Hello again

[wfwenzel]

Some of you will remember me, I hope.

The former President of the Sauk Prairie Historical Society when it was re-formed in the 1990s, and was featured in the WSJ article at the 175th ceremony in 2007. I enjoy taking tours to Wisconsin Heights.

I've been interested in the Black Hawk War for many years, probably since Wisconsin Heights is only a few miles down river from here.

I'm a land surveyor, which makes research easy, and have done some surveying work at Wisconsin Heights. I relocated the actual remains of the oak post that US Deputy Surveyor John Mullet set in October of 1832, along with the remains of one of his bearing trees. (West 1/4 corner of Section 19, T9N, R7E)

I've also run the Range Line from there north through the battle site to Hy Y, a half mile misery of prickly ash and 8' nettles then. It helped put the site on the National Register.

I've also mapped the 5 mounds in the immediate vicinity for the state.

Also worked on the site with DNR and a private archaeologist as well, and mapped the site some. Also been to the Bloody Lake site too.

I am getting back interested in the War in general, and in particular:
-Just where did the Sauk cross the Wisconsin River?
-What was the route from there to Bad Ax?

I'd like to talk to many of you, both on the Board and off. My email address is easily Googled up, and I like to make summer trips.

Regards,

Bill Wenzel
Prairie du Sac

[Larry Koschkee]

Bill,

The brief answer to your second question; what was the route from there to Bad Axe?, is to refer to a "Auto Touring Route" publication that was part of the Wisconsin Sesquicentennial celebration. The pamphlet has a map and a list of historical markers.

In response to your first question; just where did the Sauk cross the Wisconsin River?, I can share some of my investigation.

A few years ago an amigo and I followed up on Black Hawk's statements from his autobiography..."we were proceeding to the Quisconsin, with our women and children. We arrived and had commenced crossing them to an island, when we discovered a large body of enemy coming towards us."

"...and finding that the enemy would not come near enough to receive our fire, in the dusk of the evening -- and knowing that our woman and children had had sufficient time to reach the island in the Quisconsin, I ordered my warriors to return, in different routes, and meet me at the Quisconsin..."

We know that Black Hawk's original intent was to descend down the Wisconsin. The army catching up changed that somewhat. Bark was stripped from trees to make crude watercraft and the Sauk traded with the Winnebago sympthitizers for canoes. The weak and infirm were sent down river. The others completed the river crossing.

We examined the Battle of Wisconsin Heights map published in the Iowa Historical Record, vol 6, January, 1890, General Land Office Survey notes and sketch maps, Sauk County Plat maps and The Vegetation of the Town of Prairie du Sac by Herman Frederic Lueders, Transactions of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, vol 10, p 510, 1895, Wisconsin Geological Survey maps and put in our canoe at low and high water stages at Sauk City to access the immediate islands.

We determined the crossing point to be present-day Bergen's Island.

Best
Larry Koschkee