Main Street History: Before Eagan, There Was Black Dog Village

EAGAN, MN — The city of Eagan was established in 1860, boasting a popular population of 567, with most of them working as onion farmers. In fact, at one point Eagan was known as the "onion capital of the world," according to the city's historians.

But long before the white settlers came, the land Eagan and neighboring Burnsville sit upon now was the Black Dog Native American village.

Dozens of burial sites and mounds have been discovered in the area. More than 100 mounds were mapped in the late 1800s, according to MinnesotaHistory.net.

A Black Dog cemetery was evacuated in Eagan in 1943 by Lloyd Wilford, a University of Minnesota archaeologist after the site was disturbed by a molding-sand pit on the Thomas Keneally farm.

There were about 250 Indians living there when white settlers came to the area. The Chief Black Dog — shown here — and his people were a part of the Mdewankanton band of the Sioux.

The Black Dog Native American village centered around the isthmus between Black Dog Lake and the Minnesota River, according to DakotaHistory.org. The Black Dog Power Plant stands there today.

The land was ideal for clean water, travel, hunting, and fishing, especially at Black Dog Lake. The Indians traded with settlers at Fort Snelling.

What's your favorite thing about Eagan? Let us know below in the comments!

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