Post by Robert Braun on Aug 2, 2002 12:17:42 GMT -5
Lewis Barney provided the following autobiographical account of his service before and following Stillman's Run. He had not yet reached his twenty-fourth birthday:
The governor of Illinois called for volunteers to raise an army to drive the Indians from Illinois. I volunteered my services in that campaign under the orders of Captain John Dawson who was under Major James D. Henry of the Spy Battalion who was under General Atkinson. We rendezvoused at Bierets town on the bank of the Illinois River, in the month of April 1832. Here we waited the arrival of the troops from the different counties of the State, and also the arrival of the boats bringing our supplies.
Everything necessary being prepared, we took up the line of march for the Yellow Banks, up the Mississippi River. Here we recruited our supplies and animals from the boats that were sent up the river for that purpose. From here marched across the Dixon on Rock River, and while awaiting the arrival of the boats with provisions about midnight, three men road into camp wounded and bleeding, bringing the word that Stilman's Company were defeated and all killed, numbering three hundred men. The alarm being given, the Bugle sounded and all hands ordered on parade.
The whole camp, three thousand men were out of provisions and waiting the arrival of the boats up the river, with supplies for the army. General Atkinson ordered Dixons cattle all butchered, they being very thin in flesh and sixteen in number. In fifteen or twenty minutes after the three men came in, four more men rode into camp with word that Stillman's whole company was massacred and they barely escaped, and all behind them were murdered. In fifteen or twenty minutes seven more men rode into camp with the same lamentable tale. So squad after squad kept dropping in until there were only ninety men missing out of the three hundred. A little before day the beef was rationed out amounting to one and one half pounds to the man. I threw my portion on the coals to roast, saddled my horse, gathered up my beef ready for the work march, which was given in a few minutes after. We then took up the line of march for the battle field.
On arriving at the camp ground we found eleven men all cut to pieces and eighteen or twenty horses dead on the ground. We gathered up the dead and buried them. We then searched the country for ten or twelve miles around. We found two Indians hung up in a tree. We then returned back to Dixon's having been gone three days. On arriving we found the boats had arrived with the supplies for the camp, which were cheerfully received, as the camp was out of provisions and had been for five days, with the exception of a little parched corn that we had for horse feed.
Barney later went on to adopt the Mormon faith, and became personally acquainted with its founder, Joseph Smith. He reportedly died in 1896
The governor of Illinois called for volunteers to raise an army to drive the Indians from Illinois. I volunteered my services in that campaign under the orders of Captain John Dawson who was under Major James D. Henry of the Spy Battalion who was under General Atkinson. We rendezvoused at Bierets town on the bank of the Illinois River, in the month of April 1832. Here we waited the arrival of the troops from the different counties of the State, and also the arrival of the boats bringing our supplies.
Everything necessary being prepared, we took up the line of march for the Yellow Banks, up the Mississippi River. Here we recruited our supplies and animals from the boats that were sent up the river for that purpose. From here marched across the Dixon on Rock River, and while awaiting the arrival of the boats with provisions about midnight, three men road into camp wounded and bleeding, bringing the word that Stilman's Company were defeated and all killed, numbering three hundred men. The alarm being given, the Bugle sounded and all hands ordered on parade.
The whole camp, three thousand men were out of provisions and waiting the arrival of the boats up the river, with supplies for the army. General Atkinson ordered Dixons cattle all butchered, they being very thin in flesh and sixteen in number. In fifteen or twenty minutes after the three men came in, four more men rode into camp with word that Stillman's whole company was massacred and they barely escaped, and all behind them were murdered. In fifteen or twenty minutes seven more men rode into camp with the same lamentable tale. So squad after squad kept dropping in until there were only ninety men missing out of the three hundred. A little before day the beef was rationed out amounting to one and one half pounds to the man. I threw my portion on the coals to roast, saddled my horse, gathered up my beef ready for the work march, which was given in a few minutes after. We then took up the line of march for the battle field.
On arriving at the camp ground we found eleven men all cut to pieces and eighteen or twenty horses dead on the ground. We gathered up the dead and buried them. We then searched the country for ten or twelve miles around. We found two Indians hung up in a tree. We then returned back to Dixon's having been gone three days. On arriving we found the boats had arrived with the supplies for the camp, which were cheerfully received, as the camp was out of provisions and had been for five days, with the exception of a little parched corn that we had for horse feed.
Barney later went on to adopt the Mormon faith, and became personally acquainted with its founder, Joseph Smith. He reportedly died in 1896
