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Uncovering the Story of
Fort Blue
The Wisconsin Heights battleground, just fifteen
miles north of Blue Mounds, was the site of Black
Hawk’s final military success.
WHS Archives (X3)51480
Mounds I By Robert A. Birmingham
n the spring of 1832 a terrifying series of alarms
spread like prairie fire throughout the lead mining
region of northwestern Illinois and present-day
southwestern Wisconsin. A large force of Native
Americans, led by the Sauk warrior Black Hawk, was
headed in that direction with the intent of attacking and
driving out settlers. Word of impending danger had
already reached the tiny mining settlement of Blue
Mounds, in what is now Dane County, Wisconsin, and
work on a log fort was well underway. The settlers—min-
ers and farmers—feared not only Black Hawk but a gen-
eral uprising of the neighboring
Ho-Chunk people. Tension
between the settlers and
Native Americans had
been building for some
time in the region, and
during those spring
months lead miner
Henry Dodge headed
a newly formed militia
regiment of the Michi-
gan Territory, whose
members served under
the general command
of federal military WHS Archives (X3)39201
authorities.1 Those Ebenezer Brigham, founder of
who personally wit- Blue Mounds and “squire” to the
small mining community.
nessed Black Hawk’s
movement through the Michigan Territory would recount
the days of fearful tension, in both spoken and written
word, throughout their lives. Their descriptions of that
spring of 1832 would provide the documents that twenti-
eth-century students would rely upon to learn about fron-
tier life in Wisconsin.
But not all stories are told in words. By the act of con-
structing and living in the fort for many months, the resi-
dents of Blue Mounds left an additional record of their
lives in the very dirt upon which the fort rested, and by the
objects of work and play that they used every day. This
record was unearthed, literally, more than 150 years later
by both professional and volunteer archaeologists. Their
combined curiosity and efforts would result in a broader,
more accurate understanding of life in a frontier commu-
nity, and the opportunity for future exploration. No mat-
WISCONSIN MAGAZINE OF HISTORY
ter how the story is told, however, it begins with “the Blue family was that of Essau Johnson, a lead mine operator who
Mounds.” owned land, including a farm and a lead smelter next to
Brigham’s place. Johnson’s written recollections of the Black
“A Beacon to the Traveler, Thirty Miles Distant” Hawk War, penned when he was in his eighties, clearly exagger-
There are many physical descriptions of “the Blue Mounds,” ate many things, including his role at the fort. His memories, and
the densely wooded twin hills whose peaks are visible from thir- those of many others, are the basis for much of the history writ-
ty miles away. These descriptions appear in official documents ten about Wisconsin’s frontier life.
from the early years of the territory, including the lyrical
prose of Henry Schoolcraft, who toured the lead From Mines to Militia
region the year before Black Hawk’s uprising: Upon hearing that Black Hawk and his
1,200 followers had crossed the Mississippi
The highest elevations, the Platte River in early April, settlers throughout
Mounds and the Blue Mound, are cov- the lead-mining region hastily con-
ered with soil and with trees. Numer- structed forts, stockades, and
ous brooks of limpid water traverse strongholds to protect them from
the plains, and find their way anticipated Indian attacks. Com-
either into the Wisconsin, Rock panies of several hundred
River, or the Mississippi. . . . mounted militia or rangers,
The surface soil is a rich black under the command of Henry
alluvion; it yields abundant Dodge, began to ride the old
crops of corn. . . . I have never Indian trails to guard the set-
. . . seen a richer soil, or more tlements and forts. Mounted
stately fields of corn and oats, couriers or “expresses” trans-
than upon one of the plateaux mitted information between
of the Blue Mound. forts and the military, prima-
Such is the country which rily regarding the move-
appears to be richer in ores of ments of Black Hawk’s band.
lead than any other mineral Construction began
district in the world. 2 about May 10, and just days
later, an incident occurred
By 1831 several individu- that may have caused the
als had invested some years in fort builders to accelerate
Blue Mounds, and the best- their pace: an attack by Black
known is Ebenezer Brigham, Hawk, to the south, on mem-
WHS Archives (X3)38602
who founded the community bers of the Illinois militia, in
in 1828 on the south slope of Black Hawk, after his capture and release, was transformed
a place near a Rock River
the east mound. 3 By 1832 the landing called Stillman’s
from a menacing figure of fear to a sympathetic symbol of a
community of Blue Mounds vanishing, and thus no longer threatening, culture. Run. The settlers at Blue
included his mine, frontier Mounds had no idea that the
inn, and mercantile establishment. All were located near a large “attack” was Black Hawk’s attempt to broker peace with militia
spring and just off a major Indian trail that would later become members, whose panic at being confronted led to several deaths,
part of Wisconsin’s first highway, the Military Road. The Ho- both white and Indian. But the militia’s response was under-
Chunk maintained a camp nearby and with them Brigham trad- standable, by settlers and government officials who perceived
ed merchandise for pelts. Black Hawk’s return as an invasion. Indeed, some scholars have
The small Blue Mounds community consisted of single men speculated that although Black Hawk’s move was to reclaim his
and several families, many employed by Brigham. One family, village, he may have hoped to spark a general uprising. The Illi-
that of William Aubrey, Brigham’s hired hand, lived with the nois and Iowa-Michigan militia, as well as federal troops, were
unmarried Brigham, taking care of his house. Another frontier ordered to return Black Hawk to the west side of the Mississippi
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Pat Goitein
A construction pattern identical to Fort Blue Mounds was found
during excavation of the Apple River Fort, another Black Hawk
War fort built by settlers near present-day Elizabeth, Illinois. It
has been reconstructed, and visitors are welcome.
River “dead or alive.” Under these circumstances, it is no won- less in the narratives as well. One of the longest lists of male res-
der that on May 14 the Illinois Militia rebuffed Black Hawk’s bid idents is in the narrative written by H. A. Tenney in the Wiscon-
for communication and skirmished with members of his band on sin Historical Collections. He lists twenty men, several of whom
May 14. Fear of immediate attack from the area Ho-Chunk may played prominent roles in 1832, but many of them simply sought
have played some role in motivating the completion of Fort Blue out the protection of the fort. Their names include McCraney,
Mounds in just two weeks’ time. Several dozen frightened set- Kellogg, Lycan, Ferrall, Bower, Keith, Houghton, Collins, and
tlers—men, women, and children—from the surrounding coun- Broch.4
tryside moved to the fort. Eyewitness and later historical accounts described a fairly
The names of the people who moved into the fort vary with large log fort. Edward Beouchard, a fur trader and miner, pub-
the documents that list them. Not surprisingly, few narratives lished his description of the fort in William Smith’s 1854 History
mention women by name, although their presence there was of Wisconsin, stating that the 16- to 17-foot high log stockade
mentioned. And the children who lived there often went name- was 150 feet in length with two corner blockhouses, 20 feet
square.5 He wrote that within the stockade stood a log barracks
and a storehouse that was 20 by 30 feet in size. In his remem-
brances, Essau Johnson also described a rather large structure
encompassing a half-acre with two large, two-storied blockhous-
es, measuring 26 by 30 feet.6 Johnson added that he, his wife
Sally, and a newborn infant child moved into one blockhouse,
while Brigham took the other blockhouse along with some of his
workers.
Bottom, left: A U.S. Army button from a soldier’s uniform provides
proof of a military presence at Blue Mounds. Photo, left: Archaeol-
ogists found both the honey-colored French gunflint, at left, and
a broken lead gunflint patch, at right. Researchers also found
lead patches similar to the Fort Blue Mounds specimen during
excavations at the site of a federal garrison, Fort Crawford
Photos by Joel Heiman in Prairie du Chien.
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Brigham brought his account WISCONSIN
book listing orders and goods
supplied to the settlers of the Blue Ft. Blue
Mounds
Mounds area as part of his mer- Ft. Blue Mounds & the Black Hawk War, 1832 IOWA
cantile business. On the back of
book, Brigham kept a brief diary Bad Axe area of main map
of the dramatic events that took Portage
place at the fort.7 Elsewhere in (Ft. Winnebago) ILLINOIS
iver
the book he provided information
oo R
Wisconsin Heights
about where to contact his next of River
Kickap
nsin
Mississippi River
o
isc
kin. W Madison
Henry Dodge, as the leader of Prairie du Chien Dodgeville Blue Mounds
(Ft. Union) Four Lakes ( )
the Michigan Territory Militia, (Ft. Crawford) (Ft. Blue Mounds)
Mineral Point
(Ft. Jackson) Ft. Koshkonong
came to Blue Mounds to empha-
Su
gar
size the fort’s strategic impor- Lake
Rive
MICHIGAN TERRITORY Koshkonong
tance. As the closest fortification Lake
r
Wiota
(Ft. Hamilton) Geneva
of any kind to Black Hawk’s trail, UNORGANIZED
TERRITORY
it would serve as a depot for pro- Dubuque
Pec
visions for the troops, and its pro- Galena
at o n
tection was critical. The men of
ic a
Mis R Stillman's
ive
Blue Mounds formed a company sis r Run
sip
of the Iowa (County) regiment of
pi R
iver
the Michigan Territorial Militia I L L I N O I S
on May 20, and Dodge himself
Dixon’s Ferry
began to drill them. They also Battle
elected their first company Black Hawk’s
route, 1832
er
leader, Captain John Sherman.8 Riv Wabekieshiek State / Territorial
ck
Ro (Prophet’s Village) boundary, 1832
Among the miners, there were Rock Island
(Ft. Armstrong)
no small arms and only a few 0 25 miles
rifles and shotguns. The company Saukenuk
0 25 kilometers
petitioned Dodge for guns, and Map by Amelia Janes
according to Johnson, Dodge
Black Hawk’s route through Illinois and Wisconsin affected
sent the men to Galena, Illinois, many of the new communities. The Sauk leader brought his peo-
where they came away with just a ple safely through the lead region of present-day south central
blunderbuss and a six-pounder. Wisconsin, but met with defeat at Bad Axe when trying to cross
the Mississippi River.
Indeed, quartermaster accounts
from Fort Defiance south of Mineral Point indicate that a swivel he and Brigham eventually had to go to the federal stronghold,
gun, which is a small mobile canon that can be mounted on Fort Winnebago, located in present-day Portage, forty miles
stockade wall or ship’s deck, was signed out to Fort Blue from Blue Mounds, where they secured a wagonload of used
Mounds. The same record shows that a dozen or so U.S. mus- muskets that required repairs.
kets and accoutrements had been distributed to Fort Jackson in Fort Blue Mound’s strategic position made it the focus of
Mineral Point for use by the mounted militia assigned to Fort frantic activity. Uncertain of the intentions of the Ho-Chunk
Blue Mounds,9 but mounted militia spent little time at the fort bands in the district and fearing that they might side with Black
itself since their job was to patrol the area, so few of these arms Hawk, a council was held at Blue Mounds on May 28 with the
actually came to the fort. Repeated requests to Dodge for arms principal chiefs of the Wisconsin River area.11 Two days earlier
and provisions for the fort went unheeded, prompting Ebenezer a similar council had been held with other Ho-Chunk leaders at
Brigham to write in his diary for June 23 that Dodge “appears to Lake Mendota. Those Ho-Chunk who attended the councils
bear mali[ce] against [us] for no cause.”10 According to Johnson, assured the Americans of their peaceful intentions. Around the
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WHS Archives Name File
The abduction of Rachel and Silvia Hall filled the lead region
with terror, but Potawatomi, Sauk, and Ho-Chunk people, all
playing different roles, brought the girls to the safety of Fort Blue
Mounds, with the assistance of Edward Beouchard.
same time a mounted carrier brought news to the fort of an attempted to appease the enraged chiefs and warriors with hors-
attack on a settler’s homestead near the Fox River in Illinois. es and other gifts, the friction between the Ho-Chunk and Amer-
Potawatomi warriors had murdered several people and abduct- icans exploded into violence a few days later. On June 6 William
ed two teenage girls, Rachael and Silvia Hall, who were turned Aubrey and Jefferson Smith, another of Brigham’s workers, left
over to some Sauk in the war party.12 the fort on horseback to get fresh water from the spring next to
Edward Beouchard, the fur trader, acted on behalf of the fed- the Brigham establishment. There they were surprised by a small
eral government and rode to the Ho-Chunk encampment on the party of Native Americans who shot and killed Aubrey. Pan-
Blue Mounds, northeast of the Brigham residence. There he met icked, Smith dropped his gun, left his horse, and ran to the fort,
with principal chief Wa-kon-kaw, who in turn went to the chiefs blood flowing from his nose from fright and exertion.16
of the Four Lakes area, at present-day Madison. Within a few The settlers of Fort Blue Mounds surmised that the attackers
days, Captain Sherman received word from the Ho-Chunk that were not Black Hawk’s warriors, but those of the band of the Ho-
the release of the sisters had been secured, and that they would Chunk encamped nearby on the Blue Mounds. Black Hawk was
be released to the Americans. But the Ho-Chunk also passed on forty miles away, near Lake Kegonsa. One statement made by a
frightening news: Sauk war parties were on the way “to attack militia member at the time of the incident said that the attack
this place.”13 was precipitated by a Ho-Chunk man who had a verbal alterca-
A group of Ho-Chunk, including several principal chiefs, tion with Aubrey’s wife, during which he threatened to kill her
delivered the hostages on June 1 to Fort Blue Mounds, where the husband.17 Indeed, Ho-Chunk leaders confirmed, after the war’s
women took care of the girls, who were haggard but otherwise end, that one of their own had killed Aubrey and that several had
healthy.14 Dodge and a company of men came to the fort to take “raised the hatchet” against the Americans.18
custody of the girls but, deeply suspicious of the alacrity with After Aubrey’s death, riders from the fort, led by a mounted
which the release of the Halls was obtained, took hostage the Ho- company sent by Dodge, followed a trail to the recently aban-
Chunk party itself in a misguided attempt to guarantee peaceful doned Ho-Chunk camp and then to the Wisconsin River, where
behavior of area Ho-Chunk.15 Although the party was soon the search was suspended. According to Johnson, Aubrey was
released after another council, and Indian Agent Henry Gratiot buried on a high piece of prairie northeast of the fort, “where it
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would be a nice place for a bury- for the military. In mid-July, thir-
ing ground.”19 Anxiety increased ty-six wagonloads of supplies,
at the fort through June as gathered from depots at Mineral
reports were received of other Point and Dixon’s Ferry in Illi-
attacks and small but bloody bat- nois, were assembled at the fort.
tles in the lead mining district.20 They were to be sent east in relief
Then on June 20, a large Sauk to Atkinson’s troops as they pur-
war party struck close by, killing sued and ultimately destroyed
two men on patrol, Emerson Black Hawk’s band and then cap-
Green and George Force. The tured the Sauk leader himself in
two had ridden out to investigate August.24
strange noises heard the previous WHS Archives Wis Mss AM When the soldiers left in their
night. Several miles east of the Ebenezer Brigham’s account book documents the everyday final pursuit, a welcome calm
fort, the riders encountered Black life of the “Fort Establishment.” descended on the people of the
Hawk’s warriors, who had appar- fort as the war passed them by.
ently been guided to Blue The Blue Mounds company of
Mounds by sympathetic Ho- the Iowa County Michigan mili-
Chunk.21 Force was killed tia was mustered out of service of
instantly, but Green made for the the United States by command of
fort. Within view of the fort’s General Atkinson on August 20,
inhabitants, Green had his horse 1832, and the lead miners and
shot out from under him, and he settlers returned to their homes.
was quickly surrounded. Esau Johnson wrote that he
Several eyewitness accounts returned to his place to find his
indicate that Green’s body had buildings and lead furnace dis-
been horribly mutilated. The sembled and burned, presumably
remains were buried at the fort. 22 by Native Americans. He and his
Force’s body, however, lay on family returned to the fort to live
the prairie for four days, the set- for awhile as he rebuilt his
tlers too frightened by the nature home.25 Brigham stayed in the
of Green’s death to travel any community that he had founded,
distance to retrieve it. An entry watching it grow. New arrivals
dated June 23 in Brigham’s brief recalled the establishment of a
diary of events concluded, “our post office at “Squire Brigham’s,”
situation is a delicate one. . . . I his many cows and “large, excel-
expect an attack from the Indi- lent garden,” and “the farming
ans. We cannot stand a siege.” and mining hands” who contin-
Dodge and his rangers discov- ued to board at his home.26
ered the remains of George “Squire” Brigham apparently
Force, also mutilated, and buried was flourishing, both as a farmer
Photo by Joel Heiman
him on June 24 alongside the and a lead miner, but Joseph
Although in shards, the ceramics found at Blue Mounds still
main trail about two miles east of have a tale to tell. The common blue and white colors and
Shafer in his Domesday Book
Blue Mounds. Dodge left men familiar patterns were a mark of civility on the frontier. The describes a community that pur-
for a time to provide security for detail shows the word, “warranted,” a sign of authenticity. sued neither mining or farming.
the fort. 23 “There was mining activity about Blue Mounds, and a few other
Although Brigham expected a direct attack upon the fort, the points, but not enough to interfere with the agricultural utiliza-
only violence was upon those who left its safety. No longer a tar- tion of the land. But the farms were comparatively undeveloped,
get, Fort Blue Mounds functioned primarily as a supply center only 2 having as much as 100 acres improved.”
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WHS Archives (X3)41973
Above: Dedication at Fort Blue Mounds. The plaque dedicated on
that September day in 1910 was the first historic marker erected by
the Society, and the ceremony as well as the plaque itself reflected
the efforts of an energetic landmarks committee and a new era of
public outreach pioneered by director Rueben Gold Thwaites.
Right: The historical marker at the site of
Fort Blue Mounds
No account clearly describes the use of the fort after the
spring of 1832. It was apparently dismantled, its timber likely
used to fuel the lead furnaces. The fort and the role that it played
in the Black Hawk War, was not forgotten completely, however.
In 1910 the heirs of Ebenezer Brigham donated a quarter acre of
land from the original fort site to the Wisconsin Historical Soci-
ety, which dedicated a bronze commemorative plaque at the site
during a well-attended public ceremony.
At the time of the marker dedication, the swales and depres-
sions marking the site of Fort Blue Mounds were still visible,
allowing the installation of four cement pillars to distinguish the
property from surrounding farmland. But time passed, and plows
eventually obliterated these markings, knocking down the Robert Birmingham
cement pillars that gave some indication where the original fort State Archaeologist (OSA) initiated a project to define the site
walls might be. In the 1990s all that could be seen of Fort Blue area and eventually to preserve it. Taking advantage of great
Mounds was a small, disintegrating cement marker with a public interest in archaeology and Wisconsin history in general,
bronze plaque in a middle of farm field. the OSA enlisted help from the Charles E. Brown Archaeologi-
cal Society, a large group of nonprofessionals. Many others also
The New Volunteers donated their time and skills, including Boy Scout troop mem-
In the spring of 1991, one hundred and fifty-nine years after bers completing archaeology merit badge requirements. Between
the volunteer militia left Fort Blue Mounds, another large group 1991 and 2000, more than fifty different volunteers worked on
of volunteers converged on the site, this time to locate and docu- summer weekends, and, though slower than a typical archaeo-
ment the remains of the fort. Worried that development in the logical investigation, the project successfully accommodated vol-
rapidly growing rural area might damage the remains of Fort unteer schedules, demands of additional training and oversight,
Blue Mounds, the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Office of the and the inevitable impact of Wisconsin summer weather.
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Drawing by Mark Heinrichs based
on a drawing by Mike Thorson
Preliminary sketch of Fort Blue Mounds.
Personal motivations differed. Most were drawn to the proj- a quarter acre, so—if true—the land on which the fort rested had
ect by the excitement associated with unearthing important his- to extend onto surrounding farm fields. Three strategies were
torical artifacts. One individual, however, sought a personal used to search for the fort’s boundaries. First, with the coopera-
connection to history. Howard Houghton is a direct descendant tion of the landowner, the surface of surrounding farm lands was
of William Houghton, one of the Brigham’s “hands.” Howard systemically searched for artifacts that would mark locations of
provided much information about his great-great-grandfather, fort activities and structures. The survey included the use of a
including that William Houghton was a blacksmith. Howard metal detector and the excavation of small test trenches in an
spent many hours alongside his wife screening for artifacts that effort to bisect the walls of the fort. Second, the Society property
his relative might actually have used or made. was gridded off into five-foot squares, and a selection of these
units were carefully excavated by using shovels, trowels, screens,
Finding the Fort and other archaeological tools. Last, once preliminary informa-
The first task was to determine the exact location of the prop- tion had been gathered, local contractors rapidly removed the
erty donated to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 1910. On it top ten inches of soil in selected areas that had already been dis-
would be the remains of the fort. The historic marker was still on turbed by plowing to further uncover the remains of structures.
this land, but was it near the actual fort site? The deed to the Archaeologists use this last method judiciously since it necessari-
property had no reference to location. Volunteer Terry Genske, ly leads to the loss or destruction of potentially important artifacts
a civil engineer, reasoned that the bases of the broken cement in the plowed topsoil. More sophisticated remote sensing tech-
pillars that once marked the Society land could be found in the nology was employed but with limited success, due to the geolo-
ground using a metal detector because they had iron reinforcing gy and soil characteristics of the hill.
rods. Genske, who often has to search for property markers as a The land outside the Society’s quarter acre yielded few related
part of his job, then quickly located the bases of the markers, artifacts but excavators quickly uncovered straight dark soil dis-
reestablishing the quarter acre of Society land. coloration on the Society property that was several feet deep and
The next—and much greater—task was to locate the buried one foot wide, indicating a filled-in trench that once supported
remains of the fort on the small parcel of land. Historical the vertical logs forming the stockade or outer wall of the fort. In
accounts indicated that the size of the fort was much larger than several places, the rounded ends of the individual oak logs were
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Bobbie Malone
An archaeologist models correct technique for these children,
while the State Archaeologist (and writer of this article) looks on.
The students were there to pose for the cover of WHS Press book,
Digging and Discovery: Wisconsin Archaeology.
still there. Approximately five feet beyond the stockade, another dirt floor of one structure. The lack of a wall trench in the two
deep and wider dark stain was found to parallel the wall, a filled- corners of the fort suggests that blockhouses, unlike the stockade
in defensive ditch that encircled the fort. Tracking the orientation walls, were built using horizontal log construction, like log cabins.
of the stockade line and defensive ditch led to a huge surprise: The size of the blockhouses at Blue Mounds could not be deter-
Fort Blue Mounds was much smaller than the historical record, mined by the limited excavations but the gaps in the stockade
even eyewitness accounts, led us to believe. In fact it was entirely could have accommodated the fairly large structures described in
contained within the Society’s quarter acre. The deed to the the historical accounts. Although no specific size for the dwellings
property refers only to a “block house,” a term often used for both in the fort can be determined, only two walled areas for twenty or
the fort as a whole and the main building. Volunteer researchers more people, including children, reinforces the belief that the
discovered that the stockade—that is, the outer wall—was rectan- close quarters of the fort, during times of both terror and anxious
gular, measuring 55 feet by 45 feet. waiting, must have been a challenge.
It was built of individual oak logs placed vertically in a “wall-
trench” one foot wide and approximately two feet deep. The sur- Unearthing the Past
rounding defensive ditch ranged from four to seven feet wide and Several thousand artifacts were recovered, deposited during
four feet deep. Gaps in the southeast and northwest corners of the both the four-month occupation and after the lead miners
stockade represented the presence of the two blockhouses. In the returned to their normal lives. A major category of artifacts are
limited excavation, archaeologists found no structural evidence of related to military activities, and several hundred lead musket
the blockhouses, although a large, shallow dark stain found run- balls and shot pellets of various sizes were recovered primarily
ning perpendicular to the southeast corner of the fort may be the from the interior of the fort. Although many of the musket balls
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Photos by Joel Heiman
Above: Three pieces of lead found at the Fort Blue
Mounds site show the progress from mines to militia.
The block at left is raw lead; a musket ball or bullet is
lower left; and the piece at the right is sprue, the waste
product from the processing. Left: Local animals offered
more than food for physical sustenance. The domino
shown here is carved from animal bone, and it and
clay marbles found at the site allowed the settlers some
amusement while living in close conditions.
Army issued weapons as Johnson said, and U.S. army
regulars as documented after the Battle of Wisconsin
Heights. The button from U.S. army soldier’s uni-
and shot may have been standard military issue, the fort’s inhab- form, though not a gun-related object, further indicates a mili-
itants also cast ammunition in molds for themselves with lead tary presence at the site at some point.
taken from the adjacent mine. Some of the most common objects Domestic activities at the fort site are represented by hun-
found in the fort interior were small chunks of melted lead, the dreds of broken pieces of ceramic tableware and a smaller num-
by-products from the casting. Several fragments of castings with ber of bone-handled knives and forks and metal spoons.
lead shot attached, called “sprue,” as well as unprocessed lead Although only fragments, the ceramic shards are easily recog-
cubes were unearthed. nized as English imports colorfully decorated by a variety of
Other gun-related objects found were gunflints and one half methods referred to as transfer print, edge-decorated, annular,
of a broken lead gunflint patch. They were most likely left by the and hand-painted. Those found at Fort Blue Mounds thus far
federal soldiers, rather than the local militia because most of the differ from other sites in that the range of styles is narrower. This
flints at Fort Blue Mounds were the honey-colored French flints may reflect lower economic status of the Blue Mounds commu-
that the U.S. military preferred and purchased in quantity. Civil- nity, its remoteness from distribution centers, or most likely, that
ians tended to use black, British-made flints. But the broken lead life at the fort was perceived as temporary and immediate, and
gunflint patch? It would be a logical assumption that, because it not all available items were brought there.
was made of lead, it was a local product, but that logic would Analysis of ceramics also confirms that the site was used after
prove faulty. Only the military commonly used the mass-pro- the Black Hawk war. Makers’ marks on two nearly complete
duced lead patches because soldiers were likely to have to fire dishes discovered in the fill of the defensive ditch indicate that
their guns continuously. Leather patches were much more com- they were manufactured in the late 1840s. Ironically, one of the
mon on the frontier, when gunshots were more occasional and dishes was a commemorative plate for another American con-
there was little risk of burning through them. The presence of flict, the Texas Revolution of 1836. The discovery does not indi-
these two types of military artifacts confirms the presence of U.S. cate that the structure continued to be used as a fort, but rather
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that it continued to exist in the com- The Author Wisconsin history. Future research
munity of Blue Mounds. may also relocate the graves of Lt.
Animal bone found during the Robert Birmingham joined the Emerson Green, Pvt. William
excavations, combined with the his- Wisconsin Historical Society in 1986 Aubrey, and Pvt. George Force so
and has been the Wisconsin State
torical record, shows that the settlers that they can be appropriately
Archaeologist since 1989. He earned
subsisted on a narrow range of both bachelor’s and master’s marked as resting places of some of
domesticated and wild foods. The degrees in Anthropology from the the first American military casual-
settlers ate pork and venison with University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. ties of what is now Wisconsin.
minor amounts of beef and poultry. He is senior editor of the special vol-
1 Alice E. Smith. The History of Wisconsin: Vol. 1
Oats, corn, and garden crops were ume of The Wisconsin Archeologist called Wisconsin From Exploration to Statehood (Madison, WI: State
Archeology and the senior author of the new book Indian Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1973). Some of the
planted, although, like hunting, miners were working and living on lands that the Ho-
Mounds of Wisconsin published by the University of Wis-
these activities were disrupted by the consin Press. In 2000 he received the Increase Lapham Chunk still claimed.
2 Joseph Shafer, The Wisconsin Domesday Book
war. Brigham’s account books indi- Research Medal from the Wisconsin Archeological (Madison, WI: Wisconsin Historical Society 1932) 39.
3 Allen Ruff and Tracy Will, Forward! A History of
cate that potatoes, flour, and supple- Society. Dane: the Capital County (Cambridge, WI: Wood-
henge Press, 2000) 37–38.
mentary store-bought goods such as 4 H. A. Tenney, “Early Times in Wisconsin,” in Col-
sugar, salt, coffee, and tea were important to the people of Blue lections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society.) 1:98.
5 Edward Beouchard, “Beouchard’s Narrative,” in The History of Wisconsin in Three Parts, His-
Mounds.27 During the war, lack of food must have been problem torical, Documentary, and Descriptive, Part II, ed. William Smith (Madison, WI: 1854) 209–214.
6 Essau Johnson Papers, 1800–1882, Wisconsin Historical Society. Johnson’s reminiscences are
since letters to Dodge included desperate pleas not only for guns, embellished and confused with regard to regard chronology of events and therefore must be
but also for provisions. Other artifacts found at the fort site regarded critically.
7 Ebenezer Brigham Diary, Ebenezer Brigham Papers, Wisconsin Historical Society.
included numerous fragments of white clay pipes, wine and 8 Muster Role of Captain Sherman’s Company of Iowa Militia Stationed at Blue Mounds Fort,
Wisconsin Historical Society.
whiskey bottles, nails (mostly from boxes), tools, clothing buttons, 9 George M. Crawford and Robert Crawford, eds., Memoirs of Iowa County (Northwestern His-
and one coin—an 1838 American half penny found in the defen- torical Association, 1913) 25
10 Brigham Diary; Ellen M. Whitney, ed. The Black Hawk War:1831–1832 (Springfield: Illinois
sive ditch. Each provides an insight into the history of the fort. State Historical Society, 1970–1978, two vols.)
11 Blue Mounds Council, May 28, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol. 2, part 1,
The date of the half penny found at the bottom of a filled-in 467–469.
12 “Beouchard’s Narrative,” 213.
defensive ditch, helps date the filling of the trench by returned 13 John Sherman to Henry Dodge, May 30, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol. 2, part
miners. 1, 487–488.
14 “John Messersmith’s Narrative,” in The History of Wisconsin in Three Parts, Historical, Doc-
The discovery of each artifact excited the volunteer workers umentary, and Descriptive, Part II, ed. William Smith (Madison, WI: 1854) 225; “Beouchard’s
Narrative,” 214.
at the site, but a few artifacts in particular helped researchers to 15 Henry Gratiot to Henry Atkinson, June 6, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol. 2, part
understand the humanity behind the artifacts. A hand-carved 1, 531–532; Henry Gratiot to William Clark, June 12, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War,
vol. 2, part 1, 577-579; Henry Gratiot Diary, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol. 2, part 2,
bone domino piece and several clay marbles reflected games 1303.
16 Ebenezer Brigham to John H. Kinzie, June 15, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol.
played, perhaps to wile away the hours in the crowded and tense 2, part 1, 604–606; “Beouchard’s Narrative,” 209; Essau Johnson Papers.
17 James M. Stode to Henry Atkinson, June 10, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol. 2,
fort compound. These artifacts are a reminder of the humanity part 1, 566–569.
that belongs to history. In successfully connecting the two, this 18 Council with the Rock River Winnebago, September 11, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk
War, vol. 2, part 2, 1133.
archaeological project met its most basic goal. 19 Essau Johnson Papers.
20 On June 14 four men were killed at Spafford’s Farm near Hamilton’s diggings at modern day
But there were other goals as well. The Wisconsin Historical Wiota. On June 16 a man was killed and scalped during a battle on the Pecatonica River.
21 “Beouchard’s Narrative,” 211–212; Brigham Diary; Essau Johnson Papers.
Society archaeological investigations sampled only a small part 22 “Beouchard’s Narrative,” 212.
of the Fort Blue Mounds site, acquiring enough information to 23 Henry Dodge to Henry Atkinson, June 30, 1832, in Whitney, The Black Hawk War, vol 2, part
2, 715.
answer some basic questions about the physical layout and con- 24 Thayer, Crawford, ed., Hunting a Shadow: The Search for Black Hawk (privately published,
dition of the fort. The archaeological information combined with 1981) 203.
25 Essau Johnson Papers.
historical research provide a clearer window to the past than 26 Tenney, “Early Times in Wisconsin,” 6:347.
27 Accountant Books, Essau Johnson Papers.
what documentary evidence alone could provide. With this
information, the site was listed on the National Register of His-
For Further Study
toric Places in 2002.
The site of Fort Blue Mounds is not presently open to the public. However, off-
Other goals are still unmet. Remains of most of the fort site site interpretation, museum exhibits, and a major archaeological publication are
are still hidden and preserved below the surface of the hill on planned. Moreover, visitors can stop at a historic marker in the village of Blue
Mounds, within view of the fort site, commemorating the fort and the Black
Society property, awaiting future archaeological and historical Hawk War. Elsewhere, travelers can follow the Black Hawk trail in Wisconsin
by visiting thirty-five historic markers associated with the Black Hawk War
research. Perhaps one day, the fort can be accurately recon- recently erected by local historical organizations in cooperation with the Wis-
structed, bringing to life a tumultuous and important period of consin Historical Society.
57
SPRING 2003
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