WOODFORD - Some refer to it as the Battle of Bloody Lake, others call it the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. Yet other historical documents refer to it as the Battle of Pecatonica. Regardless, the site of the battle during the Black Hawk War of 1832 may soon be preserved forever on the National Register of Historic Places.
While the process has been long and tedious, members of the Friends of Woodford Park believe the end is in sight as the nomination for entry into the NRHP will go before the review board in February.
How long? "It's been a good ten years," said Friends Secretary Sally Kahl.
"It started out as a genealogical thing," she said. "My family came to the Galena Territory prior to the Black Hawk War," she explained. "That took me to Fort Elizabeth (in Illinois) and Fort Hamilton via the Black Hawk War and then to Fort Defiance. Kahl grew up in the Gratiot area.
It was around 2000 that she connected with several area residents and organizations in an effort to gain national recognition fro the site. "It's a big part of Wisconsin history before it was even a state," she said. "It should have been recognized a long time ago, since there were only three (Blackhawk War) battles fought in Wisconsin." The other two were the Battle of Wisconsin Heights near Sauk City and the Bad Axe, fought along the Wisconsin River.
The Lafayette County Sportsman's Alliance, made up of several area conservation groups, had already been working on restoring the park, according to Kahl. Homer "Fud" Pickett and his brother, Stan, laid the cement foundation for the monument marking the site of the battle, she explained. "That's where they stacked up the bodies of the 13 (probably Kickapoo) Indians that were killed in the battle," Kahl added.
Professional archaeologist and historian Robert Fay and archaeologist Carol Cartwright served as co-authors of the 30-page nomination document. The NRHP nomination includes a description of the battle (with footnotes), a statement of significance and a summary of recent park improvements and preservation plans, Fay said.
The nomination also includes a U.S Geological Survey map of the area showing the location of the battlefield site, a copy of Col. Henry Dodge's map of the battlefield from his official report to General Henry Atkinson, a detailed map showing site boundaries within the park and recent photographs of the site.
Fay offers this historical account:
The Black Hawk War was the last Indian war fought in Illinois and Wisconsin and opened the prairie frontier to land surveys and settlement. The Pecatonica battlefield is historically significant at the local and state level because it was a military turning point in the American-Indian conflict of 1832. The success of the Americans led by the rugged frontiersman Henry Dodge came at a desperate time. Nothing had been going well for the army, militia and settlers.
On April 5-6, 1832, a group of 1,200 Sac, Fox and some Kickapoo under the leadership of Black Sparrow Hawk crossed the Mississippi river from Iowa to the Illinois side of the river in the hope of re-occupying their ancestral homeland and harvesting their corn. Along the way, Indian raiding parties attacked and killed settlers, burned cabins, destroyed crops and stole livestock.
Dodge's decisive command of 29 mounted men in pursuing and defeating a raiding party of 13 Indians along a slough of the Pecatonica was much heralded in Galena and territorial newspapers, which bolstered American morale and confidence to continue the pursuit of Black Hawk's followers.
The site of the battle embodies the determination of the American settlers to live peacefully and to protect their families on the frontier unmolested by the threat of Indian warfare."
Fay also praised the efforts of Kahl and her associates. "Local efforts to preserve the site of the Pecatonica battlefield by the Friends of Woodford Park are truly awesome," he said. "The local group's efforts and enthusiasm to keep the park open and to raise funds to erect an official Wisconsin historical marker in the park are commendable."
- Lee Fahrney is the Monroe Times outdoors writer. He can be reached at (608) 967-2208 or at fiveoaks@mhtc.net.
While the process has been long and tedious, members of the Friends of Woodford Park believe the end is in sight as the nomination for entry into the NRHP will go before the review board in February.
How long? "It's been a good ten years," said Friends Secretary Sally Kahl.
"It started out as a genealogical thing," she said. "My family came to the Galena Territory prior to the Black Hawk War," she explained. "That took me to Fort Elizabeth (in Illinois) and Fort Hamilton via the Black Hawk War and then to Fort Defiance. Kahl grew up in the Gratiot area.
It was around 2000 that she connected with several area residents and organizations in an effort to gain national recognition fro the site. "It's a big part of Wisconsin history before it was even a state," she said. "It should have been recognized a long time ago, since there were only three (Blackhawk War) battles fought in Wisconsin." The other two were the Battle of Wisconsin Heights near Sauk City and the Bad Axe, fought along the Wisconsin River.
The Lafayette County Sportsman's Alliance, made up of several area conservation groups, had already been working on restoring the park, according to Kahl. Homer "Fud" Pickett and his brother, Stan, laid the cement foundation for the monument marking the site of the battle, she explained. "That's where they stacked up the bodies of the 13 (probably Kickapoo) Indians that were killed in the battle," Kahl added.
Professional archaeologist and historian Robert Fay and archaeologist Carol Cartwright served as co-authors of the 30-page nomination document. The NRHP nomination includes a description of the battle (with footnotes), a statement of significance and a summary of recent park improvements and preservation plans, Fay said.
The nomination also includes a U.S Geological Survey map of the area showing the location of the battlefield site, a copy of Col. Henry Dodge's map of the battlefield from his official report to General Henry Atkinson, a detailed map showing site boundaries within the park and recent photographs of the site.
Fay offers this historical account:
The Black Hawk War was the last Indian war fought in Illinois and Wisconsin and opened the prairie frontier to land surveys and settlement. The Pecatonica battlefield is historically significant at the local and state level because it was a military turning point in the American-Indian conflict of 1832. The success of the Americans led by the rugged frontiersman Henry Dodge came at a desperate time. Nothing had been going well for the army, militia and settlers.
On April 5-6, 1832, a group of 1,200 Sac, Fox and some Kickapoo under the leadership of Black Sparrow Hawk crossed the Mississippi river from Iowa to the Illinois side of the river in the hope of re-occupying their ancestral homeland and harvesting their corn. Along the way, Indian raiding parties attacked and killed settlers, burned cabins, destroyed crops and stole livestock.
Dodge's decisive command of 29 mounted men in pursuing and defeating a raiding party of 13 Indians along a slough of the Pecatonica was much heralded in Galena and territorial newspapers, which bolstered American morale and confidence to continue the pursuit of Black Hawk's followers.
The site of the battle embodies the determination of the American settlers to live peacefully and to protect their families on the frontier unmolested by the threat of Indian warfare."
Fay also praised the efforts of Kahl and her associates. "Local efforts to preserve the site of the Pecatonica battlefield by the Friends of Woodford Park are truly awesome," he said. "The local group's efforts and enthusiasm to keep the park open and to raise funds to erect an official Wisconsin historical marker in the park are commendable."
- Lee Fahrney is the Monroe Times outdoors writer. He can be reached at (608) 967-2208 or at fiveoaks@mhtc.net.
