Black Hawk War: Encyclopedia - Black Hawk War

Black Hawk War

The Black Hawk War was fought in 1832 in the Midwestern section of the United States. The war was named for Black Hawk, the leader of a band of Sauk and Fox Indians, who fought against the U.S. Army and Illinois militia for possession of lands in the area.

Black Hawk War - Background

In 1804, William Henry Harrison, Governor of Indiana Territory (which then included what would become Illinois), negotiated a treaty in St. Louis with a group of Sauk and Fox leaders, in which they ceded lands east of the Mississippi in exchange for $1,000 per year and the condition that the tribes could continue to reside there until the land was surveyed and sold by the U.S. government. ^[1]

However, this treaty was subsequently disputed by Black Hawk and other members of the tribes, since the full tribal councils had not been consulted. After the War of 1812, in which Black Hawk had fought against the U.S., he signed a peace treaty in May 1816 that re-affirmed the treaty of 1804, a provision of which Black Hawk later protested ignorance. While Black Hawk was away during the War of 1812, Keokuk had been selected as his replacement as war chief of the Sauks, and the two men became rivals.

The white population of Illinois exploded after the War of 1812, exceeding 50,000 in 1820 and 150,000 in 1830. In 1825, thirteen Sauks and six Foxes signed another agreement re-affirming the 1804 treaty. In 1828, the U.S. government liaison, Thomas Forsyth, informed the tribes that they should begin vacating their settlements east of the Mississippi.

On July 15, 1830, U.S. Indian Commissioner William Clark signed a treaty with Sauk and Fox leaders at Fort Crawford in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin ^[2]. The treaty ceded about 26,500,000 acres (107,000 km²) of Sauk land east of the Mississippi to the government of the United States. It also created a "Neutral Ground" boundary between the Sauk and Foxes and their traditional enemies, the Sioux, for the purpose of preventing future hostilities between the tribes. The treaty was signed by Keokuk, and in November 1830 was approved by the Dakota Sioux.^[3]

Black Hawk War - Return of Black Hawk

The land included the village of Saukenok, at the junction of the Mississippi and Rock Rivers, which had been home to Black Hawk and his band of Sauk and Fox Indians for more than 150 years. In the fall of 1830, when Black Hawk and his followers returned from their hunt, they found white settlers occupying their village. Black Hawk did not sanction the sale of this land and was determined to regain the village; after a year of tension, he returned again in 1831, and Illinois Governor John Reynolds proclaimed it an "invasion of the state".

Responding to Governor Reynolds' call General Edmund Pendleton Gaines brought his army troops from St. Louis, Missouri to Saukenuk to insist upon Black Hawk's immediate departure. Black Hawk refused, and was driven across the Mississippi by Gaines' troops and an additional 1,400 militia called up by Reynolds. At this point, Black Hawk signed a surrender agreement in which he promised to remain west of the Mississippi. This did not last long, however.

On April 6, 1832, chafing under the rule of Keokuk and stirred up by promises of British support by Sauk chief Neapope and of welcome by the Winnebago prophet White Cloud in Illinois, Black Hawk and his band of 1,000 returned to Illinois in an attempt to reclaim their homeland. The Governor, considering this an invasion, mobilized the militia of 1,600 men and called for additional support from U.S. troops. Brevet Brigadier General Henry Atkinson was given charge for prosecuting the war. Federal authorities, along with Sauk and Fox tribal councils, ordered Black Hawk and his band west of the Mississippi, but they refused to leave. Soon after, Black Hawk was informed that none of the Illinois Indian tribes, or the Canadian goverment, would aid his band. Facing starvation, Black Hawk decided to surrender, and returned across the Mississippi. By that time, however, events had overtaken him.

Black Hawk War - Hostilities

The governor issued a proclamation on April 16, mustering five brigades of volunteers to form at Beardstown and to head north to force Black Hawk out of Illinois. Although federal U.S. army troops were also involved, the militia, which by the end of the war reached 9,000 men, were the majority. On May 9, the militia began an aggressive pursuit, finally coming into contact with Black Hawk and his warriors on the Rock River near Dixon on May 14. When the militia fired upon them, the warriors returned fire and killed 11 militiamen in the Battle of Stillman's Run. Although the militia numbered 300, they fled after the initial volley and returned home with news that 2,000 "bloodthirsty warriors were sweeping all Northern Illinois with the bosom of destruction." After this initial skirmish, Black Hawk led his band to the Michigan Territory. He knew that the whites would seek revenge for the debacle at Stillman's Run.

On May 19, the militia traveled up the Rock River in search of Black Hawk. Several small skirmishes ensued when they encountered the Indians raiding the Illinois settlements of Ottawa and Galena. Following these skirmishes, the governor recruited additional militia forces, raising the number to 4,000. With the one-month enlistment for militia already expired, the Governor mustered them out of service on May 27 and May 28. The Federal Government then ordered General Winfield Scott with 1,000 regulars and 300 mounted volunteers to resume the chase. For the moment it looked as though Atkinson's role in this campaign would end soon, but a cholera epidemic struck much the United States. Windfield Scott's troops would bring it over from the east into Illinois.

Black Hawk War - Cholera

General Scott assembled a force of 1000 federal troops. They embarked on boats from Buffalo, New York, making their way towards Chicago. To everyone's horror, cholera was reported among the troops. The expedition was doomed. Troops became ill and many of them died. At each place the vessels landed, the sick were deposited, only to further spread the illness to other parts of the country . By the time the expedition landed in Chicago, only two hundred troops were effective. Scott felt the need to cancel his plans for an immediate march into the war zone. Instead he waited for reinforcements, supplies, and tended to his fallen men. Winfield Scott would arrive too late for military action, but he would still play an important part in drafting the terms of peace. But for the moment, Atkinson was given a second chance to capture Black Hawk.

Black Hawk War - Final confrontation

From the end of June to the beginning of August, the federal troops pursued Black Hawk and his band throughout northern Illinois, and into what is now Wisconsin. They remained hot on his trail, but always seemed to remain two to three days behind.

On August 1, with his band depleted and hungry, Black Hawk reached the Mississippi River near the mouth of the Bad Axe River. The Steamboat Warrior, a vessel which had been chartered by the U.S. Army approached the band and opened fire, even after Black Hawk waved a white flag of surrender. Leaving dozens dead, the steamboat returned to port for more ammunition. Black Hawk proceeded to guide his followers northwards, but many refused to follow. Those left on the banks of the Mississipi prepared to cross the river. On August 2 the army finally reached Bad Axe, and converging on all sides, the remaining Sauk were attacked. The following battle turned into a massacre. About 300 of Black Hawk's band were killed, with hundreds more taken prisoner. Eight American soldiers were killed. Those that did escape across the river were soon attacked by the Sioux, an old enemy of the Sauk.

On August 27 Black Hawk surrendered, and was delivered to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. On September 21, a peace treaty was signed with the Sauk and Fox Tribes and Black Hawk was placed in the custody of Keokuk, the same man who sold the two years earlier. Black Hawk never again attempted to regain his homeland.

Black Hawk War - Aftermath

The Black Hawk War of 1832 resulted in the deaths of 70 settlers and soldiers, and hundreds of Black Hawk's band. The war not only affected the lives of the Indians, settlers, and militiamen involved, but also the settlement of Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. The Black Hawk War was responsible for the end of conflict between settlers and Indians in both states.

One of the Illinois militia, Captain Abraham Lincoln, eventually rose to prominence in national politics becoming President of the United States.

Other notable participants were:

Jefferson Davis, future president of the Confederate States of America.

Major Robert Anderson, commander of Fort Sumter at the start of the American Civil War.

William S. Hamilton son of Alexander Hamilton. William recruited Indian Allies for the U.S. during the war.

Albert Sidney Johnston , would later join the Confederate States of America.

See also

• Battle of Bad Axe
• Black Hawk Purchase
• Indian Campaign Medal

Black Hawk War - Notes

1. ^  INDIAN AFFAIRS: LAWS AND TREATIES. Vol. 2, Treaties. URL accessed on 2005-12-23.
2. ^  INDIAN AFFAIRS: LAWS AND TREATIES. Vol. 2, Treaties. URL accessed on 2005-12-23.
3. ^  Hurt, R. Douglas, The Indian Frontier: 1763-1846 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2002), pp. 176-7.

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