DAKOTA. One of the territories of the United States..
Congress, by an act approved March 2, 1861, erected so much of the territory of the United States as is included within the following bounda ries— viz.: commencing at a, point in the main channel of Red River of the North where the forty ninth parallel of north latitude crosses the same; thence up the main channel of the same and along the boundary of the state of Minnesota to Big Stone lake; thence along the boundary-line of the said state of Minnesota to the Iowa line ; thence along the bouodary=line of the state of Iowa to the point of intersection between the Big. Sioux and Missouri rivers; thence up the Missouri river and along the boundary of the territory of Ne braska to the mouth of the Niobrara or Running Water river; thence following up the same in the main obasnel thereof to the mouth of the Kelm Paha or Turtle Hill river; theuoe up said river to the forty-third parallel of north latitude; thence due west to the present boundary of the territory of Washington; thence along the boundary-line of Washington territory to the forty-ninth parallel of north latitude; thence east along said forty ninth parallel of north latitude to the place of be ginoing—into a separate territory, by the name of The Territory of Dakota, with a temporary terri torial government, excepting from the operation of the act any territory to which there are Indian rights not extinguished by treaty, with a proviso that the territory may be divided. or part thereof attached to another territory. United States Sta tutes at Large, 1861, c. 86, Little do Brown'e cd. 239.
The provisions of the organic act are sulastau.
tially the some as those of the art erecting the ter ritory of New Mexico. See NEW Mexico.
Since the date of the organic art, the boundaries of the territory of Dakota hive been twice changed: first, by the net erecting the territory of blahs, March 3, 1863, sect. 1, which cut off from the territory all that part lying west of the twenty-seventh degree of longitude west from Washington ; and second, by the act erecting the territory of Montana, May 26, 1864, sect. IS, which attached temporarily to the territory of Dakota the lands lying within the fol lowing limits i—rommencing at a point formed by the intersection of the thirty-third degree of longi tude west from Washington with the forty-first de gree of north latitude; thence along said thirty third degree of longitude to the crest of the Rocky Mountains • thence northward along the said crest of the Rocky Mountains to its intersection with the forty-fourth degree and thirty minutes of north lati tude; thence eastward along eaid forty-fourth degree thirty minutes of north latitude to the thirty-fourth degree of longitude west from Washington ; thence north along said thirty-fourth degree of longitude to its intersection with the forty-fifth degree of north latitude ; thence east along said forty-fifth degree of north latitude to its intersection with the twenty seventh degree of longitude 'crest from Washington; thence south along said twenty-seventh degree of longitude west from Washington to the forty-first de gree of north latitude ; thence west along said forty. first degree of latitude to the place of beginning.