Video & Transcript
Boys Totem Town, located at 398 Totem Road in Saint Paul, is a 72 acre site in Ramsey County on the bluffs, east of the Mississippi River.
For thousands of years, tribal societies have called the area now known as Ramsey County their home, and the Dakota people are some of their many descendants. They grew corn and hunted game, crafted copper tools and pottery, and studied the stars and the lands beneath them. Boys Totem Town is traditional Dakota homeland, in close proximity to the historic Kaposia Village, which was founded in 1750. Surveyors and Indigenous scientists have speculated on the area’s proximity to burial mounds as well as its significance in exploring the Dakota relationship to the stars. As war and disease dwindled the Dakota population, eventually European settlers used treaties and forced removal to relocate the Dakota people to the Redwood Agency Reservation in the 1850’s. Not long after, following the U.S. - Dakota War, the Dakota people were largely exiled from Minnesota, though some families had managed to return by the 1880’s. The Dakota people’s relationship with this land is deeply rooted in thousands of years of culture and history, and the descendants of this land’s original inhabitants have unerasable ties to the past, present, and future of Boys Totem Town.
The site itself is home to a variety of valuable natural resources. Boys Totem Town is a cultural landscape that is one of the few remaining undisturbed natural places along the Mississippi River in Ramsey County. There are oak trees in the savannas on the site that date back as far as the 1700’s. A variety of flora and fauna call this land their home. The potential for promoting ecological stewardship, nature-based education, habitat preservation, and ecosystem restoration is enormous. Archaeological surveys have surfaced the potential presence of both pre and post contact archaeological resources, including a potential burial mound or mounds. Indigenous astronomers have also referenced the significance of the site in the Dakota relationship to the stars. The preponderance of resources is of great significance to community members who dream of fostering human health and wellness and deepening our relationship to our natural landscape. It’s easy to conclude that this value was clearly seen by the county when one considers previous uses of the site, including the establishment of the Boys Totem Town Juvenile Detention Center.
Beginning in 1913, Boys Totem Town was used as a county-owned juvenile detention center, which has impacted families in the area for generations. Originally called the Ramsey County Detention Home-Highwood, reportedly “incorrigible” or “unfortunate” boys between the ages of 8 and 18 were housed at the location for the purpose of “behavior alteration”. The practice of carving totem poles gave the institution its nickname and eventual official name, Boys Totem Town. Children learned fishing and farming, learned to build greenhouses and canoes, and engaged in activities like swimming, ice skating, skiing, and tobogganing. They learned to build trails, played sports, and utilized exercise equipment that still stands on the site today. In the 1960’s, as disparities in the justice system created a gap in the sentencing of young persons and adults alike, the demographics of youth residents at Boys Totem Town began to change, shifting away from White youth and towards Black and Hmong youth, among other racial groups. The institution’s reputation also began to shift: in 1975 the institution’s continued existence was threatened by reports of physical abuse by staff, physical assaults in the resident population, and an increase of residents running away. Though a task force voted to close it down, the superintendent chose to keep it open and make adjustments to staffing, policies, and programs. Adjustments were made, but over the following decades, issues of questionable record keeping, abuse, and safety concerns persisted. Though the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative worked to lessen racial disparities, improve the facility, and improve representation among BTT staff, ultimately the decision was made in 2019 to shut down the facility, as decision makers had come to see the incarceration of youth as necessary only in the most extreme circumstances. By 2019, only six youth remained in the facility, which cost over five million dollars to run per year. Continuing conversations around race and detention in the Twin Cities have enormous implications for communities of color, and Boys Totem Town is a part of that history.
The developed portion of the land, estimated at some 10 acres, could be used for a variety of purposes, and Ramsey County residents and stakeholders have surfaced a variety of ideas. Further development of the 72 acre site is hindered by the presence of oak savannas and the high grade of the slopes on the land.
While the county still owns this property, there is much public discourse around how the land should be used moving forward. While so many communities are impacted by the past and present history of the site, the future remains unclear. As Ramsey County continues to consider the possibilities, we have a unique opportunity for communities to come together, learn about one another, and share their hopes and dreams regarding the future of a parcel of land that means so much to so many people.
For thousands of years, tribal societies have called the area now known as Ramsey County their home, and the Dakota people are some of their many descendants. They grew corn and hunted game, crafted copper tools and pottery, and studied the stars and the lands beneath them. Boys Totem Town is traditional Dakota homeland, in close proximity to the historic Kaposia Village, which was founded in 1750. Surveyors and Indigenous scientists have speculated on the area’s proximity to burial mounds as well as its significance in exploring the Dakota relationship to the stars. As war and disease dwindled the Dakota population, eventually European settlers used treaties and forced removal to relocate the Dakota people to the Redwood Agency Reservation in the 1850’s. Not long after, following the U.S. - Dakota War, the Dakota people were largely exiled from Minnesota, though some families had managed to return by the 1880’s. The Dakota people’s relationship with this land is deeply rooted in thousands of years of culture and history, and the descendants of this land’s original inhabitants have unerasable ties to the past, present, and future of Boys Totem Town.
The site itself is home to a variety of valuable natural resources. Boys Totem Town is a cultural landscape that is one of the few remaining undisturbed natural places along the Mississippi River in Ramsey County. There are oak trees in the savannas on the site that date back as far as the 1700’s. A variety of flora and fauna call this land their home. The potential for promoting ecological stewardship, nature-based education, habitat preservation, and ecosystem restoration is enormous. Archaeological surveys have surfaced the potential presence of both pre and post contact archaeological resources, including a potential burial mound or mounds. Indigenous astronomers have also referenced the significance of the site in the Dakota relationship to the stars. The preponderance of resources is of great significance to community members who dream of fostering human health and wellness and deepening our relationship to our natural landscape. It’s easy to conclude that this value was clearly seen by the county when one considers previous uses of the site, including the establishment of the Boys Totem Town Juvenile Detention Center.
Beginning in 1913, Boys Totem Town was used as a county-owned juvenile detention center, which has impacted families in the area for generations. Originally called the Ramsey County Detention Home-Highwood, reportedly “incorrigible” or “unfortunate” boys between the ages of 8 and 18 were housed at the location for the purpose of “behavior alteration”. The practice of carving totem poles gave the institution its nickname and eventual official name, Boys Totem Town. Children learned fishing and farming, learned to build greenhouses and canoes, and engaged in activities like swimming, ice skating, skiing, and tobogganing. They learned to build trails, played sports, and utilized exercise equipment that still stands on the site today. In the 1960’s, as disparities in the justice system created a gap in the sentencing of young persons and adults alike, the demographics of youth residents at Boys Totem Town began to change, shifting away from White youth and towards Black and Hmong youth, among other racial groups. The institution’s reputation also began to shift: in 1975 the institution’s continued existence was threatened by reports of physical abuse by staff, physical assaults in the resident population, and an increase of residents running away. Though a task force voted to close it down, the superintendent chose to keep it open and make adjustments to staffing, policies, and programs. Adjustments were made, but over the following decades, issues of questionable record keeping, abuse, and safety concerns persisted. Though the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative worked to lessen racial disparities, improve the facility, and improve representation among BTT staff, ultimately the decision was made in 2019 to shut down the facility, as decision makers had come to see the incarceration of youth as necessary only in the most extreme circumstances. By 2019, only six youth remained in the facility, which cost over five million dollars to run per year. Continuing conversations around race and detention in the Twin Cities have enormous implications for communities of color, and Boys Totem Town is a part of that history.
The developed portion of the land, estimated at some 10 acres, could be used for a variety of purposes, and Ramsey County residents and stakeholders have surfaced a variety of ideas. Further development of the 72 acre site is hindered by the presence of oak savannas and the high grade of the slopes on the land.
While the county still owns this property, there is much public discourse around how the land should be used moving forward. While so many communities are impacted by the past and present history of the site, the future remains unclear. As Ramsey County continues to consider the possibilities, we have a unique opportunity for communities to come together, learn about one another, and share their hopes and dreams regarding the future of a parcel of land that means so much to so many people.