Lecture #4 - The Sauk and Fox Indians of Wisconsin’s Driftless Area ( )

Wisconsin Indians After the American Revolution Most tribes were hostile to Americans and American interests Most had aided the British and would again in the War of 1812 Very few Americans lived or traded in the area Many French and British traders still roamed and were hostile to American control Americans began a systematic method of taking lands from tribes east of the Mississippi River – the process of treaty making Americans tricked many tribes into signing treaties that gave away their lands The first treaties decided which tribes owned what – later treaties signed away those lands to the Americans

Southwest WI Indians – Sauk and Fox History Originally tribes of southern Michigan Were forced to move to southwest Wisconsin in the 17 th and 18 th centuries as a result of conflicts with other tribes after the Iroquois Wars Occupied the territory of southwest Wisconsin, northwestern Illinois, and eastern Iowa

Southwest Wisconsin Indians - Sauk and Fox History AgriculturalHunting Lead Miners Warrior culture Culture different from that of northern Wisconsin Indians Opposed to American expansion

Land Cessions 1804 Treaty With Sauk and Fox –Resulted from Sauk and Fox attack on whites north of St. Louis –Most of southwest Wisconsin was ceded to the U.S. government under an arrangement made by William Henry Harrison, Governor of Indiana Territory –Indians could occupy the land until it was needed for settlement

William Henry Harrison Negotiated 1804 Land Cession with Sauk and Fox Indians

Black Hawk Grew in importance as a Sauk leader after the Treaty of 1804 Believed the treaty was invalid because most Sauk were not told about the treaty Helped to form a Sauk/Fox allegiance with Britain in the War of 1812 Refused to attend treaty meetings with American representatives

Black Hawk As Sauk Brave

1804 Sauk/Fox Land Cessions in Present-day Wisconsin

Prairie du Chien Treaty of 1825 Negotiated by William Clark (Supt. of Indian Affairs) and Lewis Cass (Gov. of Michigan Territory) Goals: –Define tribal boundaries –Minimize intertribal warfare –*Organize land cessions?

Prairie du Chien Treaty of 1825 William Clark Lewis Cass

Prairie du Chien Treaty of 1825

Grey Gold Native Americans were mining lead in northern Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin before European contact Sauk, Fox, and Winnebago tribes used it to supplement the fur trade Beginning in the early 1820s, a boost in lead prices brought many miners to the region

Early Miners One of the first to arrive was Col. Henry Dodge Many came from Missouri

Mounting Tensions Miners became squatters on Indian lands according to previous treaties U.S. government agreed with Indians that they owned the land, but decided that it would rather negotiate land cessions with the Indians than remove encroaching white miners

Lead Mining Wisconsin Lead Mining Region – ps/pdf/RM063.pdf ps/pdf/RM063.pdfhttp:// ps/pdf/RM063.pdf

Winnebago War of 1827 Dodge and other miners settled on Winnebago lands – ignored Indian rights Winnebago were infuriated by miner presence Chief Red Bird led an attack on settlers in Prairie du Chien Other Winnebago attacked keel boats on the Mississippi River Settlers panicked Red Bird was captured and died in prison at Prairie du Chien

1829 Treaty Allowed sale of lead region to white settlers Forced final removal of Indians from this region to lands west of the Mississippi

Sauk and Fox Removal Black Hawk reluctantly moved west of the Mississippi with his tribe after the 1829 treaty and mounting pressure from settlers Tribal members suffered on their new lands in Iowa and were not allowed to visit ancestral burial grounds Black Hawk became frustrated and decided to move his people back across the Mississippi River into southwest Wisconsin and northwest Illinois

The Black Hawk War Crossed the Mississippi River near Rock Island, Illinois Followed Rock River north Were attacked by local militia and Black Hawk’s men were massacred under a white flag Black Hawk ambushed them and they fled in panic

The Black Hawk War Black Hawk’s hopes of other tribes helping were crushed when the Potawatomi and the Winnebago, who had encouraged him, turned against him At Wisconsin Heights, Sauk warriors held off militia while rest of band crossed river At Battle of Bad Axe, Black Hawk’s band was massacred Of the nearly 1,000 people who followed Black Hawk, only about 150 made it back to Keokuk’s people in Iowa

Post Black Hawk War Black Hawk escaped the massacre at Bad Axe Winnebago turned him over to American authorities Was treated as a hero by some and became a cultural icon in American society

Important Outcomes of the Black Hawk War Showed the will of settlers to take lands held by Indian tribes Discouraged other Wisconsin tribes from further uprisings

Sources Nesbit, Robert C. Wisconsin a history. Madison, WI. University of Wisconsin Press, c1989. Bieder, Robert E. Native American Communities in Wisconsin Madison, WI. University of Wisconsin Press, c1995. Smith, Alice E. The History of Wisconsin From Exploration to Statehood, Volume I. Madison, WI. The State Historical Society of Wisconsin, c1973. The Wisconsin Cartographer’s Guild. Wisconsin’s Past and Present – A Historical Atlas. Madison, WI. University of Wisconsin Press, c1998. Prucha, Francis Paul. Documents of United States Indian Policy, Third Edition. Lincoln, NE. University of Nebraska Press, c