Early History of Peoria-- Part 2: The Coming of the War of 1812

During 1810, a series of raids were launched by Illinois Indians which resulted in a great deal of anxiety among the settlers.  Throughout the next year, British representatives from Canada; still upset  over their defeat in the American Revolution, continued to encourage the Indians to attack the white settlers throughout the Illinois Territory.

The War of 1812 began in June of that year and that caused the French settlers in Peoria to be at war with the British and their Indian allies, including the Potawatomi.  Because the French settlers at Peoria had a close relationship with the Potawatomi, their position was extremely difficult.

In August of 1812,  the American post at Chicago, Fort Dearborn, was taken by the Potawatomi, and many of the soldiers and residents  were killed or taken prisoner. Thomas Forsyth of Peoria, half brother and  partner of Chicago trader John Kinzie, went north to negotiate with the Indians for the return of the prisoners.

In the meantime, Governor Ninian Edwards had been receiving reports that Peoria was a hotbed of Indian troubles.  In October, 1812, just a few months after Fort Dearborn, the governor led an attack  of mounted troops across the prairies from Fort Russell near Edwardsville (no one is sure where this fort's actual location was), and destroyed the Potawatomi village of Chief Black Partridge at the upper end of Lake Peoria, on the east side of the river.

Although the soldiers found the village deserted, they plundered and burned it.  In clashes with nearby Indians, 25 to 30 were killed.

--Brock-Perry

Antioch, Illinois, to Honor War of 1812 Veteran

From the May 29, 2021, Daily Herald (Chicago Suburbs) Antioch to dedicate monument for War of 1812 soldier."

A monument for Antioch's oldest-known soldier, Captain Leverett  Barnes, who served in the War of 1812, will be dedicated at 10:30 a.m., Monday, May 31, at Hillside Cemetery, Route 173 and Hillside Avenue.

The dedication is part of a Memorial Day service sponsored by Antioch  American Legion Post  748, Sequoit  VFW Post 4551 and the Lakes Region  Historical Society.

A reception will follow at the VFW Hall, 75 North Avenue.  In case of bad weather, the entire  event will be held in the hall.

I had no idea we had a War of 1812 veteran buried near us.

--Brock-Perry

New United States Daughters of 1812 Forming in Montana-- Part 1

From the August 17, 2020,   KPVI 6 NBC News (Pocatello, Idaho)  "Daughters of 1812 organizing in Montana."

The National Society United States Daughters of 1812, a lineage group, is organizing a Montana  State Society.  Women from Butte, Hamilton, Corvallis, Bozeman, Lewistown, , Jefferson City, Havre,  Helena, Great Falls and Red Lodge are joining women  from Couer d' Alene, Nampa, idaho and South Dakota to form the organization.

The initial organizational  meeting will be held Saturday, September 26, at the Jefferson Community Center in Jefferson City.  Attendance can either be in person or by Zoom.

I am always happy to see am organization devoted to history forming, but I can see a definite problem with a group that spread out.  Meetings are always going to be difficult as it involves a whole lot of travel for many of the members.

This is a big problem with a group I belong to, the Sons of Confederate Veterans which has a camp in Chicago, the Camp Douglas Camp, #516.  The members are just spread too far apart for attendance at meetings.

But, anyway, I'm happy to see this group forming and hope they find a way to overcome the distance problem.

--Brock-Perry

Five Places to Visit for Veterans Day-- Part 1: National Veterans Art Museum and Pearl Harbor

From the Nov. 8, 2019 Your Sun.

GOGROUP LLC,  has put together a list of five places to visit  in the next several days to honor our veterans:

1.  THE NATIONAL VETERANS ART MUSEUM,  Chicago.    (I'd never heard of this one.)    Over 2,500 works of art by veterans, including the Gulf War and War on Terror.

Paintings, sculpture and poetry.

2.  PEARL HARBOR NAVAL BASE,  Oahu, Hawaii.     A memorial to the 2,400 Americans killed that day and the thousands more killed in Pacific action.

Includes the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, USS Arizona Memorial and USS Missouri Memorial.

--Brock-Perry

They Were There at Omaha Beach, June 6, 1944-- Part 2

Veteran Ray Wagner, 94, also spoke at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library.  Wagner's Duck boat sank as his Army division landed on Omaha Beach during the D-Day assault.

Wagner, who grew up and still lives in Chicago, was hit in the knee by shrapnel and later received the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.

"I can only say that I am happy to be here.  I know a lot of people aren't.  If it wasn't for them, half of us wouldn't be either," he said.

George Ronan-- Part 14: Perhaps This Clarifies What Ronan Said To His Commanding Officer

From  the Together We Served site.  All of these entries of late have been coming from this site

From the book "The Chicago Massacre."

I well remember a remark made by Ensign Ronan as the attack began, he turned to me and said:  "Such is to be our fate -- to be shot down like Beasts.

The commanding officer, Captain Nathan Heald overheard him say this  and said, "Well, sir, are you afraid?"

"No," replied the high-spirited young man, "I can march up to the enemy where you dare not show your face!"

And, his subsequent brave behavior showed this to be no idle boast.

So, That Must Have Been The Insult.  --Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 13: Chicago's Ronan Park

The park district  soon signed a lease for 7.5 acres of water district land, and by the mid-1960s, playgrounds and green spaces lined both shores of the North Shore Channel.  In the 1990s the park district began leasing additional water district land, bringing the park's total acreage to nearly 13 acres.

The entire park was  rehabilitated and a bike path added as a larger plan to create a recreational corridor along the river.

The park is located at  3000 Argyle Street in Chicago, Illinois.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 12: Ronan Park in Chicago

Ronan Park, part of the Chicago Park District, honors the life of the young Ensign Ronan, who died in the Fort Dearborn Massacre on August 12, 1812.

In 1929, the City of Chicago built a new pumping station east of the channelized North Branch of the  the Chicago River to meet the increasing need for water in the neighboring Lincoln Square and Albany Park neighborhoods.  Just over thirty years later, the Metropolitan  Water reclamation District and the Chicago Park District began working together to create recreational space adjoining the pumping station.

This became Ronan Park.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 11: Died A Hero, First West Pointer Killed in the War

The massacre happened on August 12, 1812,  and a very interesting fact is coming out about that bloody day and that is the connection between West Point and Chicago.

"Ensign George Ronan, a West Point graduate of 1811, was killed here in 1812 according to West Point records.  he's the first West Pointer killed in action," says Victorio Giustino.

And survivors of the battle say he died a hero.  He was fatally wounded but fought on trying to protect the others.

There is a small patch of land set aside to honor George Ronan.

--Brock-Perry

The Eighth Year of This Blog

I started this blog in 2012 to mark the Bicentennial of the War of 1812.  I figured on keeping it going until 2015 to mark the 200th anniversary of the end of the war.  As you can see, it didn't stop then.

I knew more about the war than most Americans, but I have learned a whole lot about the war.  For instance, from today's earlier post, I didn't know the first star in Chicago's flag represented the Fort Dearborn Massacre.  Now I know.

Anyway, today's posts mark the beginning of the blog's eighth year and this is the 2897th post.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 10: The First Star On the Chicago Flag Represents the Tragedy

According to Chicago historian Victorio Giustino:

"This is where it took place, August 15, 1812, when the troops leaving Fort Dearborn were attacked by the Indians.

"There is little left now of that terrible day during the War of 1812.  A painting hangs in City Hall in the council chambers, and gives us some idea of what happened.  On the Chicago flag, the first star represents the tragedy. And at Michigan Avenue and Wacker, the site of Fort Dearborn is clearly outlined.

"And a giant sculpture does a very distant replay of the hand-to-hand combat."

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 9: George Ronan and the Fort Dearborn Massacre

From the Together We Served site.

From August 19, 2009, WLS AM  "Historian wants recognition for forgotten hero."  Frank Mathie.

Almost all Chicagoans have heard about the Fort Dearborn Massacre.  But very few of us have ever heard of Ensign George Ronan.

Ronan was a hero of that battle in the War of 1812, and now a Chicago historian, Victor Giustino, wants recognition for that forgotten man.

In this age of political correctness, the Fort Dearborn Massacre is now referred to as the Battle of Fort Dearborn.  And at 18th and Prairie along the lakefront, a new historical marker tells the story of how 91 people - soldiers, men, women and children - who were fleeing Fort Dearborn were attacked by 500 Potawatomi Indians.  More than half the Americans were killed.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 8: Did He Insult Captain Heald?

From the Together We Served Site.

From the book "Checagou:  From Indian Wigwam to Modern City 1673-1835.

In March 1811, George Ronan, a young cadet direct from West Point, was given the rank of ensign and ordered to repair at once to Fort Dearborn.  Practically our only estimate of him  is one recorded by Mr. Kinzie.

At the height of the panic over the murders at the Lee farm, Ronan volunteered to lead a squad of soldiers to the rescue of the Burns family, which was believed to be in imminent danger of slaughter.

On the fateful day of the evacuation [from Fort Dearborn] four months later, Ronan is pictured as uttering an impudent taunt to Captain Heald.  If he actually committed this fault, he offered the best possible atonement a little later, when "mortally wounded and nearly down"  he continued to fight desperately to the end.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 7: His Legacy

George Ronan is usually considered the first West Point-educated officer to die in the War of 1812.  He was an ensign, which made him the lowest rank of officer in the U.S. Army at the time.  That rank has been abolished and today would be a second lieutenant.

Sculptor Henry Hering, in his 1928 "Defense" bas relief mounted on the Michigan Avenue Bridge, adjacent to the site of Fort Dearborn, centered it on an unnamed junior officer depicted as protecting women and children civilians.  That was probably Ronan.

Ronan Park, a 3-acre unit of the Chicago Park District is located at 3000 West Argyle Street on the Chicago River and named in his honor.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 6: His Death

On the morning of August 15, 1812,  Nathan Heald and George Ronan led their force and civilians out of Fort Dearborn, 93 persons in all.  And, they ran into the Potawatomi ambush.  It quickly turned into a massacre.

Witnesses said they saw Ronan continuing to fight even after he was mortally wounded.  They say he killed two warriors before he died.

Survivors believe the spot where he was struck down was at or close to what is now  the intersection of 21st Street and Indiana Avenue in the Prairie Avenue neighborhood of Chicago's Near South Side.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 5: Ronan and His Commander Did Not Get Along

Although he didn't know it at the time, George Ronan had been posted to one of the hottest spots on the frontier.

Ronan was described by survivors of the massacre as a high-spirited young man who did not get along well with the fort's commander, Captain Nathaniel Heald.  It is thought this was the reason Heald kept assigning Ronan increasingly dangerous operations outside the fort's walls.

One of the things Ronan was to do was to try to knit the diverse inhabitants of the area into a group, but some were French-speaking, others English-speaking and still others  were Indians.

When war broke out, Nathaniel Heald received orders to evacuate the post and move to Fort Wayne, Indiana.  News of this evacuation, scheduled for August 15, 1812,  emboldened the Chicago "British" band of Potawatomi who took a position two miles south of the fort along the shore of Lake Michigan where they planned to attack  the Americans.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 3: Killed a Year After Commissioning

From Wikipedia.

Ensign George Ronan was a commissioned officer in the United States Army.  Educated at West Point, he was assigned to the 1st Infantry Regiment in 1811, and assigned to duty at Fort Dearborn, a frontier post at the mouth of the Chicago River.  Just over a year later, he was killed in combat there and as such was the first member of the West Point Corps of Cadets to die in battle.

He attended the Military Academy for almost three years from June 1808 to March 1811.  At the time eh graduated, the  Academy was just six years old and he was commissioned in its ninth year.  And, there weren't a lot of cadets attending at the time.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan-- Part 2: "At Least He Dies Like A Soldier"

At what is today referred to as the Fort Dearborn Massacre and died.

Fighting a "vastly superior force of savages, two of who he slew in a hand-to-hand fight, but, while upon his knees as he had fallen faint from his bleeding wounds, still wielding his sword, he himself was killed , in the Combat, August 15, 1812:  Aged 28."

"I pointed to Ensign Ronan, who, though mortally wounded and nearly down, was still fighting with desperation on one knee.

"Look at that man! said I.  At least he dies like a soldier."

The exact spot of this encounter was about where 21st Street crosses Indiana Avenue.

--Brock-Perry

George Ronan, Mortally Wounded at Fort Dearborn-- Part 1

From the For What They Gave On Saturday Afternoon site.

While researching for Col. James Gibson, I came across his name.

GEORGE RONAN

Born New York.  Appointed to USMA from New York.

Military History Cadet of the Military Academy, June 15, 1806, to March 1, 1811, when he graduated and was promoted to Army Ensign, 1st Infantry, March 1, 1811.

Served on the Northwest Frontier, 1811-1812; and in the War of 1812-1815 with Great Britain, being engaged in Captain Heald's desperate engagement  near Ft. Chicago, Illinois,  (Fort Dearborn).

--Brock-Perry

John Whistler and the Founding of Chicago's Fort Dearborn-- Part 2

In 1875, Mrs. William Whistler (I imagine the wife of William Whistler) said that when they arrived that there were only four cabins or traders' huts occupied by Canadian French and their Indian wives.

In the spring 1804, John Kenzie, living near Niles, Michigan, bought land there and came with his wife and infant son.  He was the first Anglo-White and lived there until late 1827, except for the four years between the summer of 1812 to the fall of 1816 when Fort Dearborn was destroyed and finally rebuilt.

In 1810, John Whistler returned to Detroit and Captain Nathan Heald assumed command of Fort Dearborn.  Captain Heald was in command in the Fort Dearborn Massacre.

John Whistler then commanded Detroit until the arrival of General William Hull.

--Brock-Perry