Wacouta I (Shooter) (c. 1800–1858) was a leader of the Red Wing band of Mdewakanton Dakota during the time of United States expansion into his people's homeland.
He needed to fend off challenges from rivals within his village and also find success in dealings with United States government officials.
[1] On March 4, 1829, the death of Tatankamani (Walking Buffalo), a widely respected Mdewakanton chief, left a vacuum in the leadership of his band.
Younger men led by Mahpiyamaza (Iron Cloud), a warrior more in the mold of Red Wing, questioned his friendships with whites and his leadership.
However, clashes between the two factions continued and in 1832 the Red Wing band split into two groups led by Wacouta and Mahpiyamaza.
[1] In 1838, Wacouta and Mahpiyamaza brought their two factions back to Red Wing where they continued to live separately due to ongoing tensions.
A series of missionaries, including Samuel and Persis Dentan, John and Nancy Aiton, and Joseph and Maria Hancock, were sent to work with the Red Wing band beginning in the late 1830s.
[1] In 1851 a U.S. delegation led by Luke Lea, Commissioner of Indian Affairs and Alexander Ramsey, Minnesota's territorial governor, asked to meet with regional Dakota leaders.