Battle of Kellogg's Grove | |||||||
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Part of the Black Hawk War | |||||||
Monument and graves located in a park near Kent, Illinois. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
![]() | Sauk Fox Kickapoo | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
John Dement Adam W. Snyder Samuel Whiteside | Black Hawk | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
approximately 300 | 80 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
8 KIA 3 WIA | at least 15 KIA |
The Battle of Kellogg's Grove is either of two minor battles, or skirmishes, fought during the Black Hawk War in the U.S. state of Illinois, in present-day Stephenson County at and near Kellogg's Grove. In the first skirmish, also known as the Battle of Burr Oak Grove, on June 16, 1832, Illinois militia forces fought against a band of at least 80 Native Americans. During the battle, three militia men under the command of Adam W. Snyder were killed in action. The second battle occurred nine days later when a larger Sauk and Fox band, under the command of Black Hawk, attacked Major John Dement's detachment and killed five militia men.
The second battle is known for playing a role in Abraham Lincoln's short career in the Illinois militia. He was part of a relief company sent to the grove on June 26 and he helped bury the dead. He made a statement about the incident years later which was recollected in Carl Sandburg's writing, among others. Sources conflict about who actually won the battle; it has been called a "rout" for both sides. The battle was the last on Illinois soil during the Black Hawk War.
As a consequence of an 1804 treaty between the Governor of Indiana Territory and a group of Sauk and Fox leaders regarding land settlement, the Sauk and Fox tribes vacated their lands in Illinois and moved west of the Mississippi in 1828. However, Sauk Black Hawk and others disputed the treaty, claiming that the full tribal councils had not been consulted, nor did those representing the tribes have authorization to cede lands. [1] Angered by the loss of his birthplace, from 1830 Black Hawk led a number of incursions across the Mississippi River, but was persuaded to return west each time without bloodshed. In April 1832, encouraged by promises of alliance with other tribes and the British, he again moved his so-called "British Band" of around 1000 warriors and non-combatants into Illinois. [1] Finding no allies he attempted to return to Iowa, but events overtook him and led to the Battle of Stillman's Run. [2] A number of other engagements and massacres followed, and the militias of Michigan Territory and Illinois were mobilized to hunt down Black Hawk's band.
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In the days preceding the second Battle of Kellogg's Grove a raid occurred on Bureau Creek, between the Rock and Illinois Rivers. [3] Major John Dement's battalion was ordered to the scene to protect settlers and ascertain the presence of Native Americans in the area, they were to report to Colonel Zachary Taylor at Dixon's Ferry. On June 22 Dement reached Dixon's Ferry where he reported to Taylor. [3] Taylor then ordered him to cross the Rock River to take a position between Dixon's Ferry and Galena. Additionally, Taylor ordered Dement to set up his headquarters at Kellogg's Grove. With a command of 140 inexperienced men, Dement set out for the grove to replace a group of volunteers led by a Major Riley who had abandoned the fort on June 23. [3] The troops that abandoned the fort had skirmished with the Native Americans two or three times and were defeated in all clashes, according to the soldiers stationed there. [3] Major Dement's group crossed the Rock River on June 24 and reached the small fort at Kellogg's Grove where they camped for the night. [4]
The day before the second Battle of Kellogg's Grove, June 24, Black Hawk was leading his band in an attack on Apple River Fort. During the Battle of Apple River Fort the Sauk besieged the small stockade for much of the day. Other warriors were dispatched to gather food, horses and other supplies, all of which were badly needed by the band. [1] The following day the group would reach Kellogg's Grove where they would engage Dement's militia forces. [1]
The first Battle of Kellogg's Grove, or the Battle of Burr Oak Grove, occurred on June 16, 1832. Men from Captain Adam Wilson Snyder's company engaged part of a group of about 80 Kickapoo warriors resulting in three militia deaths and six Kickapoo deaths. [1] [5]
On the night of June 15, 1832, Captain Snyder and his men were in Kellogg's Grove when Native Americans were discovered in the area, during the night a horse was stolen. The next day, June 16, Snyder and his men pursued the Native Americans to the southwest; they came upon four natives and killed them. During the ensuing skirmish, Private William B. Mecomson was fatally wounded. The militia men put the wounded man on a litter and began to carry him back to the Kellogg cabin, along the way Mecomson asked that the group stop to rest. The group stopped and some of the men went for water while the rest waited with Mecomson. As they waited, a large group of Native Americans came upon them; a short battle followed and two more militia members were killed. After the short skirmish, the natives left the area and the militia men returned to the Kellogg cabin and buried their dead the next day. [6]
The Second Battle of Kellogg's Grove occurred on June 25, 1832, after Major John Dement and his men, while camped at Kellogg's Grove on Sunday June 24, learned of a large group of Native Americans nearby. [6] The battle pitted a large band of Native American warriors led by Black Hawk and his warchiefs Neapope and Weesheet against Dement's spy company of militia men. Dement's company had been searching the area for bands of warriors sent out by Black Hawk and their trail had led to Kellogg's Grove. [6]
During the night, three of the militia's horses wandered off; the next day, June 25, three men went in search of the animals while the rest stayed behind. At the cabin, seven Native American braves appeared in the distance. [7] The troops immediately began pursuing the natives, who fled into the woods, instead of reporting the sighting to Dement. [6] [7] The Native American warriors, as had been done other times during the course of the war, set an ambush for the militia men in the forest. [7] The militia pursued the natives into the woods and, as they entered the forest, the natives opened fire, the volley instantly killed two militia men and wounded another. The militia retreated and formed a battle line but the native forces would not relent. The rest of Dement's company attempted to rescue the outmatched militia men but were unable to beat back the native warriors. [7] Black Hawk's band attacked the militia men, again forcing the beleaguered force to fall back to the Kellogg cabin and barn. [6]
As the militia fell back, the three men who had set out in search of their horses returned and they too were killed by the Native American forces. The natives continued to assault the barn and cabin; their attacks did not cease and during the battle about 25 horses were killed. Finally, the native forces withdrew, leaving nine of their own dead behind. [1] [6] The June 25 battle was the last of the Black Hawk War on Illinois soil. [6] Dement's company lost five men with another three were wounded, many horses were killed as well. [7]
That night American reinforcements arrived under the command of General Alexander Posey, who chose not to pursue the attackers and instead reported the situation to Colonel Zachary Taylor. [4] Black Hawk asserted later that had Posey chose to attack him and his warriors that the blow dealt Black Hawk's band would have been decisive and war-ending. [4] In fact, Dement's opinion was that there were more Native Americans at Kellogg's Grove than at any other engagement during the war. [4] The next day more reinforcements arrived when Captain Jacob Early's detachment reached the grove. [1]
Abraham Lincoln's service during the Black Hawk War has been a source of discrepancies and questioning, with two major battle sites being affiliated with Lincoln in the aftermath of combat. A number of sources assert that on June 26, 1832, the morning after the second battle, members of the company of Captain Jacob M. Early arrived at Kellogg's Grove to help bury the dead. One of the soldiers in the company was Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln assisted with the burial and later made a statement about the experience that has been connected with both the battle at Kellogg's Grove and the fight at Stillman's Run. [6] [8] [9]
I remember just how those men looked as we rode up the little hill where their camp was. The red light of the morning sun was streaming upon them as they lay head towards us on the ground. And every man had a round red spot on top of his head, about as big as a dollar where the redskins had taken his scalp. It was frightful, but it was grotesque, and the red sunlight seemed to paint everything all over. I remember one man had on buckskin breeches.
The Lincoln quote appeared both in William H. Herndon and Jesse W. Wiek's Life of Lincoln and Carl Sandburg's Lincoln biography, Abraham Lincoln The Prairie Years. [6] Lincoln's presence at Stillman's Run was still under investigation as of 2003 [update] , but his presence at Kellogg's Grove has been corroborated by several sources. [6] [9] [10]
Lincoln made a humorous remark during an 1848 speech before the U.S. Congress in which he referenced his Black Hawk War service, mentioning Stillman's Run by name.
By the way Mr. Speaker, did you know that I am a military hero? Yes sir, in the days of the Black Hawk War I fought, bled and came away . . . I was not at Stillman's defeat, but I was about as near it as Cass was Hull's surrender, and, like him, I saw the place very soon afterwards. [11]
The marble facade at the monument, erected in 1901, commemorating the battle in Stillman Valley, Illinois includes the reference to Lincoln's, "The presence of soldier, statesman, martyr, Abraham Lincoln assisting in the burial of these honored dead has made this spot more sacred." [8]
Sources vary concerning exactly which side was victorious during the battle. The Battle of Kellogg's Grove, like many of the battles and skirmishes during the Black Hawk War, had no real order or strategy. [7] Early sources indicated that the battle was a complete victory for the state militia, declaring the battle a rout and noting that the Sauk lost 15 while the militia only suffered 5 men killed. [12] Conversely, according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the result, essentially, was that the band of approximately 50 Sauk warriors routed the 300 or so ill-disciplined white troops. [13]
The battle site at Kellogg's Grove was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on June 23, 1978. [14] The listing included a 11⁄2 acre public park where a stone monument and memorial cemetery is located. The cemetery holds the interred remains of the militia who died during both battles at Kellogg's Grove. [6] The men were initially buried in other spots around the grove but during the 1880s local farmers banded together to collect the remains of the Black Hawk War dead and inter them in one spot beneath a memorial. [6]
The Black Hawk War was a conflict between the United States and Native Americans led by Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The war erupted after Black Hawk and a group of Sauks, Meskwakis (Fox), and Kickapoos, known as the "British Band", crossed the Mississippi River, into the U.S. state of Illinois, from Iowa Indian Territory in April 1832. Black Hawk's motives were ambiguous, but he was apparently hoping to reclaim land sold to the United States in the disputed 1804 Treaty of St. Louis.
Black Hawk, born Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak, was a Sauk leader and warrior who lived in what is now the Midwestern United States. Although he had inherited an important historic sacred bundle from his father, he was not a hereditary civil chief. Black Hawk earned his status as a war chief or captain by his actions: leading raiding and war parties as a young man and then a band of Sauk warriors during the Black Hawk War of 1832.
The Bad Axe Massacre was a massacre of Sauk (Sac) and Fox Indians by United States Army regulars and militia that occurred on August 1–2, 1832. This final scene of the Black Hawk War took place near present-day Victory, Wisconsin in the United States. It marked the end of the war between white settlers and militia in Illinois and Michigan Territory, and the Sauk and Fox tribes under warrior Black Hawk.
The Battle of Stillman's Run, also known as the Battle of Sycamore Creek or the Battle of Old Man's Creek, occurred in Illinois on May 14, 1832. The battle was named for the panicked retreat by Major Isaiah Stillman and his detachment of 275 Illinois militia after being attacked by an unknown number of Sauk warriors of Black Hawk's British Band. The numbers of warriors has been estimated at as few as fifty but as many as two hundred participated in the attack. However, reports found in Whitney's Black Hawk War indicated that large numbers of Indians were on the move throughout the region, and it appeared that widespread frontier warfare was underway. The engagement was the first battle of the Black Hawk War (1832), which developed after Black Hawk crossed the Mississippi River from Iowa into Illinois with his band of Sauk and Fox warriors along with women, children, and elders to try to resettle in Illinois. The militia had pursued a small group of Sauk scouts to the main British Band camp following a failed attempt by Black Hawk's emissaries to negotiate a truce.
The Buffalo Grove ambush was an ambush that occurred on May 19, 1832 as part of the Black Hawk War. A six-man detail carrying dispatches from United States Colonel James M. Strode at Galena, Illinois to General Henry Atkinson at Dixon's Ferry was ambushed by Native Americans during the attack. William Durley was killed and buried near the site of the ambush. Durley's remains were initially interred by the party that would become victims of the St. Vrain massacre. Two other men had bullet holes in their clothing, but were uninjured. In 1910 the Polo Historical Society moved Durley's remains to a plot beneath a memorial they erected west of Polo, Illinois.
The Battle of Horseshoe Bend, also referred to as the Battle of Pecatonica and the Battle of Bloody Lake, was fought on June 16, 1832 in present-day Wisconsin at an oxbow lake known as "Horseshoe Bend", which was formed by a change in course of the Pecatonica River. The battle was a major turning point in the Black Hawk War, despite being of only minor military significance. The small victory won by the U.S. militia at Horseshoe Bend helped restore public confidence in the volunteer force following an embarrassing defeat at Stillman's Run. The Battle of Horseshoe Bend ended with three militia men killed in action and a party of eleven Kickapoo warriors dead.
The Spafford Farm massacre, also referred to as the Wayne massacre, was an attack upon U.S. militia and civilians that occurred as part of the Black Hawk War near present-day South Wayne, Wisconsin. Spafford Farm was settled in 1830 by Omri Spafford and his partner Francis Spencer.
Stillman's Run Battle Site is a site in Stillman Valley, Illinois. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been since December 1983. The Battle of Stillman's Run was an 1832 clash between the Illinois militia and Black Hawk and his Sauk Indian Band. The battle took place in 1832 as part of the Black Hawk War. During the engagement 12 militia men were killed while making a stand on a small hill. The rest of the militia fled back to Dixon's Ferry where they spread news of a terrible slaughter at Stillman's Run.
Kellogg's Grove is an area in western Stephenson County, Illinois, United States near the present-day unincorporated town of Kent. The grove is considered historically significant because it was the site of two minor skirmishes during the Black Hawk War in 1832. Today, most of the grove is privately owned but 1.5 acres (6,100 m2) are allocated as a park owned by Stephenson County. While most of the battle occurred on what is today private property the park contains a monument dedicated to the battle and cemetery with the graves of several militia members killed during the skirmish at Kellogg's Grove. The cemetery also holds the graves of those killed in other area battles. The Kellogg's Grove battle site was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
The Battle of Apple River Fort, occurred on the late afternoon of June 24, 1832 at the Apple River Fort, near present-day Elizabeth, Illinois, when Black Hawk and 200 of his "British Band" of Sauk and Fox were surprised by a group of four messengers en route from Galena, Illinois. One of the couriers was wounded in the thigh as the riders quickly made for the protection of the nearby stockade. Courier Fred Dixon lagged behind and provided cover for his comrades. The other couriers rode ahead to warn some 70 settlers of the approaching Sauk and Fox, thus saving their lives. The small company of militia at the fort, about 28-30 men and boys led by Captain Clack Stone, fought off Black Hawk's 150-man war party in an action that lasted about an hour. The withering pace of the gunfire eventually convinced Black Hawk that the fort was too heavily defended to lead a direct attack. He considered burning the fort, then switched to raiding cabins of foodstuffs, clothing and cooking utensils. In the gathering darkness, Black Hawk and his war party retreated.
The Battle of Wisconsin Heights was the penultimate engagement of the 1832 Black Hawk War, fought between the United States state militia and allies, and the Sauk and Fox tribes, led by Black Hawk. The battle took place in what is now Dane County, near present-day Sauk City, Wisconsin. Despite being vastly outnumbered and sustaining heavy casualties, Black Hawk's warriors managed to delay the combined government forces long enough to allow the majority of the Sauk and Fox civilians in the group to escape across the Wisconsin River. This reprieve was temporary; when the militia finally caught up with the fleeing band it resulted in the Bad Axe massacre at the mouth of the Bad Axe River.
The Battle of Waddams Grove, also known as the Battle of Yellow Creek was part of the Black Hawk War. It took place in present-day Stephenson County, Illinois on June 18, 1832. After several incidents of Sauk Indian raids on settlers along the Apple River, Captain James W. Stephenson left Galena with a group of volunteer militia in pursuit of the Native party. The group clashed on June 18, 1832 near Yellow Creek and the ensuing battle descended into a bayonet and knife fight in which several Sauk and three militia men were killed. Stephenson was severely wounded by a musketball to the chest during the fighting. The dead were eventually interred in a memorial cemetery in Kellogg's Grove, Illinois where a stone monument was erected in memory of those killed during the war.
The Sinsinawa Mound raid occurred on June 29, 1832, near the Sinsinawa mining settlement in Michigan Territory. This incident, part of the Black Hawk War, resulted in the deaths of two men; a third man survived by seeking cover in a nearby blockhouse. In the aftermath of the raid, Captain James W. Stephenson set out to pursue the attackers—a straggling band of Sauk Native Americans—but lost their trail at the Mississippi River. The attack occurred in the same week as other skirmishes and raids, and as a result helped contribute to the growing fear in the region. The raid caused the residents of nearby Platteville to consider fleeing their settlement.
The Plum River raid was a bloodless skirmish that occurred at present-day Savanna, Illinois, on May 21, 1832, as part of the Black Hawk War. Most of the settlement's inhabitants, except for a few defenders, had fled for Galena, Illinois, before the raid happened. A small band of Native Americans, either Sauk or Fox, attacked the settlement while only three of the six defenders were present. The men who were present fell back to the blockhouse and a firefight ensued for about one hour, after which the attackers withdrew. No one was killed or injured during the attack, but in its aftermath Colonel James M. Strode dispatched a detachment of militia to Savanna. They returned to Galena without incident and the settlement at Savanna was temporarily abandoned.
James D. Henry was a militia officer from the U.S. state of Illinois who rose to the rank of general during the Black Hawk War. Henry was born in Pennsylvania in 1797, and moved to Edwardsville, Illinois in 1822. In 1825, while living in Edwardsville, he was indicted with two other men for the murder of an acquaintance, though he never went to trial. One defendant was tried but found not guilty, and following the trial Henry moved to Springfield, Illinois, where he was elected sheriff. When the Winnebago War broke out in 1827 Henry acted as adjutant for four companies of volunteers.
John Dement was an American politician and militia commander from the U.S. state of Illinois.
The British Band was a mixed-nation group of Native Americans commanded by the Sauk leader Black Hawk, which fought against Illinois and Michigan Territory militias during the 1832 Black Hawk War. The band was composed of about 1,500 men, women, and children from the Sauk, Meskwaki, Fox, Kickapoo, Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, and Ottawa nations; about 500 of that number were warriors. Black Hawk had an alliance with the British that dated from the War of 1812, giving them their colloquial name. The band crossed the Mississippi River from Iowa into Illinois in an attempt to reclaim their homeland and in violation of several treaties. Subsequently, both the Illinois and Michigan Territory militia were called up and the Black Hawk War ensued.
After the outbreak of the Black Hawk War, at the Battle of Stillman's Run in May 1832, there were minor attacks and skirmishes throughout the duration of the conflict. The war was fought between white settlers in Illinois and present-day Wisconsin and Sauk Chief Black Hawk. The relatively minor attacks of the war were widely dispersed and often carried out by bands of Native Americans that were unaffiliated with Black Hawk's British Band.
Clack Stone was the elected captain of the “Apple River“ Company, 27th Regiment Illinois Militia during the Black Hawk War of 1832. He was in charge of a company mustered into service in May 1832 from Jo Daviess County, Illinois. Stone's company manned Apple River Fort, a log stockade and blockhouse— a reconstruction of which is located on knoll just east of present-day Elizabeth Stone provided leadership during two war-related incidents. In the first event, some horses were stolen from the fort during the night of June 17, in the prelude to the June 18 action known then as “Stephenson’s Fight.” Today, the fight is erroneously known as the Battle of Waddams Grove. The second event was on the afternoon of June 24: an intense battle known as the Battle of Apple River Fort. After the war, Stone built and operated a general store and helped Redding Bennett, John D. Winters, and others survey and lay out lot lines for the proposed village of Elizabeth. He also owned and apparently operated for a time the “Eagle Saloon” in Galena. Stone laid claim to numerous land parcels located west of the present village. He remained in today's Jo Daviess County with his common law wife Delilah Hickman for several years, then moved south to Union Grove in what is now Carroll County, Illinois.
Abraham Lincoln served as a volunteer in the Illinois Militia April 21, 1832 – July 10, 1832, during the Black Hawk War. Lincoln never saw combat during his tour but was elected captain of his first company. He was also present in the aftermath of two of the war's battles, where he helped to bury the militia dead. He was mustered in and out of service during the war, going from captain to private and finishing his service in an independent spy company commanded by Captain Jacob Early.
Coordinates: 42°17′45″N89°52′53″W / 42.29583°N 89.88139°W