Indian Creek Massacre markers - North of Harding, IL
Posted by: 
adgorn
N 41° 32.308 W 088° 51.224
16T E 345370 N 4600194
An older refurbished marker moved to this site to accompany the new marker, commemorating the Indian Creek Massacre of 1832.
Waymark Code: WMRQBW
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 07/23/2016
Views: 2
Original marker text: "On May 20, 1832, hostile Indians, mainly Potawatomi, massacred fifteen men, women and children of the Indian Creek settlement two miles to the west. Two girls, Rachel and Sylvia Hall, were carried into captivity and later ransomed. All had disregarded the warning of Shabbona, the white man's friend."
This marker was located nearby and had fallen into disrepair. It was refurbished by members of the the Illinois Valley Horsemen's Association and relocated here to Lasalle County’s Shabbona Park north of Harding, the location of the massacre.
The park, which is two miles due west of where the sign had long stood, was deemed a more fitting location for it. Another new marker explaining the massacre in more detail has been erected at its side.
From a local news article: "The massacre of 15 white men, women and children took place on May 21, 1832. The killings stemmed from settler William Davis' refusal to take down a dam he constructed that prevented local American Indians from being able to fish the creek. The incident coincided with the Black Hawk War and ended up with the settlers killed and scalped and gruesomely mutilated. The victims were buried in what now is the park and monuments were erected in 1877 and 1906."
Wikipedia has a good article on the details of the event at (
visit link)
At the time of this posting, The Illinois State Historical Society has not yet updated their marker website with info on the new marker.
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