Indian Creek massacre

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Indian Creek Massacre

Date	May 20, 1832
Location	Near present day Earlville, Illinois.
Result	Massacre of non-combatants

Combatants

U.S. non-combatants

Native American Indians

Commanders

none

Strength

Casualties

Black Hawk War of 1832
Stillman's Run – Old Man Creek – Buffalo Grove – Indian Creek – St. Vrain – Spafford Farm – Bloody Lake – Kellogg's Grove – Yellow River – Apple River Fort – Wisconsin Heights – Bad Axe

1 Introduction
2 Background
3 Massacre
4 Victims
5 Aftermath
6 References
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] Introduction

On May 20, 1832, a group of settlers living six miles north of Ottawa, Illinois, along the Indian Creek, were attacked by a raiding party of Native Americans. Fifteen settlers, including women and children, were massacred.

[edit] Background

The attack may gave been spurred by the recent provocations of a Kentuckian settler named William Davis. He was a blacksmith and a mill operator. Davis dammed the Indian Creek, a vital source of food to a nearby Indian village, as well as committing other transgressions on them.

At the same time, the Black Hawk War had recently begun in Illinois. The Battle of Stillman's Run, fought on May 14, proved to be a victory for Black Hawk's band over the Illinois Militia. This event may have encouraged the assault at Indian Creek.

[edit] Massacre

After the battle at Stillman's Run, rumors of an attack on white settlers became widespread. The settlement at the Indian Creek had ample cause to evacuate, but William Davis, among others, convinced the inhabitants to stay.

Around forty Indians attacked the settlement on the afternoon of May 20. Most of the men, working in the fields, fled, leaving the women and children to fend for themselves. The cabins were stormed and the inhabitants killed. Two young women, Rachel and Sylvia Hall, were taken prisoner and later released on June 2. William Davis was counted among the dead.

It is believed that Potawatomi Indians, along with three Sauk Indians, were responsible. There is no evidence that Black Hawk sanctioned the massacre; however, he had some alliance with the Potawatomi. The prisoners ended up in the care of the Winnebagos until ransomed.

[edit] Victims

Family or individual	Number
Davis	6
Hall	3
Pettigrew	4
Henry William
George (or Robert) Norris

Monument located Shabbona county park on the Indian creek site

[edit] Aftermath

The killings triggered mass hysteria in the white population nearby. People abandoned settlements and sought refuge inside military forts, such as Fort Dearborn in Chicago.

As a result, the Illinois Militia, along with Federal troops, redoubled its efforts, continuing the relentless pursuit of Black Hawk's band. The war would end at the Battle of Bad Axe and the massacre of three hundred Indians.

After the war, three Potawatomi were charged with committing murder during the Indian Creek massacre, but since witnesses failed to identify them as participants, they were released.

[edit] References

Cecil Eby, That disgraceful affair, The Black Hawk War, W.W. Norton and Company: New York, 1973.
James Patrick Dowd, Massacre at Indian Creek, La Fox: Illinois, 2002.