Located on the edge of Montevideo, just off Highway 212, the Camp Release Monument stands as a reminder of Minnesota's early state history. The Minnesota River Valley and Montevideo played an integral part in the United States - Dakota Conflict of 1862. In the fall of 1862, the Dakota tribes surrendered to Colonel Henry Sibley on a bluff overlooking the valley and the present day site of Montevideo.

The Camp Release Monument was dedicated on July 4, 1894, commemorating the release of 269 captives and the surrender of about 1200 Dakota people at the end of the conflict. The four faces of the 51-foot granite monument are inscribed with information about the battles that took place along the Minnesota River during the conflict, the Dakota's surrender, and the creation of the monument.