July 29-31, 1966. It is located on Ponca Creek six miles southeast of St. Charles. (Rosebud Sioux Herald, August 1, 1966) This area was in Farm District No. I in 1885.

Origins: Settled by Chief Milk's Oglala Loafer band when the reservation was established, the community was referred to as Ponca district. Milk's band settled near the mouth of Whetstone Creek in the eastern part of the Great Sioux Reservation north of present day Bonesteel and east to the Missouri River before settling south of present day Herrick, SD. Many of the people from this district are descendants of early French fur traders. In the 1950s the tribal council abolished Upper and Lower Ponca communities to create Milk's Camp district.

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