Memorial ride: On December 26, 1862, shortly before his famous emancipation speech, President Lincoln ordered 38 Santee Sioux warriors executed for protecting their land. It is said Lincoln wanted 300 executed, but 38 warriors stepped forward so their people could live. Every year Sioux riders and their horses weather the elements to honor the 38 Dakota warriors massacred by hanging in Mankato, Minnesota, in what was then the largest mass execution in the history of United States.