In 1865 the Episcopalian Missionary saw the need to build an Indian
Mission at the Santee Agency. The Rev. Samuel D. Hinman Sr., an interpreter
for the Indians was sent to accomplish this.
A three-story hotel was purchased from the Niobrara Townsite Company and
the material was moved to Santee where a church and school was built. A
tornado destroyed the structures and a fire wiped out the second set. The
chapel and mission residence only were replaced the third time.
At the east edge of Santee stands the Church and residence. They are both
in dire need of repair and show scars from the wounds that mother nature has
inflicted on them over the years. Just a little south of the driveway lies
the Santee Cemetery.
The Hinmans’ was a young family, the parents of five sons. Mary Hinman,
wife of the Rev., died in 1876 at the age of 33. She was the first to be
buried in the Santee Cemetery.
For many years the cemetery was hidden from view by the dense brush and
lilac bushes. When I visited the cemetery a few weeks ago, I was glad to see
that it has been cleared and that all of the stones are visible.
There are approximately ten burials in this small cemetery. Two of them;
Clarence Mitchell and Clifford St. Clair, both died in 1944 while serving
their country in World War II. From the inscriptions on the remaining
stones, it was easy to determine that old age was not the cause of death for
the few buried here.
