Langworthy's Close Encounter

[Larry Koschkee]

From the time Black Hawk's Band crossed the Mississippi River in April of 1832 until the Battle of Wisconsin Heights July 21, 1832 encountering Black Hawk's core group of men, women and children was extremely rare. Correct me if I am wrong, but the only documented white men to do so was sub-agent Henry Gratiot and Gratiot's business clerk, George Cubbage. That encounter was at The Prophets village (present day Prophetstown, IL). Well you say what about Stillman's Run, Dement's Run and the seige at Apple River Fort? Those were encounters with the Black Hawk Band's warriors, not the core family group of elder men, women and children.

At Fort Koshkonong Atkinson instructed General's Henry Dodge and James Henry to move their commands to Fort Winnebago for much needed supplies. In a letter from Dodge to General Henry Atkinson dated July 18, 1832, Dodge indicated his command was reduced from 200 to 150 men. ...about fifty of my men left me at Fort Winnabago I sent 35 of them Home owing to their Horses being unfit for service my command is about 150 men. While at the fort the General's received information that Black Hawk's Band was in the neighborhood and decided to act on that information.

An express was sent to Atkinson informing him of their intentions. This express discovered the trail of Black Hawk's Band heading southwest and returned to Dodge and Henry's command with the news.

Four Langworthy brothers, James, Edward, Solon and Lucius, were militia volunteers under Captain James Gentry command (Michigan Territory). (I wish we had the muster rolls to verify) It is not certain they all were with Dodge at Fort Winnebago, but Lucius H. Langworthy was. The following recollection of Lucius is found in a bound collection of Langworthy family autobiographies, biographies and sketchs. This information was graciously shared with me by Mr. Jon Angeli, President of the Grant County Historical Society.

"...He led a company of spies as Lieutenant in the Black Hawk War under the command of Captain James Gentry, and from Fort Winnebago took through to Mineral Point a company of invalids with broken down horses, mules, etc. Black Hawk's band had scattered while pursued by our arm in July, 1832, and their trail was lost. But this party headed by Mr. Langworthy on their way to Mineral Point from Fort Winnebago encamped near where Madison city now stands. They made no fire but laid down on their arms with their horses closely tethered because the Indians were supposed to be somewhere in that vicinity.

Early in the morning they began to hear horses nicker, dogs bark, etc., not far off. At daylight they crept silently up to the top of a ridge of land, whence they discovered about two miles away Black Hawk's entire band just mounting their horses on their retreat towards the Wisconsin. A courier was at once dispatched back to General Dodge with this intelligence. Our army overtook them at the crossing of the Wisconsin. Had they known of this small party of invalids so near them on that night not one man would have escaped for they were over 2000 warriors, the flower of Black Hawk's army..."

Now a clear sighting of two miles away and 2000 warriors may be a bit of stretch, it should not detract from this rare recollection which is corroborated with a published source.

[Larry Koschkee]

While researching Langworthy's encounter with Black Hawk it became clear that Black Hawk's Band was operating under the very noses of the U. S. Regulars and Militia for eleven days prior to the July 21st battle at Wisconsin Heights. Eleven days and was not detected.

Was this a stroke of luck or by stealth? General Atkinson was at Koshkonong, U. S. Regulars were at Fort Winnebago, Alexander and Henry's brigades along with Dodge's miners were crisscrossing within a box made up of corner points of Koshkonong, Four Lakes, the Portage and rapids of Rock River (present day Hustisford). The distance of the sides of this irregular shaped box is: Koshkonong to Four Lakes - 35 miles, thence 40 miles to the Portage, thence 52 miles to Rock River Rapids, thence 38 miles to Koshkonong.

Within this box the countryside was literally crawling with Militia between July 10th and July 20th. Langworthy and his little band of broken down militia men and horses was the only recorded whitemen to detect Black Hawk's Band.

Alexander, Dodge and Henry milita left Koshkonong on July 10th for supplies at Fort Winnebago. Alexander departed Fort Winnebago on the 15th destined to Koshkonong. Henry and Dodge departed the same day for the rapids of Rock River and arrived there on the 18th. An express from Dodge and Henry destined to Koshkonong struck Black Hawk's trail on the 19th. Dodge and Henry never got a glimpse of Black Hawk's Band until the 21st.

Was there just too much real estate within this box to expect something other than a chance discovery? General Land Office Survey Field Notes and Euro-American pre-settlement witness accounts indicate the landscape was not a dense, massive forest, rather a mosaic of prairie, oak openings and groves of timber. Did the band travel at night in open country and hide-out in the timber during the day?

I doubt the sizable band of men, women and children, horses and dogs could maintain silence. Children crying, dogs barking and horses nickering and whinnying would create a sizeable noise level. There also would be the presence of metal against metal, metal against stone. The image of approximately 1,000 Indians, some mounted moving across the landscape... main body in one or two trails and flanked on both sides by warriors is quite a picture.

Besides noise level and visual detection, what of olfactory detection. Human and animal excreta levels would be considerable. Perhaps we must rule out reliable detection by sound and smell due to human limitations of these senses. Major Kirpatrick's dog would have proven valuable in this regard as it did sorting out the trail of Indians just before Dodge caught up with them at the Horseshoe Bend of the Pecatonica River.