The Black Hawk War During the spring of 1832, a coalition of about one thousand men, women and children from Sauk, Kickapoo and Fox tribes were led by a Sauk warrior called Black Hawk. Black Hawk's War was a campaign to reclaim Native American land from white settlers. They crossed the Mississippi River from Missouri into Illinois, making their way up northeast, toward Michigan. Click here to see a picture of Black Hawk. The Governor of Illinois defined the movement as "an invasion." He mobilized a militia and requested the support of the United States Army. Federal authorities had already ordered the Native Americans to disband but they refused. Black Hawk and his followers were motivated to fight because of the poor living conditions of Native Americans after white settlers moved into the area. Click here to read an excerpt from a letter by Frederick Schmid in 1833, one year after Black Hawk's War. Schmid, the first German Lutheran pastor in Ann Arbor, describes one interaction between whites and Native Americans. Although the conflict never came directly to Ann Arbor, a number of local residents left the city for fear that it might. Not all of Ann Arbor's residents feared the local Native Americans. Click here to read an excerpt from a letter written by Frederick Schmid describing his first meeting with the Ottawa chief. Settlers, including those in Ann Arbor, used the land in ways that were not familiar to Native Americans. Settlers built farms and fences to enclose areas for crops and pastures. Native Americans, as indicated by this excerpt from Black Hawk's dictated autobiography, believed that: "My reason teaches me that land cannot be sold. The Great Spirit gave it to his children to cultivate it they have the right to the soil. Nothing can be sold but such things as can be carried away." Black Hawk and his followers were stopped in Wisconsin. Initially avoiding capture, Black Hawk surrendered to the militia in Prairie du Chien in late August 1832. By this time, the Native American leader had achieved a significant degree of notoriety, so much so that President Jackson asked to meet with him. Rather than imprisonment, the President opted to release Black Hawk. One of the conditions of his release, however, was that he renounce any claims to Sauk leadership. He died in 1838. Questions for Discussion: Why did some of Ann Arbor's settlers go to Canada? What do you think caused Black Hawk to decide to lead this attack on white settlers? How might Ann Arbor be different if Black Hawk had not been captured? Discuss Black Hawk's description of his relationship to land. More about Ann Arbor's Native American Heritage

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