Review: A Black Hawk War Guide: Landmarks, Battlefields, Museums and Firsthand Accounts

A Black Hawk War Guide: Landmarks, Battlefields, Museums and Firsthand Accounts by Ben Strand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I chose to read this guide to the Blackhawk War because I grew up in a small town just up the Mississippi River from Rock Island, Illinois, where the War began. I had always been intrigued that a War had occurred so near my hometown yet it was something that wasn’t taught in school. It makes one wonder. This book showed that, yes, the War did touch near my home, and that yes, there was a reason it isn’t talked about, even in Lincoln’s time. When the War began, Blackhawk left Rock Island and headed up the Rock River into Wisconsin. The American response was of two parts. First, the Illinois state militia followed Blackhawk’s tribe up river quickly, while the Federal troops took some additional time to begin their trek North. The book describes official markers that concern the War in Illinois and Wisconsin. It ends up the first marker is in Hillsdale, Illinois, a mile from where I attended 6th grade, and something I never knew about. No mention of Lincoln in the writeup about that marker and the first days of the campaign.

The author does a nice job in providing a guide to the War. He describes the initial political environment and reasons for the War, then gives the chronology of the War and battles, and ends with some post-War details on the major participants, in particular Blackhawk. The “guide” part of the book includes description of historic and natural aspects of the lands covered by the armies of the US and the tribe. The author also briefly describes the major participants, including a number of Chiefs, including “The Prophet”, that had an impact on the decisions made before and during the War. The author describes the chronology of the War. And the author also covers the current day historic and even tourism highlights of the areas included. With this book as a guide, one could put together a historic tour of the battle from beginning to end, and be sure to see many of the major landmarks, historic markers, and tourist sites. He even mentions one of the riverboat tours from the Quad Cities to Dubuque as a way to get a feel for the River (although he neglects mentioning a second boat that has a similar itinerary).

The author also makes sure to inform the readers that many people of the time, apparently including Lincoln, did not look upon this War as a noble effort. Lincoln rarely mentioned his part in this War, even though his military service might have in general helped in his elections. This explained to me why this wasn’t something that was taught in my school near where the War began.

Overall, this was a wonderful book if you are local to the area and are interested in the history of the Blackhawk War. It is even more valuable if you want to drive to the sites of the War, making sure to see markers, forts, towns, and tourist stops that are likely not collected in this way anywhere else. I look forward to making such a tour in the near future.


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