1812 Battlefield Site

1812 Battlefield Site. In honor of our Deceased Soldiers. , Near this location a government trading post, or factory, was established in 1808 for the use of Sac, Fox, Ioway and Des Moines River Sioux. Initially a temporary facility, christened Fort Madison, in the spring of 1809 and garrisoned by a company of the First United States Infantry Regiment. Fort Madison was created under Article 9 of the 1804 Treaty of St. Louis, as part of the payment for lands ceded to the United States, by the Sac and Fox in the present day states of Illinois and Missouri. Fort Madison was a government trading post, or factory, designed to provide manufactured goods, such as material for clothing, blankets, cooking utensils, gunpowder, firearms, agricultural implements and personal items., at a cost to the Sac, Fox, Ioway, and Des Moines River Sioux, in return for furs, bees' wax, tallow, feathers and lead. The post was extremely popular among the majority of these Nations and became the third highest grossing factory in the entire government system between 1808 and 1811. During the War of 18 12, the fort was primarily attacked by Ho-Chunk (Winnebago), Menominee and a few disgruntled Sac. Most of the people trading at the factory did not attack it and were greatly inconvenienced by it's destruction in 1812. The factory was moved from St. Louis to this location in 1808, to make it more convenient for the Natives and to counter British influence among them, following the Chesapeake Affair. War came to the outpost in March and April of 18 12 when Ho-Chunk war parties, seeking vengeance for losses at the Battle of Tippecanoe, harassed the garrison in a loose siege, which resulted in the deaths of two soldiers and caused, perhaps, a half dozen Ho-Chunk casualties., In September 1812 the Shawnee leader Tecumseh unleashed a theatre wide offensive, attacking Fort Wayne (IN), Fort Harrison (IN) and Fort Madison endured an intense siege in which one soldier was killed. Native casualties are nearly impossible to ascertain but may have been as many as a dozen. During the fighting the trading post was burned and for the last year of its existence Fort Madison was a forward intelligence gathering outpost. In 1813 Ho-Chunk, Menominee and Sac struck the post on the 8th and again on the 16th resulting in deaths of six soldiers. In addition to the fighting in July, the ration contractor began shipping rotten meat and moldy flour to the fort. By early November 1813 the garrison was down to rotten pork and potatoes. Without any food and winter coming on, the fort's commanding officer, First Lieutenant Thomas Hamilton, ordered his men to burn the fort and sail for St. Louis., Sgt Samuel Keeley, 12 Oct 1808 Pinkneys Co . Corp George Ilginfritz, Apr 1809 Pinkneys Co . Pvt Nicholas Tracy, 2 Aug 1809 Pinkneys Co . Pvt John King, 19 Sept 1809 Pinkneys Co . Pvt Daniel O'Flanagan, 22 Feb 1810 Pinkneys Co . Pvt John Carrigan, Mar 1811 Starks Co . Pvt William Long, Sept 1811 Starks Co . Pvt James Moore, 21 Sept 1811 Starks Co . Pvt Hugh McNeal, 5 Feb 1812 Starks Co . + Corp James Leonard, 3 Mar 1812 Starks Co . Pvt Gregory Rogan, 13 Apr 1812 Starks Co . + Pvt John Cox, 5 Sept 1812 Starks Co . Pvt Thomas Sampson, 2 June 1813 Owens Co . + Pvt Samuel Heritage, 8 July 1813 Deshas Co . + Pvt John Minard, 8 July 1813 Owens Co . + Corp William Elsey, 16 July 1813 Starks Co . + Pvt Thomas Faulkner, 16 July 1813 Starks Co . + Pvt John Bowers, 16 July 1813 Starks Co . + Pvt John Ritts, 16 July 1813 Starks Co . Pvt Samuel Christey, 28 Aug 1813 Cross Co . Pvt William Smith, 7 Nov 1813 Cross Co . Pvt John Pointer, 31 Aug 1814 Callaways Co , + Killed in Action, Pinkneys Co 1st US Inf Rgt . Starks Co 1st US Inf Rgt . Owens Co 1st US Inf Rgt . Deshas Co 24th US Inf Rgt . Cross Co 1st US Art Rgt . Missouri Territory Rangers