The Sauk and Fox tribes originally lived along the Great Lakes, but had been displaced in the 18th century and resettled along the Mississippi River in Iowa and Illinois. During the time of this War, they numbered about 6,000 people. In 1804, Indiana governor William Henry Harrison negotiated a treaty with members of the tribes to cede their land for about $2,000 in trade goods. This treaty was disputed for several reasons. First, the men signing on behalf of the Sauk and Fox were not chiefs or leaders duly authorized to sign for the tribe. Second, there may have been misunderstandings about what the treaty called for, since thousands of acres shouldn't have been sold for such a paltry amount. Hoping to avoid trouble for now, the Government signed a further treaty in 1816, which gave the Sauk and Fox the right to live on the land until the Government was ready to survey it and open it up for settlement. That day came in 1828 when Indian Agent Thomas Forsyth informed the tribes that they would have to prepare to move West.The Sauk and Fox were divided. Some coalesced around an orator named Keokuk who, although he believed the 1804 treaty was a fraud, was convinced of the futility of fighting the United States. Others gathered around Black Hawk, a war leader though not a chief, who had signed the 1816 version of the treaty but believed that he had not been told the full ramifications of what he was signing, which he likely wasn't. Black Hawk and his followers determined to hold onto Saukenuk, the Sauks principal town in Illinois, where he had been born and lived his entire life. When the tribe returned from their winter hunt, they found the town occupied by Settlers waiting for their deeds from the government to come through. After several months of clashes, Black Hawk told Forsyth that he would give up Saukenuk and left for Iowa.
Black Hawk changed his mind and, in 1830, led his people back to Saukenuk, joined by 200 Kickapoos. They had begun flying the British flag as a taunt to the Americans, and had heard rumors of possible support from British Canada, which never materialized. For this reason, they are known as the British Band. When they again returned to Saukenuk in 1831, Black Hawk's group included Potawatomi and had grown to 1500 warriors. The Americans began assembling troops with the goal of intimidating Black Hawk into going back to Iowa and staying there. On June 26, 1831, the Americans surrounded Saukenuk, only to find that it had been abandoned. They later signed an agreement with Black Hawk to leave Illinois, remove his people west of the Mississippi and to have no further dealings with Canada.
Meanwhile, Neapope, who was a civil chief of the Sauk, returned from Fort Malden (Amherstberg) in Ontario, Canada, telling Black Hawk they had the support of other Illinois tribes and British authorities in Canada. To this day, no one knows on what basis Neapope thought he had this level of support. Black Hawk again began trying to recruit allies, which for the most part didn't materialize. Then, word reached Black Hawk that a Winnebago visionary and Sauk civil chief known as Wabokieshiek also claimed that other tribes were ready to support the movement. Black Hawk's movement did recruit Winnebagos (Ho-Chunk), Meskwakis, Kickapoos and Potawatomis who were dissatisfied with their leaders for not standing up the White aggression, but they weren't as many as Black Hawk had hoped. Black Hawk led his followers back to Illinois in 1832. Some believed that he was intended to reoccupy Saukenuk. Others, that he intended to head for Wabokieshiek's village at Prophertstown.. Black Hawk himself may have been ambivalent about which of these two objectives he really sought. Because his force contained, in addition to 500 warriors, about 600 women and children, he did not consider it a war party and most likely was heading to Prophetstown, which he believed was allowed by the agreement he had signed.
The Americans, though, considered this a war party and an act of aggression. The Jackson administration had come to power and Indian Agents who were known to the Natives and might have calmed the situation, such as Thomas Forsyth, were dismissed in favor of Jackson appointees ready to take his hard line despite not knowing conditions on the ground. These new men were willing to take advantage of inter-tribal rivalries and recruited other Winnebago and Potawatomi, along with Dakota (Sioux), and Menominee allies willing to fight against Black Hawk in exchange for, they hoped, concessions regarding their own lands. The Government had troops in the area to detain the Meskwaki, who had recently been involved in clashes with the Menominee, when it realized it had a larger situation on its hands. The commander wrote to the Governor of Illinois, requesting militia. Among the men who mobilized at Beardstown was a 23-year-old lawyer named Abraham Lincoln.
The local commander decided to send emissaries to Black Hawk, which he rejected. At this point, Col. Zachary Taylor, also a future present, was sent to handle the problem. While the Americans were sorting themselves out, so were the Natives. Tribes and bands of tribes split in a confusing array of coalitions and alliances, as some leaders tried to keep their people out of the war and others, or individuals and groups of other tribes, went over to Black Hawk. The Potawatomi were in the most difficult position of all. Because many people in the area remembered the Battle of Fort Dearborn in 1812, they deeply distrusted the Potawatomi and their leaders who were trying to keep their people out of the war. Repercussions would fall disastrously on this tribe, but more on that later. Black Hawk decided that the time had come to negotiate a peaceful resolution, but fate was against him.
On May 12, 1832, a force of troops and militia advancing along the Rock River realized that Black Hawk's band wasn't far away and decided the time had come to strike. The militia, who had been sent forward to reconnoiter the enemy, decided instead to open fire in an encounter that became known as the Battle of Stillman's Run, near present-day Stillman Valley, Illinois. Accounts differ as to why the battle started, but both sides agreed that Black Hawk attacked the militia camp at dusk, pulling off an incredible surprise. Twelve militia were killed, while Black Hawk lost only 3 men. Whatever had been Black Hawk's initial intent in coming back to Illinois, he was now involved in a war. Black Hawk found refuge for the non-inhabitants as skirmishes broke out between troops, militia and settlers and members of Black Hawk's band. Despite efforts of their leaders to keep them out of the conflict, individual Winnebago and Potawatomi also engaged in raiding, one such raid killing the Government's Indian Agent and further inflaming the situation. As Settlers and neutral Natives fled, mostly toward Chicago, and Illinois militia deserted to protect their families, the American forces scrambled over and over again to reorganize.
Skirmishes continued through June, including an attack on June 14, 1832 near present-day South Wayne, Wisconsin, where 30 warriors attacked a group of farmers, killing several. A force of troops and militia met more of Black Hawk's band on June 16, 1832, near a bend in the Pecatonica River named, ironically, Horseshoe Bend. They inflicted a defeat on the Natives, strengthening the American side of the fight. On that same day, at Kellogg's Grove in present-day Stephenson County, Illinois, American troops scored another victory over a raiding party, following it up at Waddame Grove two days later. On June 24, 1832, Black Hawk and 200 warriors attacked the partially-constructed fort at Apple Grove, near present-day Elizabeth, Illinois. The Natives were gaining the upper hand, but Black Hawk called off the attack. He did so again the next day during another skirmish at Kellogg's Grove, when his forces had militiamen under siege at a fortification there before Black Hawk retreated again. Running low on food and ammunition, Black Hawk decided to retreat into Wisconsin.
Andrew Jackson ordered General Winfield Scott to take command. Scott gathered about 950 men and began a journey across the Great Lakes toward Chicago. His men became sick with cholera en route, rendering most of them useless. When he landed in Chicago, Scott had about 350 men left. Meanwhile the local commander, knowing that he was soon to be replaced and potentially fired altogether, worked his sources among the Potawatomi and Winnebago, who were now willing to cooperate with the Americans. They hoped, wrongly, that their cooperation would save them from U.S. retaliation after the War was over. While American troops marched toward where they though Black Hawk's non-combatants were located, a Metis trader informed them that Black Hawk was camped on the Wisconsin River near present-day Hustisford, Wisconsin. Black Hawk's band, weakened by death, wounds, desertion and illness, fled from the approaching Americans.
On July 21, 1832, the Americans caught up with Black Hawk at present-day Sauk City, Wisconsin. As their people scrambled to cross the river, Black Hawk and Neapope faced the Americans in the Battle of Wisconsin Heights. The Americans lost 1 militiaman killed while Black Hawk lost over 68 warriors. He held on long enough to allow most of the women and children to get across the River, a difficult operation that earned him the grudging respect of his enemies. Still, Black Hawk wasn't ready to turn himself in. As militia pursued him, Black Hawk had a messenger shout out a message that they would fight no more but intended to go west of the Mississippi. Because no one interpreted the message, it remained undelivered up the American chain of command. Believing his message had been received, Black Hawk continued his journey toward the River.
On August 1, 1832, a steamer outfitted with a cannon arrived at the junction of the Bad Axe River with the Mississippi as Black Hawk's people prepared to cross. Black Hawk put up a white flag. The Americans, suspecting a trick, opened fire with the cannon. Twenty-three Natives were killed. The next day, Black Hawk and Wabokieshiek with a few of their more determined followers, decided to head north to seek refuge with the Ojibwe, while the rest of his group remained at Bad Axe, where they were soon attacked by the Americans. Black Hawk tried to rejoin the group, but was repulsed near present-day Victory, Wisconsin. The Americans at Bad Axe faced about 150 warriors trying to protect about 500 non-combatants. The non-combatants tried to cross to an island in the middle of the river, but the cannon on the steamboat opened fire. 260 members of the remaining British Band were killed, including over a hundred non-combatants trying to cross the river. Menominee warriors chased after fleeing survivors. Dakota warriors also tracked more survivors to the Cedar River on August 9, the final battle of the War.
Americans lost about 77 soldiers, militia and settlers killed, not including anyone in General Scott's expedition who died of cholera. Estimates vary for Black Hawk's forces but may have included up to 600 warriors and non-combatants. Surviving troops and militia among the Americans including a surprising number of future Senators, Governors and one President, all of whom touted service in this War as part of their political record. The War demonstrated to Americans the need for a mounted force, leading to the creation of the Mounted Ranger Battalion in 1833, which later became the 1st Cavalry Regiment. Meanwhile, Black Hawk fled north to seek refuge with the Ojibwe, but was spotted at Tomah, Wisconsin. Local Winnebago convinced him to surrender, which he did at Prairie du Chien. Zachary Taylor took charge of the prisoners and sent them to Jefferson Barracks under the custody of Jefferson Davis (yes, that Jefferson Davis) and Robert Anderson (of Fort Sumter fame). Black Hawk, Neapope and several other leaders of the revolt were later transferred to Fort Monroe, where they were treated as curiosities and had their portraits painted by Charles Bird King, considered in his day the dean of artists portraying American Indians.
Prior to their release, the prisoners were taken to Washington, D.C. for an audience with Jackson. There, Jackson informed Black Hawk that he now considered Keokuk to be the leader of the Sauk and Fox people, displacing Black Hawk as war leader, and other traditional civil chiefs previously appointed by the tribe. The prisoners were then sent on a tour of Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York, where Black Hawk's handsome son drew kudos and admirers. In the East, the defeated Natives were treated as celebrities. When they reached Detroit, crowds grew hostile and Black Hawk was hanged in effigy. Meanwhile, Jackson and his officials moved forward with Indian Removal of any remaining Native tribes in the Old Northwest, by treaty if possible, by force if necessary.
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