Born to a Sioux mother and a German American father, Benjamin Reifel was the first congressman from the Sioux nation. After graduating from South Dakota State, Reifel worked for the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs where he helped tribes set up their government. In 1960, Reifel was the first American Indian from South Dakota to serve in Congress. Throughout his career, Benjamin worked to better schools and hospitals on Indian reservations, also advocated for reservation and county schools be merged as one so that Native and non-Native children would be educated together.
Additional Resource(s):
- “Hilton M. Briggs Library.” South Dakota State University, https://www.sdstate.edu/hilton-m-briggs-library.
- “Notable Native Americans: Ben Reifel - American Indian Education Foundation.” A Program of Partnership With Native Americans, http://www.nativepartnership.org/site/PageServer?pagename=aief_hist_nna_benreifel.
- “The Life of Ben Reifel.” South Dakota State University, https://www.sdstate.edu/sdsu-archive and special-collections/life-ben-reifel.
Image Citation:
“The Life of Ben Reifel.” South Dakota State University, https://www.sdstate.edu/sdsu-archives-and-special-collections/life-ben-reifel.