Macomb, Illinois, Celebrates General Macomb's Birthday-- Part 2

The future Macdonough County was part of the Military Tract of 1812 that Congress set aside as payment to soldiers in the War of 1812.  This was an attempt to get families moving to the frontier.  Many of them and their heirs were unwilling to relocate and sold their land warrants to speculators.

Nearby to Macomb is Old Fort Madison which was attacked by Indians allied with the British during the War of 1812.  The original fort was abandoned and burned by the U.S. Army in 1813 when they ran out of food due to a contractor sending them unsafe food.  A reproduction of the fort has been built in Riverview Park in Ft. Madison, Iowa.

--Brock-Perry

Macomb, Illinois, Celebrates General Macomb's Birthday-- Part 1

From the April 4, 2016, Western Courier (Macomb, Illinois) "Community celebrates General Macomb;s birthday" by Tabi Joswick.

The Western Illinois Museum, Macomb Area Convention and Visitors Center and City of Macomb hosted a birthday celebration for the city's namesake, General Alexander Macomb.   He was a War of 1812 hero best known for his victory at the Battle of Plattsburgh on September 11, 1814.

Though outnumbered, he used his Army Corps of Engineers to create dead end fake roads that caused British troops to get lost.  Commander Thomas Macdonough, namesake of Macdonough County (where Macomb is located) led the naval Battle of Lake Champlain which took place adjacent to the Battle of Plattsburgh.

More to Come.  --Brock-Perry