History of Tama County, Iowa, together with sketches of their towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history, portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 3

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1088

USA > Iowa > Tama County > History of Tama County, Iowa, together with sketches of their towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history, portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 3

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When Marquette visited this country in 1673, the Illini were a very powerful people, occupying a large portion of the State; but when the country was again visited by the whites, not a remnant of that once powerful tribe remained on the west side of the Mississippi, and Iowa was principally in the possession of the

Sacs and Foxes, a warlike tribe which, originally two distinct nations, residing in New York and on the waters of the St. Lawrence, had gradually fought their way westward, and united, probably after the Foxes had been driven out of the Fox River country in 1846, and crossed the Mississippi. The death of Pontiac, a famous Sac chieftain, was made the pre- text for war against the Illini, and a fierce and bloody struggle ensued, which con- tinned until the Illini were nearly de- stroyed, and their hunting grounds pos- sessed by their victorious foes. The Iowas also occupied a portion of the State, for a time, in common with the Sacs, but they, too, were nearly destroyed by the Sacs and Foxes, and in " The Beautiful Land " these natives met their equally warlike foes, the northern Sioux, with whom they maintained a constant warfare for the pos- session of the country for many years.

In 1803, when Louisiana was purchased by the United States, the Sacs, Foxes and Iowas possessed the entire State of Iowa, and the two former tribes, also, occupied most of Illinois.

HISTORY OF IOWA.

The Sacs had four principal villages, where most of them resided. Their largest and most important town-if an Indian village may be called such-and from which emanated most of the ob- stacles encountered by the Government in the extinguishment of Indian titles to land in this region, was on Rock river, near Rock Island ; another was on the east ba k of the Mississippi, near the mouth of Henderson river; the third was at the head of the Des Moines Rap- ids, near the present site of Montrose ; and the fourth was near the mouth of the upper Iowa.

The Foxes had three principal villages. One was on the west side of the Missis- sippi, six miles abovo the rapids of Rock river; another was about twelve miles from the river, in the rear of the Dubuque lead mines ; and the third was on Turkey river.

The Iowas, at one time identified with the Sacs of Rock river, had withdrawn from them and become a separate tribe. Their principal village was on the Des Moines river, in Van Buren county, on the site where Iowaville now stands. Here the last great battle between the Sacs and Foxes and the lowas was fonght, in which Black Hawk, then a young man, com- manded one division of the attacking f. rces. The following account of the bat- tle has been given:

"Contrary to long established custom of Indian attack, this battle was commenced in the day-time, the attending circum- stances justifying this departure from the well-settled usages of Indian warfare. The battle-field was a level river bottom, about four miles in length, and two miles wide

near the middle, narrowing to a point at either end. The main area of this bottom rises perhaps twenty feet above the river, leaving a narrow strip of low bottom along the shore, covered with trees that belted the prairie on the river side with a thick forest, and the immediate bank of the river was fringed with a dense growth of wil- low. Near the lower end of this prairie, near the river bank, was situated the Iowa village. About two miles above it and near the middle of the prairie is a mound, covered at the time with a tuft of small trees and underbrush growing on its sum- mit. In the rear of this little elevation or mound lay a belt of wet prairie, covered, at that time, with a dense growth of rank, coarse grass. Bordering this wet prairie on the north, the country rises abruptly into elevated broken river bluffs, covered with a heavy forest for many miles in ex- tent, and in places thiekly clustered with undergrowth, affording convenient shelter for the stealthy approach of the foe.

"Through this forest the Sac and Fox war party made their way in the night, and secreted themselves in the tall grass spoken of above, intending to remain in ambush during the day and make such observa- tions as this near proximity to their in- tended victims might afford, to aid them in their contemplated attack on the town during the following night. From this situation their spies could take a full sur- vey of the village, and watch every move- ment of the inhabitants, by which means they were soon convinced that the Iowas had no suspicion of their presence.

"At the foot of the mound above men- tioned the Iowas had their race course, where they diverted themselves with the

HISTORY OF IOWA.

excitement of horse-racing, and schooled their young warriors in cavalry evolutions. In these exercises mock battles were fought, and the Indian tactics of attack and defense carefully inculcated, by which means a skill in horsemanship was acquired that is rarely excelled. Unfortunately for them this day was selected for their equestrian sports, and, wholly unconscious of the proximity of their foes, the warriors re- paired to the race-ground, leaving most of their arms in the village, and their old men, women and children unprotected.

"Pash-a-po-po, who was chief in com- mand of the Sacs and Foxes, perceived at once the advantage this state of things afforded for a complete surprise of his now doomed victims, and ordered Black Hawk to file off with his young warriors through the tall grass and gain the cover of the timber along the river bank, and with the utmost speed reach the village and com- mence the battle, while he remained with his division in the ambush to make a sim- ultaneous assault on the unarmed men whose attention was engrossed with the excitement of the races. The plan was skillfully laid and most dexterously exe- cuted. Black Hawk with his forces reached the village undiscovered, and made a furious onslaught upon the de- fenseless inhabitants by firing one general volley into their midst, and completing the slaughter with the tomahawk and scalping- knife, aided by the devouring flames with which they enveloped the village as soon as the fire-brand could be spread from lodge to lodge.

"On the instant of the report of fire-arms at the village, the forces under Pash-a-po-po leaped from their couchant position in the

grass, and sprang, tiger-like, upon the un- armed Iowas in the midst of their racing sports. The first impulse of the latter natur- ally led them to make the utmost speed to- ward their arms in the village, and protect, if possible, their wives and children from the attack of their merciless assailants. The distance from the place of attack on the prairie was two miles, and a great number fell in their flight by the bullets and tomahawks of their enemies, who pressed them closely with a running fire the whole way, and the survivors only reached their town in time to witness the horrors of its destruction. Their whole village was in flames, and the dearest objects of their lives lay in slaughtered heaps amidst the devouring element, and the agonizing groans of the dying, mingled with the exulting shouts of the victorious foe, filled their hearts with maddening despair. Their wives and children who had been spared the general massacre were prisoners, and together with their arms in the hands of their victors; and all that could now be done was to draw off their shattered and defenseless forces, and save as many lives as possible by a retreat across the Des Moines river, which they effected in the best possible manner, and took a position among the Soap Creek hills."

Previous to the settlement of their vil- lage on Rock river, the Sacs and Foxes had a fierce conflict with the Winnebagos, subdued them and took possession of their lands. At one time this village contained upward of 60 lodges, and was among the largest Indian villages on the continent. The number of Sacs and Foxes in 1825 was estimated by the Secretary of War to

HISTORY OF IOWA.

be 4,600. Their village was situated in the immediate vicinity of the upper rapids of the Mississippi, where the flourishing towns of Rock Island and Davenport are now situated. The extensive prairies dotted over with groves, the beautiful scenery, the picturesque bluffs along the river banks, the rich and fertile soil pro- ducing large crops of corn, squash and other vegetables with little labor, the abundance of wild fruit, game, fish, and almost every- thing calculated to make it a delightful spot for an Indian village, which was found there, had made this place a favorite home of the Saes, and secured for it the strong attachment and veneration of the whole nation.

The Sioux located their hunting grounds north of the Sacs and Foxes. They were a fierce and warlike nation, who often dis- puted possessions with their rivals in savage and bloody warfare. The possessions of these tribes were mostly located in Minne- sota, but extended over a portion of Northern and Western lowa to the Mis- souri river. Their descent from the north upon the hunting grounds of Iowa fre- quently brought them into collision with the Saes and Foxes, a' d after many a con- flict and bloody struggle, a boundary line was established between them by the Government of the United States, in a treaty held at Prairie du Chien in 1>25. Instead of settling the difficulties, this caused them to quarrel ail the more, in consequence of alleged trespasses upon each other's side of the line. So bitter and unre'enting became these contests, that, in 1830, the Government purchased of the respective tribes of the Saes and Foxes, and the Sioux, a strip of land twenty miles

wide on both sides of the line, thus throw- ing them forty miles apart by creating a "neutral ground," and commanded them to cease their hostilities. They were, however, allowed to fish and hut on the ground unmolested, provided they did not interfere with each other on United States territory.

Soon after the acquisition of Louisiana, the United States Government adopted measures for the exploration of the new Territory, having in view the conciliation of the numerous tribes of Indians by whom it was possessed, and a so the se- lection of proper sites for the establish- ment of military posts and trading sta- tions. The Army of the West, Gen. Wil- kinson commanding, had its headquarters at St. Louis. From this post Captains Lewis and ('larke, with a sufficient force, were detailed to explore the unknown sources of the Missouri, and Lient. Zebu- lon M. l'ike to ascend to the head waters of the Mississippi. Lient. Pike, with one sergeant, two corporals and seven- teen privates, left the military camp, near St. Louis, in a keel boat, with four months' rations, August 9th, 1805. On the 20.h of the same month the expedition arrived within the present limits of Iowa, at the foot of the Des Moines Rapids, where Pike met William Ewing, who had just been appointed Indian Agent at this point, a French interpreter, four chiefs, fifteen Sacs and Fox warriors. At the head of the rapids, where Montrose is now situated, Pike held a council with the Indians, in which he addressed them sub- stantially as follows:

"Your great father, the President of the United States, wishes to be more intimately

IHISTORY OF IOWA.

acquainted with the situation and wants of the different nations of Red people in our newly acquired Territory of Louis- iana, and has ordered the General to send a number of his warriors in different directions to take them by the hand and make such inquiries as might afford the satisfaction required."

At the close of the council he presented the Red Men with some knives, tobacco and whisky. On the 23d of August he arrived at what is supposed, from his de- scription, to be the site of the present city of Burlington, which he selected as the location of a military post. He describes the place as "being on a hill, about forty miles above the River de Moyne Rapids, on the west side of the river, in latitude about 40 deg. 21 min. north. The channel of the river runs on that shore. The hill in front is about 60 feet perpendicular, and nearly level at the top. Ahout 400 yards in the rear is a small prairie, fit for gardening, and immediately under the hill is a limestone spring, sufficient for the consumption of a whole regiment." In addition to this description, which corres- ponds to Burlington, the spot is laid down on his map at a hend in the river a short distance below the month of the Hender- son, which pours its waters into the Mis- sissippi from Illinois. The fort was built at Fort Madison, but from the distance, latitude, description and map furnished by Pike, it could not have been the place se- lected by him, while all the circumstances corroborate the opinion that the place he selected was the spot where Burlington is now located, called by the early voyagers on the Mississippi " Flint Hills " In c. m- pany with one of his men, Pike went on

shore on a hunting expedition, and follow- ing a stream which they supposed to be a part of the Mississippi, they were led away from their course. Owing to the intense heat and tall grass, his two favorite dogs, which he had taken with him, became ex- hausted, and he left them on the prairie, supposing that they would follow him as soon as they should get rested, and went on to overtake his boat. After reaching the river he waited some time for his canine friends, but they did not come, and as he deemed it inexpedient to detain the boat longer, two of his men volunteered to go in pursuit of them, and he continued on his way up the river, expecting that the two men would soon overtake him They lost their way, however, and for six days were without food, except a few morsels gathered from the stream, and might have perished had they not accidentally met a trader from St. Louis, who induced two Indians to take them up the river, and they overtook the boat at Dubuque. At the latter place Pike was cordially received by Julien Dubuque, a Frenchman, who held a mining claim under a grant from Spain. He had an old field piece, and fired a salute in honor of the advent of the first Amer- ican who had visited that part of the Ter- ritory. He was not, however, disposed to publish the wealth of his mines, and the young and evidently inquisitive officer obtained but little information from him.

Upon leaving this place, Pike pursued his way up the river, but as he passed beyond the limits of the present State of Iowa, a detailed history of his explora- tions does not properly belong to this vol- ume. It is sufficient to say that, on the site of Fort Snelling, Minnesota, he held a

HISTORY OF IOWA.

council with the Sioux, Sept. 23, and ob- tained from them a grant of 100,000 acres of land. Jan. 8, 1806, he arrived at a tra l- ing post belonging to the Northwest Com- pany, on Lake De Sable, in latitude 47 °. This company at that time carried on their immense operations from Hudson's Bay to the St. Lawrence ; up that river, on both sides along the great lakes, to the head of Lake Superior, thence to the sources of the Red River of the North, and west to the Rocky Mountains, embracing within the scope of their operations what was subse- quently the State of Iowa. After suc- cessfully accomplishing his mission and performing a valuable service to the whole Northwest, Pike returned to St. Louis, ar- riving there April 30, 1806 ..

Before the Territory of Iowa could be open to settlement by the whites, it was necessary that the Indian title should be extinguished and the original owners re- moved. The Territory had been pur- chaved by the United States, but was still occupied by the Indians, who claimed title to the soil by right of possession. In order to accomplish this purpose, large sums of money were expended, besides the frontier being disturbed by Indian wars, terminated repeatedly by treaty, only to be renewed by some act of oppression on the part of the whites, or some violation of treaty stipulation.

When the United States assumed con- trol of the country, by virtue of the Louis- iana purchase, n arly the whole State was in possession of the Sacs and Foxes, a powerful and warlike nation, who were not disposed to submit without a struggle to what they considered the encroachment of the pale faces. Among the most noted

chiefs, and one whose restlessness and hatred of the Americans occasioned more trouble to the Government than any other of his tribe, was Black Hawk, who was born at the Sac Village, on Rock river, in 1767. He was simply the chief of his own band of Sac warriors; but by his energy and ambition he became the leading spirit of the united nation of Sacs and Foxes, and one of the prominent figures in the history of the country from 1804 till his death.

In early manhood he attained distinc- tion as a fighting chief, having led cam- paigns against the Osages and other neigh- boring tribes. About the beg nning of the present century he began to appear prominent in affairs on the Mississippi. llis life was a marvel. He is said by some to have been the victim of a narrow prejudice and bitter ill-will against the Americans.

Upon the cession of Spain to France, in 1801, it did not give up possession of the country, but retained it, and by the au- thority of France transferred it to the United States in 1804. At that time Black Hawk and his band were in St. Louis, and were invited to be present and witness the transfer; but he refused the invitation, and it is but just to say that this refusal was caused probably more from regret that the Indians were to be transferred from the jurisdiction of the Spanish authorities than from any special hatred toward the Americans. In his life he says: "I found many sad and gloomy faces because the United States were about to take possession of the town and country. Soon after the Americans came I took my hind and went to take leave of my Spanish

HISTORY OF IOWA.

father. The Americans came to see him also. Seeing them approach, we passed out of one door as they entered an- other, and immediately started in our canves for our village on Rock river, not liking the change any better than our friends appeared to at St. Louis On arriving at our village, we gave the news that strange people had arrived at St. Louis, and that we should never see our Spanish father again. The information made all our people sorry."

November 3, 1804, a treaty was con- eluded between William Henry Harrison, then Governor of Indiana Territory, on behalf of the United States, and five chiefs of the Sac and Fox nation, by which the latter, in consideration of 82,234 worth of goods then delivered, and a yearly annuity of $1,000 to be paid in goods at just cost, ceded to the United States all that land on the east side of the Mississippi, extending from a point opposite the Jefferson, in Missouri, to the Wisconsin river, embra- cing an area of over 51,000,000 of acres. To this treaty Black Hawk always objected, and always refused to consider it binding upon his people. He asserted that the chiefs or braves who made it had no au- thority to relinquish the title of the nation to any of the lands they held or 'oecu- pied, and, moreover, that they had been sent to St. Louis on quite a different errand, namely: to get one of their people released, who had been imprisoned at St. Louis for killing a white man.

In 1805 Lieutenant Pike came up the river for the purpose of holding friendly councils with the Indians and selecting sites for forts within the territory recently acquired from France by the United

States. Lieut. Pike seems to have been the first American whom Black Hawk ever met or had a personal interview with, and he seemed very much prepossessed in his favor. He gives the following account of his visit to Roek Island: "A boat came up the river with a young American chief and a small party of soldiers. We heard of them soon after we passed Salt river. Some of our young braves watched them every day to see what sort of people he had on board. The boat at length arrived at Rock river, and the young chief came on shore with his interpreter, made a speech and gave us some presents We in turn presented him with meat and such other provisions as we had to spare. We were well pleased with the young chief; he gave us good advice, and said our American father would treat us well."

Fort Edwards was erected soon after Pike's expedition, at what is now Warsaw, Illinois, also Fort Madison, on the site of the present town of that name, the latter being the first fort erected in Iowa. These movements occasioned great nieasiness among the Indians. When work was commeneed on Fort Edwards, a delegation from their nation, headed by some of their chiefs, went down to see what the Ameri- eans were doing, and had an interview with the commander, after which they returned home and were apparently satis- fied. In like manner, when Fort Madison was being erected, they sent down another delegation from a council of the nation held at Rock river. According to Blaek Hawk's account, the American chief told them that he was building a house for a trader, who was coming to sell them goods cheap, and that the soldiers were coming

HISTORY OF IOWA.

to keep him company-a statement which Black Hawk says they distrusted at the time, believing that the fort was an en- eroachment upon their rights, and designed to aid it getting their lands away from them. It is claimed, by good authority, that the building of Fort Madison was a violation of the treaty of 1804. By the 11th article of that treaty, the United States had a right to build a fort near the mouth of the Wisconsin river, and by article 6 they had bound themselves "that if any citizen of the United States or any other white persons should form a settle- ment upon their lands, such intruders should forthwith be removed." Probably the authorities of the United States did not regard the establishment of military posts as coming properly within the meaning of the term "settlement" as used in the treaty. At all events, they erected Fort Madison within the territory reserved to the Indi- ans, who became very indignaut.

Very soon after the fort was built, a party led by Black Hawk attempted its destruction. They sent spies to watch the movements of the garrison, who ascer- tained that the soldiers were in the habit of marching out of the fort every morning and evening for parade, and the plan of the party was to conceal themselves near the fort, and attack and surprise them when they were outside. On the morning of the proposed day of the att ck, five soldiers came out, and were fired upon by the Indians, two of them being killed. The Indians were too hasty in their move- ment, for the parade had not commenced. However, they kept up the attack several days, attempting the old Fox strategy of setting fire to the fort with blazing arrows;

but finding their efforts unavailing, they soon gave up and returned to Rock river.

In 1812, when war was declared between this country and Great Britain, Black Hawk and his band allied themselves with the British, partly because he was dazzled by their specious promises, but more prob- ably because they were deceived by the Americans. Black Hawk himself declared that they were forced into war by being deceived. Ile narrates the circumstances as follows: "Several of the head men and chiefs of the Sacs and Foxes were called upon to go to Washington to see their Great Father. On their return they re- lated what had been said and done. They said the Great Father wished them, in the event of a war taking place with England, not to interfere on either side, but to re- main neutral He did not want our help, but wished us to hunt and support our families, and live in peace. He said that British traders would not be permitted to come on the Mississippi to furnish us with goods, but that we should be supplied with an American trader. Our chiefs then told him that the British traders always gave them credit in the fall for guns, powder and goods, to enable us to hunt and clothe our families. He repeated that the traders at Fort Madison would have plenty of goods; that we should go there in the fall and he would supply us on credit, as the British traders had done." Black Hawk seems to have accepted the proposition, and he and his people were very much pleased. Act- ing in good faith, they fitted out for their winter's hunt, and went to Fort Madison in high spirits to receive from the trader their outfit of supplies; but after waiting some time, they were told by the trader

HISTORY OF IOWA.

that he would not trust them. In vain they pleaded the promise of their Great Father at Washington; the trader was inexorable. Disappointed and crest fallen, the Indians turned sadly to their own vil- lage. Says Black Hawk: "Few of us slept that night. All was gloom and discon- tent. In the morning a canoe was seen ascending the river; it soon arrived bear- ing an express, who brought inte ligence that a British trader had landed at Rock Island with two boats filled with goods, and requested us to come up immediately, be- cause he had good news for us, and a variety of presents. The express presented us with tobacco, pipes and wampum. The news ran through our camp like fire on a prairie. Our lodges were soon taken down and all started for Rock Island. Here ended all our hopes of remaining at peace, having been forced into the war by being deceived." He joined the British, who flattered him, and styled him "Gen. Blaek Hawk," decked him with medals, excited his jealousy against the Americans, and armed his band; but he met with defeat and disappointment, and soon abandoned the service and came home.

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History of Tama County, Iowa, together with sketches of their towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history, portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 3

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company Number of Pages: 1088

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1088